The husband and wife owners of a Tennessee pizzeria are standing firm in their beliefs for refusing to cater a same-sex wedding.
In a statement posted on Facebook on Monday, the Tennessee-based Pizzeria Cortile owners Justin and Amanda Bennett stated, “Recently, we made the difficult decision not to cater a wedding due to our personal beliefs,” adding, “This belief comes from a place of personal conviction, one we know is not shared by everyone, and it is one we hold without judgment towards others.”
The statement continued, “This decision was not intended to harm or hurt anyone, and we are sorry for the pain this has caused for people who have been a part of our community.”
The owners expressed their desire to listen and find common ground, hoping that, “with time we can find an opportunity to extend grace and listen to one another, and remember that while we may not always agree, we can still treat each other with love and dignity.”
The Chattanooga Holler shared an X post featuring a screenshot of an Instagram inquiry inquiring whether the business had “refused to cater a same-sex wedding.” The pizzeria responded, “Thank you for reaching out for clarification, we do not cater same-sex weddings.”
Following the revelation of the pizzeria’s position, Elizabeth Haley from The Seed Theatre called for a boycott of the business via Facebook, encouraging LGBT activists to redirect their funds to “local organizations who are supporting queer people.” She urged individuals to share screenshots of their donations to pro-LGBT organizations on social media “and tag Pizzeria Cortile so they know that your money is going directly to support queer folks instead of their bigotry.”
In the wake of the pizzeria's confirmation of its stance, a nearby Chattanooga business also announced cutting ties with the restaurant. In a Facebook post on Tuesday, The Book & Cover announced that it was “ending its partnership with Pizzeria Cortile” due to the owners’ stance, which it said “is not in keeping with our values as individuals and as a business.”
Pizzeria Cortile is not the first pizzeria to find itself caught in the ongoing debate surrounding religious liberty and LGBT rights.
In 2015, during a time when the U.S. Supreme Court was set to hear arguments on same-sex marriage, Memories Pizza in Indiana received national attention after co-owner Crystal O’Connor said they could not cater a gay wedding due to their religious beliefs. While that pizzeria faced backlash, it also garnered considerable support, raising over $800,000 from supporters defending their convictions within a week of the controversy.
The Supreme Court has frequently upheld the positions of business owners who refuse to provide services to same-sex couples based on their strongly held religious beliefs.
In 2018, the court ruled that the Colorado Civil Rights Commission violated the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment in its treatment of baker Jack Phillips after he declined to create a cake for a same-sex wedding.
More recently, in the 2023 case 303 Creative v. Elenis, justices determined that Colorado could not compel a Christian website designer to create websites celebrating same-sex marriage.
