An owner of a wedding chapel in Las
Vegas says she won't marry gay and lesbian couples.
Dolly Deleon, owner of the Vegas Wed
Chapel, told Nevada Public Radio that her wedding chapel was a
business, but added that the quick implementation of a ruling
striking down the state's ban on gay marriage surprised her. It
should be noted that Nevada officials stopped defending the state's
ban in February.
“You have a business, I mean, it is a
business, it is not a church. Shouldn't your services be available
to all customers with the ability to pay?” Deleon, a
non-denominational Christian minister, was asked.
“Yes, yes, it is. But you know the
law just came about barely two weeks. And I have not really, sunked
[sic] into it and grasped the meaning of same-sex marriage,” she
answered.
“Do you think you might change your
thinking about same-sex marriage?”
“I'm speaking from my individual
conscience, I will not. But as far as my business place … I'm not
above the law, I have to abide by the law,” she
said.
Deleon added that reaction to her
position had been mixed.
“There are positives and negatives.
There are a lot of people supporting me and there are a lot of people
who thumbs down,” she said.
Deleon would not say whether she would
fight a discrimination lawsuit based on her refusal to marry a gay
couple.