Oregon Labor Commissioner Brad Avakian on Friday
upheld a judge's February ruling fining an evangelical Christian couple $135,000 for refusing to bake a wedding cake for a same-sex couple.
Aaron and Melissa Klein, former owners of Sweet Cakes by Melissa in Gresham, Oregon were ordered to pay Rachel and Laurel Bowman-Cryer for emotional and mental suffering from being denied service contrary to Oregon law, the
Los Angeles Times reported.
According to the Times, Rachel Bowman-Cryer and her mother saw a booth by the Kleins at a bridal show in Portland, then attended a cake-tasting at the bakery in 2013.
When they tried to hire the Kleins to make a wedding cake, Aaron Klein, upon learning there would be two brides, informed them that the bakery could not make a cake for a same-sex wedding since it violated their Christian beliefs.
Rachel Bowman-Cryer reportedly left the establishment in tears.
The commissioner's order also bars the Kleins from saying publicly that they would not bake a wedding cake for a same-sex couple even though they no longer operate the bakery.
The Kleins have vowed to continue fighting, writing on Facebook, "We will NOT give up this fight, and we will NOT be silenced. We stand for God’s truth, God’s word and freedom for ALL Americans."
Aaron Klein said his family has suffered, too, because of the case and the media attention that followed.
The company's car was vandalized twice, and photographers and florist cut ties with them, forcing them out of business in 2013, the Times reported.
Avakian "wants to silence anyone who opposes his point of view,” Klein told
The Blaze. "Unfortunately, he’s doing this with the wrong Christian, because I fight back."
Klein added that for years the public has been told that same-sex marriage will not affect others.
"I'm here firsthand to tell everyone in America that it has already impacted people," he said. "Christians, get ready to take a stand. Get ready for civil disobedience."
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