Ken Ham Blasts NYC's $250K Fine for Calling Transgenders by Wrong Name
Answers in Genesis CEO and President Ken Ham has blasted recently released New York City speech guidelines that threaten to fine employers who repeatedly use the wrong pronoun when referring to transgender people.
"America has lost any semblance of biblical thinking, and this is clearly showing up in the laws and regulations that are being established. Sinful behaviors are being applauded and protected in the courts, and those who choose to disagree with sinful lifestyles are being punished for refusing to condone or accommodate these choices," Ham wrote on his Facebook page on Sunday.
"As our culture continues to reject God's Word and do what's right in its own eyes, we can only expect things like this to increase," he added, and linked to the guidelines in question by the New York City Commission on Human Rights.
Get Our Latest News for FREE
The guidelines give a number of different examples of violations, such as the 'intentional or repeated refusal to use an individual's preferred name, pronoun or title,' such as calling a transgender woman "him" or "Mr." despite wishes to the contrary.
Other punishable offenses include failing to use a person's 'preferred name, pronoun, or title because they do not conform to gender stereotypes,' and requiring a transgender person to provide proof of their gender so that they can use appropriate single-sex program or facility.
Repeated violations can prompt a civil penalty of up to $125,000 or $250,000 depending on the severity of the violation, the existence of previous violations, and the employer's size.
Ham said that he verified with the commission to make sure he is interpreting the guidelines correctly, but argued that they are "based on man's fallible opinions (and go against the obvious natural order of things), and not the Word of God."
Transgender issues played a prominent part in the U.S. throughout 2015, as a controversial Houston city ordinance that would have allowed men to use women's restrooms was defeated by voters in November.
The Houston Equal Rights Ordinance sought to expand anti-discrimination laws regarding businesses and public facilities to include sexual orientation and gender identity, which could have allowed for Christian business owners to be fined for opposing men using women's restrooms.
HERO was rejected by 62 percent of voters in a referendum, however, with conservative groups such as the Family Research Council praising Americans for standing up to what he called a "politically correct stampede to redefine marriage and sexuality."
In another instance back in September 2015, a Harvard University school decided that it would begin allowing students to identify with nontraditional gender pronouns like "hir" and "zhe."
"[It's intended to] make students feel more comfortable with their gender identity," explained FAS Registrar Michael P. Burke, who worked with LGBT campus groups to implement the change.
"It's important when you are writing emails or referring a student to another person in the college, you want to do it the right way," he added.
