Last fall, the city council in San Antonio, Texas passed a non-discrimination ordinance that added protections for sexual orientation and gender identity to the existing law. These sorts of non-discrimination ordinances exist in hundreds of cities all over the nation but, for some reason, David Barton is obsessed with lying about this one in particular, appearing recently on a program called “America Stands 2014: Election Coverage In The Spirit Of Faith” where he declared that in passing the ordinance, the city council had voted to “criminalize Christian beliefs and behavior” in the city of San Antonio.
Barton falsely claimed Christians who oppose gay marriage or criticize homosexuality are now barred from running for office and, if already serving in office, would be removed from their position, charged with a crime, and fined $500 a day, while also asserting that Christian-owned companies are now prohibited from doing any business with the city:
None of that is true, of course, as the ordinance passed by San Antonio simply prohibits city officials and departments from engaging in “discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, veteran status, age, or disability” and explicit contains an exemption for religious organizations … but that won’t stop Barton from repeatedly lying about it.
