No Shirt, No Shoes, No Service.

Religious Freedom or Discrimination

Have you seen this sign at restaurants: “No shirt. No shoes. No service.” or how about the one that says, “We reserve the right to refuse service to anyone”? What do these signs mean and why are we talking about them now? At the core of it, these signs are stating that a place won’t serve food to certain types of people. Hey, if you’re not wearing a shirt or shoes, you can’t eat at this restaurant! Do places like restaurants have the right to do this? Yes, as long as they’re not discriminating (or treating someone differently) based on “race, color, religion, national origin or disability.” Well, how about if you are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or queer.

The reaction of some to this question is that it really shouldn’t matter who you are, no one should be discriminated against. Others however, feel like they should have the right to refuse service to whomever they choose based on their religious beliefs. This issue has been heavily debated and some states, cities, and even companies have taken a hard stance on which they think is right. For example, Indiana, North Carolina, and Mississippi have signed House Bills that they say protect the people’s right to religious freedom. Whereas companies like Apple, Google, and Paypal have publicly stated that they believe in equality for all and that these House Bills actually allow for discrimination against a specific group of people.

Who’s right? It really depends on which side you’re on. After all, a debate wouldn’t be a debate if there was only one side to a story.

Note: This is part of a series of articles appearing in xyza:news for kids. The publication is aimed to be a kid-friendly news monthly aimed at families that want to discover the world together. Please sign up at www.xyzanews.com to subscribe.