A bus driver in Calgary
is having an absolute meltdown over the city’s new rainbow colored buses
promoting this year’s Pride celebration.
Jesse
Rau has been a driver for Calgary Transit for about a year now. He says
his Christian beliefs forbid him for supporting homosexuality. Therefore,
driving the rainbow bus would be a direct violation of his deeply held religious
beliefs.
“I’m
a Christian so, as a Christian, there are things like homosexuality that I just
can’t condone,” Rau said during a press conference. “Unfortunately, we live in a
culture where if you disagree with someone’s lifestyle, the accusation is that
you hate the person.”
Rau
insists he’s not the only bus driver who feels this way.
“People
are afraid to speak out against this radical sexual movement that’s happening
for fear of leaving their job,” he claimed.
As
a result of his stance, Rau says people are already out to get him. He
claims a complaint was filed against him alleging that he had
been texting while driving on the job, an allegation he refutes.
“I
am very careful not to text while driving,” Rau said. “I am aware that public
transit is a blessing to many and I always want to keep the people on my bus
safe and secure.”
“I
am being targeted for speaking out for my faith,” he added.
But
city manager Jeff Fielding has a different story to tell. He said he
hasn’t received any formal complaints about Rau, nor has Rau approached
anyone from management about not wanting to drive the rainbow bus.
“Anybody,
at any point in time, can write me an email or make an appointment to see me,”
Fielding said. “If these were issues of concern to them personally in terms of
their own beliefs and practices, I would have dealt with it appropriately.”
Rau
refuses to be intimidated by anyone. And he absolutely, positively
will not drive the
rainbow bus, even if it means getting fired.
“I
have a family to support and I am very concerned about losing the job,” he said,
“but when it goes against the most important things I stand for, or if I’m asked
to compromise in such a big way for what I believe to be right, then I have to
lose my job.”
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