Franklin Graham, son of the late great evangelist Billy Graham, has just won a major lawsuit in the UK against a Scottish venue that canceled the evangelical speaker due to his position on marriage.
From the Christian Post:
A Scottish court has ruled that an event venue must pay over $111,000 (£97,000) for canceling a 2020 evangelistic outreach featuring American evangelist Franklin Graham over his views on issues like homosexuality and Islam.
In a judgment issued by Sheriff John N. McCormick of Glasgow on Monday, Scottish Event Campus Limited was ruled to have violated the United Kingdom's Equality Act because it canceled an event hosted by the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association in January 2020.
Franklin Graham was vindicated by the courts after being canceled by the bigoted event venue which opposed Graham's Biblical views on homosexuality and the falsehood of Islam.
The UK Equality Act is now, finally, being applied equally.
"It is accepted that the event was a lawful evangelical outreach event. I therefore begin with a discrete issue which alone, in my opinion, constitutes a breach of the Equality Act 2010," McCormick judged.
"Briefly put, if it is correct that the event was evangelistic, based on religion or philosophical belief, then it follows that the decision to cancel was a breach of the Equality Act 2010 in that the event was cancelled as a commercial response to the views of objectors."
The event venue sided with their commercial interests and big business pressure to cancel a Christian event.
This ruling actually strikes a huge blow against cancel culture in action in the UK.
McCormick said that the venue "discriminated against the [BGEA] on the basis of a protected characteristic" and put the damages due to the cancellation at $111,503.19 (£97,325.32).
"In short, pressure was put on the defender by its majority shareholder to cancel the booking as it may offend others. The effect of writing in such terms was not to protect one group from another but to prefer one opinion over another," he continued.
"I heard no evidence to suggest that Franklin Graham had intended to pursue a toxic or dangerous agenda at the event. On the contrary, it is not disputed that the event would have been an evangelical outreach event for up to twelve thousand people. That is not to say that his opinions are not offensive to some whether in Glasgow or elsewhere. However, the pursuer's right to engage a speaker at the evangelical event — in furtherance of a religious or philosophical belief — is protected by law."
I, for one, am somewhat shocked that Christianity has been protected and religious liberty upheld in the increasingly unfriendly UK.
On Tuesday, Graham, the son of legendary evangelist Billy Graham, said he is "grateful to God for this decision." He views the ruling as "a clear victory for freedom of speech and religion in the UK."
"This case was never about financial remedies — it was about the preservation of religious freedom in the UK — particularly the right for Christians to share the Gospel in the public square," stated Graham.
"I want to thank Sheriff John McCormick for upholding the law and affirming that Christians must be treated fairly and equally. This ruling will be a great encouragement for Christians and people of all faiths across the UK and many other parts of the world."
Thank God that these freedoms are being upheld.
This is the second win in the UK for religious liberty in the last week after a street evangelist won a wrongful arrest suit against London police.
