More on Charities and Same Sex Marriages
Thanks to a reader response to an earlier post regarding charities and same sex marriages, we have been pointed to a New Jersey Civil Rights Division ruling finding probable cause to believe that a religiously owned nonprofit organization illegally discriminated against a lesbian couple who where denied the opportunity to rent the nonprofit’s publicly available space for a civil union ceremony. The case is Bernstein v. OGCMA. In a separate case, Moore v. OGCMA, the Commission found no probable cause. From a federal tax exemption standpoint, does the ruling mean that the organization operated for an illegal purpose and is therefore not deserving of federal tax exemption? Anyway, according to the Division’s December 29, 2008 press release:
The Division on Civil Rights announced today that it had issued a Finding of Probable Cause against the Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association for allegedly discriminating against a lesbian couple who had sought permission to hold their civil union ceremony at the Boardwalk Pavilion.
The finding, issued by Division on Civil Rights Director J. Frank Vespa-Papaleo, said an investigation had determined there was reason to pursue anti-discrimination charges against the Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association for denying Harriet Bernstein and Luisa Paster permission to rent its Boardwalk Pavilion for their civil union ceremony. Vespa-Papaleo also intervened as a complainant in the case.
Separately, Vespa-Papaleo found no finding of probable cause in a second case involving Janice Moore and Emily Sonnessa because the Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association had changed its policy about renting the pavilion for any weddings at the time of their application.
The Division’s jurisdiction in the case, which began in 2007, has been upheld in U.S. District Court, but the Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association has appealed to the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals.
Bernstein and Paster, who live in Ocean Grove, had applied for permission to rent the Boardwalk Pavilion for their civil union ceremony in March 2007, but the Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association denied their request because it said the civil union ceremony conflicted with the religious beliefs of the United Methodist Church. The Association said it was not required to permit civil union ceremonies in its Boardwalk Pavilion based on First Amendment rights.
However, an investigation found that the refusal to permit the civil union ceremony violated the public accommodation provisions of the state’s Law Against Discrimination and did not violate First Amendment Rights. The Division investigation found that the Camp Meeting Association had been permitting the public to use the Boardwalk Pavilion for weddings and secular events and that the Association had gained a Green Acres tax exemption from the state Department of Environmental Protection nearly 20 years ago after a finding that the Pavilion will be open to the public “on an equal basis.” (Following filing of the civil rights complaint, the DEP rejected a renewal of the Green Acres tax exemption for the Boardwalk Pavilion in September 2007.)
The Finding of Probable Cause states in part, “When it invites the public at large to use it, the Association is subject to the Law Against Discrimination, and enforcement of that law in this context does not affect the Association’s constitutionally protected right to free exercise of religion.”
The application from Bernstein and Paster to hold their civil union ceremony prompted a swift change in policy by the Association. By April 1, it was decided by the Association president that it would cease permitting the public to reserve the use of the Boardwalk Pavilion for any wedding and other events.
Therefore, Vespa-Papaleo found no probable cause in the complaint filed by Moore and Sonnessa, who also live in Ocean Grove, because they had applied for permission to use the Pavilion after the Association had ceased permitting any of the public to use the Pavilion for weddings.
A Finding of Probable Cause does not resolve a civil rights complaint. Rather, it means the state has concluded its preliminary investigation and determined there is sufficient evidence to support a reasonable suspicion the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (LAD) has been violated.
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