City Sued Over Limits On Christian Protesters At Gay Pride Event

Alliance Defense Fund announced yesterday that it has filed a federal lawsuit against the city of Elmira, New York seeking an injunction on behalf of Christian protesters who were prevented from handing out literature, carrying signs and wearing a T-shirt with a Christian message at a gay pride event held in a city park in June 2008. The complaint (full text) in Barnes v. City of Elmira, New York, (WD NY, filed 8/20/2008) alleges that plaintiffs' 1st and 14th Amendment rights were violated by the city's policies of restricting their speech in a traditional public forum on the basis of content.