- So this orchard here is actually the orchard
that was planted the day before I was born.
This is Steve's Orchard.
- [Narrator] Every week during the harvest season
for the past seven years, Country Mill has taken part
in the farmers market in the nearby city
of Easy Lansing, Michigan.
Selling organic fruit at the market
was a growing part of their business.
One of the ways Steve and Bridget reach out to the
communities they serve is through their Facebook page.
Here they share their events
and thoughts about life on the farm.
- Last year, a question came up
on Country Mill's Facebook page asking Country Mill
about a religious belief that they held.
- [Narrator] In response, Steve expressed
his belief in biblical marriage.
- The city of East Lansing saw that post,
and they contacted Steve right away,
and they told County Mill that they
were concerned about that belief.
They questioned him about it and they asked
that Country Mill decide, voluntarily,
to stop coming to the East Lansing Farmers Market.
- We were surprised because, for over seven years,
we'd been serving all the customers with no complaints,
no issues, no protests.
- Then, in January, East Lansing did not invite Country Mill
to come back to the East Lansing Farmers Market,
so Country Mill went ahead and filed
an application with the market.
They immediately got a letter back saying that they were
prohibited from coming to the market for this year.
- All of a sudden I felt like we couldn't
even believe what we wanted to believe.
We had to be quiet.
- East Lansing sent back a second letter telling Steve
that he could not come to the market
because of his Facebook post,
and attaching a copy of that Facebook post.
They said that it violated their beliefs.
- Never before would I ever have thought that
the faith that we have here at our family and our home,
at our farm, would prohibit us from being allowed
to participate in the community.
- [Narrator] Alliance Defending Freedom is representing
Country Mill Farm to protect their First Amendment freedoms
and ensure that the government can't single out
people of faith for discrimination simply
because of what they say or think.
- It's really about every small business owner,
every individual who participates in a city,
in their public events, in their marketplace.
East Lansing is setting a standard
that you cannot participate in our public venues
and you cannot participate in our marketplace,
and we can hurt your livelihood if you don't ascribe
to a belief that we agree with.
- [Narrator] As for Steve and his family,
they say tolerance is a two-way street.
Their belief in marriage has been held
by all societies and cultures for millennia.
Faith is foundational to their family
and has been a great service to their community.
- The mission here at our family farm, Country Mill,
is to glorify God by facilitating family fun on the farm
and feeding families.
One of the main reasons we wanted to move back here,
to a family farm, is to give our kids the opportunity
for a home town community where they can be raised
in an environment that allowed us to teach them
our values and what's important to us.
For more infomation >> Sports news today - Autor do busto de Cristiano faz estátua de Bale – e se sai melhor - Duration: 1:36. 
Không có nhận xét nào:
Đăng nhận xét