A Mississippi wedding venue owner was caught on tape admitting she doesn’t service gay or interracial couples.

LaKambria Welch’s brother and future sister-in-law were in contact with the owners of Boone’s Camp Event Hall for about a week before they were told they wouldn’t be allowed to rent the venue. The owners told the couple they couldn’t host an interracial couple “because of (the venue’s) beliefs,” according to The Deep South Voice.

Welch wanted to hear an explanation from the horse’s mouth, so she drove to Booneville, Mississippi, to confront the owner. Welch filmed the encounter and posted it on her Facebook page.

“First of all, we don’t do gay weddings or mixed race, because of our Christian race — I mean, our Christian belief,” the woman told her.

Welch explained her family was also Christian.

“So, what in the Bible tells you that?” Welch asked her before she was cut off.

“Well, I don’t want to argue my faith,” the woman replied.

The woman never gave Welch a Biblical explanation and declared “we just don’t participate.”

Welch believes the woman changed her mind after she found her brother and his fiancée through Facebook. She decided to confront the woman in person after the venue ignored a digital message from her mother.

“The owner took a look at my brother’s fiancée’s page and wrote her back to say they won’t be able to get married there because of her beliefs,” Welch explained to The Deep South Voice. “He told my mom and she contacted the owner through messenger to only get a ‘seen’ with no reply. That’s when I took it upon myself to go get clarification on her beliefs.”

The exchange had a jarring effect on Welch.

“When she explained that she doesn’t do the two specific type of weddings, I felt myself starting to shake, just hearing it gave me chills,” she recounted to The Washington Post.

The video went viral, and the venue’s social media accounts were eventually deleted. Before the deletion, the owner apologized.

“To all of those offended, hurt or felt condemn by my statement I truly apologize to you for my ignorance in not knowing the truth about this,” the owner wrote. “My intent was never of racism, but to stand firm on what I ‘assumed’ was right concerning marriage.”

She also admitted her views were not Biblically sound. The woman blamed her bigotry on being a child growing up in Mississippi who was taught to partner “with your own race.” Her husband reportedly challenged her to look for Bible verses to back up her beliefs about interracial relationships.

“As my bible reads, there are 2 requirements for marriage and race has nothing to do with either!” the woman continued. “All of my years I had ‘assumed’ in my mind that I was correct, but have never taken the opportunity to research and find whether this was correct or incorrect until now.”

Welch is skeptical of the woman’s supposed change of heart.

“I am 24 and have been brought up my entire life in a Christian Family; my grandad being a reverend,” Welch told The Post. “If I know that the Bible doesn’t say anything about biracial marriages, she knows too.”

In 2016, Mississippi passed a law allowing business owners to reject clients based on their religious beliefs. Race isn’t included in the law, but LGBTQ people may be turned away. The law was initially struck down by a federal judge, but it was eventually upheld by the U.S. 5th Circuit Court. The Supreme Court refused to take the case.

In the wake of the controversy, The City of Booneville released a statement condemning the venue’s decision.

“The City of Booneville, Mayor, and Board of Aldermen do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, gender, age, national origin, disability, marital status, sexual orientation, or military status,” the city said in a statement posted on Facebook. “Furthermore, the City of Booneville, Mayor, and Board of Aldermen do not condone or approve these types of discriminatory policies.”

It's unclear whether the owner ever apologized directly to the couple after her seeming change of heart.

Religious-Freedom-Law

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