Hotelier Doug Manchester’s donation of $125,000 to overturn California’s same-sex marriage court ruling has stirred calls for a boycott of his two hotels.  The owner of the Whitetail Club and Resort, in McCall, Idaho and the Manchester Grand Hyatt and Grand del Mar Resort, both in San Diego, California, contributed the money to collect signatures for placing Proposition 8, a referendum on whether to make same-sex marriage unconstitutional in the Golden State, on the November ballot.

Mr. Manchester addressed the controversy yesterday, saying, “This really is a free-speech, First Amendment issue. While I respect everyone’s choice of partner, my Catholic faith and longtime affiliation with the Catholic Church leads me to believe that marriage should be between a man and a woman.”  

As a child I was taught by a wise man that politics is the division of wealth and resources.  While Mr. Manchester unquestionably has the right to express himself however he chooses, using his wealth to deny others their newly found rights in the State of California and to in effect deny the billions of dollars in benefits and legal protections the same-sex ruling has the potential of conferring, should rightfully provoke an economic backlash against the hotelier’s business interests.  Fred Karger, of the newly formed Californians Against Hate, an organization he founded to boycott Manchester properties, feels the same way, telling the New York Times:

“Our main beef is the exhaustive amount of money he contributed with glee to take away this brand-new right and to write discrimination into the California Constitution for the very first time”

You can takepart  in protecting and promoting the right of same-sex couples in California and throughout the United States by learning more about the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation.

LINKS:

NY Times: Donation to Same-Sex Marriage Foes Brings Boycott Calls

Sign on San Diego: Gay Rights Group to Boycott Manchester Grand Hyatt

Boycott Manchester Hotels