- Steve Gaines
On Tuesday, pastor Steve Gaines of Bellevue Baptist Church spoke to a city council committee in opposition to a proposed non-discrimination ordinance protecting LGBT city workers. During the meeting, he expressed concerns about how the ordinance would effect Christian businesses.
“What if a Christian childcare facility is forced to hire a man dressed like a woman?” Gaines asked (Just to clear that up, the ordinance only applies to city workers and companies that contract with the city).
But the way Gaines dealt with a past event at his church is coming back to haunt him. Back in 2006, Bellevue staff minister Paul Williams admitted to molesting his son during the 1980s. Gaines knew about Williams’ indiscretion but kept it quiet for six months.
The Truth Wins Out blog had this to say about Gaines as a spokesperson for the non-discrimination ordinance opposition:
Pastor Gaines apparently decided to play the “It’s not child rape if he sez he only raped the boy once!” card. It’s amazing (but strangely, not surprising) that the man the anti-gay side has chosen as a spokesperson is more concerned about hurting gay people than protecting the innocence of the children in his congregation.
For more, check out the entire Truth Wins Out entry.
