A lesbian couple is considering whether
to file a lawsuit after being denied a marriage license in Ledyard,
New York, The
New York Times reported.
Deirdre DiBiaggio and Katie Carmichael
have sought legal representation after town clerk Rose Marie
Belforti, citing her Christian faith, refused to serve the women.
Belforti asked the couple to make an
appointment with a deputy to process their application; the women,
who have been together 10 years and own a working farm in nearly
Springport, declined the request.
“Gay people have fought so long and
hard to get these civil rights,” Carmichael, 53, told the paper.
“To have her basically telling us to get in the back of the line is
just not acceptable.”
“For me to participate in the
same-sex marriage application process I don't feel is right,”
Belforti said. “God doesn't want me to do this, so I can't do what
God doesn't want me to do, just like I can't steal, or any of the
other things that God doesn't want me to do.”
“This is about religious freedom,”
she added. “This is not about trashing gay people.”
But in an interview with the Christian
conservative site CitizenLink, Belforti suggested she objected to gay
marriage because it could lead to bestiality.
“I'm worried there's another agenda
involved here other than just allowing same-sex couples to be
married. We know what a bride is, we know what a groom is – but if
we choose to be a 'spouse,' does that even limit [marriage] to a
human being? Do you know what I'm saying?”