Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community - View Single Post - Massachusetts man fired for telling colleague her gay marriage is "bad stuff"

Baraka_Guru · 11-07-2009, 10:18 PM

Quote:

"Massachusetts Man Says He Was Fired for Telling Colleague Her Gay Marriage Is Wrong"

Saturday , November 07, 2009
By Joshua Rhett Miller

A manager at a Massachusetts retail store claims he was unjustly fired after he told a colleague he thought her impending marriage to another woman was wrong.

Peter Vidala, 24, told FoxNews.com he was terminated in August from his position as second deputy manager at a Brookstone store at Boston's Logan Airport after a conversation he had with a manager from another Brookstone store who was visiting the location.

Vidala claims the woman, whom he declined to identify, mentioned four times that she had married her partner. He said he then left the store briefly to visit the airport's chapel before returning.

"I found it offensive that she repeatedly brought it up," Vidala said. "By the fourth time she mentioned it, I felt God wanted me to express how I felt about the matter, so I did. But my tone was downright apologetic. I said, 'Regarding your homosexuality, I think that's bad stuff.'"

The woman, according to Vidala, then said, "Human resources, buddy — keep your opinions to yourself," before exiting the store.

Two days later, Vidala, who had been employed for just a matter of weeks, received a termination letter citing the company's zero-tolerance policy regarding "harassment" and "inappropriate and unprofessional" comments.

"In the state of Massachusetts, same-sex marriage is legal and there will be people with whom you work with who have fiancées or spouses who are the same gender," the Aug. 12 letter read. "... While you are entitled to your own beliefs, imposing them upon others in the workplace is not acceptable and in this case, by telling a colleague that she is deviant and immoral, constitutes discrimination and harassment."

Vidala disputes using the words "deviant" and "immoral" during conversations with human resources employees on the matter.

"I did say I regard that lifestyle as deviant, as in deviating from the norm, but I never, ever said to that to the [manager]," he said. "In general, I believe people don't want to hear about controversial issues like that in the workplace. They shouldn't have to."

Vidala, who has not hired a lawyer, said he is considering filing a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

In a statement issued to FoxNews.com, Brookstone President/CEO Ron Boire said a "thorough and fair investigation" had been completed in the matter.

"We do not comment on any specific personnel issues," the statement read. "However I will say that Brookstone is an equal opportunity employer, meaning that we maintain a healthy, safe and productive work environment free from discrimination or harassment based on race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, age, national origin, physical or mental disability, or other factors that are unrelated to the Company’s legitimate business interests.

"We are proud of our diverse workforce of varying cultural, ethnic, and religious backgrounds."

Asked why he felt the need to comment on the woman's personal life, Vidala, who has since left the Boston area, said he felt compelled to do so.

"I see, like all real Christians, homosexuals as people who, like me, are sinners and need to be told the truth in a loving way," he said. "In this situation, I took issue with the behavior. I think it's lunacy to call that type of behavior marriage in any kind of form. I had to express that I'm intolerant of that behavior. It's a love-the-sinner, hate-the-sin kind of deal."

Vidala said he felt "intentionally goaded" by the manager to comment on her relationship.

"She knew how I felt about homosexuality," he said. "When you talk to someone about something like that, you want their support. She was kind of looking into my eyes for that social cue for me to say, 'I'm happy for you.' But I really couldn't feel happy for her."

Massachusetts Man Says He Was Fired for Telling Colleague Her Gay Marriage Is Wrong - Local News | News Articles | National News | US News - FOXNews.com

Interesting story, but below is an interesting video. It features Vidala relating what happened and his own defense.

By the time I got to the end of the video, I was a bit discouraged to find the source of the video. His cause is apparently being championed by an organization called MassResistance.org, which is an MA-based organization opposed to gay marriage (and anything "unhetero"). They position themselves as some kind of public service alerting MA and the rest of the country about the "normalizing" of homosexuality. I didn't delve too much into the site, but they imply how damaging this is to society.

What do you think about all of this?

Do you think Vidala was treated fairly?
Where do we draw the line between stating fact and voicing opinions in this kind of situation?

I'm not sure if his firing was necessary. He does make it sound like the woman was rubbing her homosexuality in his face to make a point. But when I think about it, mentioning her recent/upcoming marriage 4 times over the course of an entire day isn't that excessive. That's like once every two hours of an eight-hour day, on average. That doesn't seem too excessive for someone who is excited about a big event, and it certainly wouldn't be excessive if they were generally being chatty throughout the day at work.

I think this guy is posing as the "persecuted Christian." He believes he is entitled to voicing his belief, which is basically "homosexuality is a sin." To many, this translates to homosexuality is "evil," "morally wrong," "deviant," "a choice, and a bad one at that," etc.

I don't care what or who you are or what you believe. Stating as much about homosexuality is out of line. I don't think this sort of thing should be tolerated in a workplace environment. He should have kept his belief to himself. If he was so uncomfortable about her discussing her relationship, he should have simply stated that he would prefer it if she wouldn't talk about her personal relationship matters with him in the workplace.

Instead, he throws down a judgement that could be deemed as discriminatory, if not hateful.

What are your thoughts?