I’ve never heard of this happening in Durham. Perhaps there are some overzealous homophobic mall cops earning their keep over there at Cameron Village. (Q-Notes):

A Triangle-area social justice group is planning to demonstrate at the Cameron Village shopping center this weekend after its co-director and partner were booted from the premises after showing signs of “gentle affection.”

SONG leader Caitlin Breedlove says she and her partner had just finished eating at The Flying Biscuit on Thursday afternoon when they went to sit outside. There, they shared a brief kiss after which a security guard approached them and said they had to leave.

According to a release, the security guard said that “being affectionate” was “inappropriate.” The couple asked the guard if he would have said the same thing if they had been an opposite sex couple. The guard said, “No.” The couple asked to see the security guard’s supervisor, who also said they needed to leave, reminded them Cameron Village was private property and said, “You want this to be public, you want people to see what you are.”

Cameron Village, owned by York Properties, needs to speak up about its practices that this guard is enforcing, or they are going to be in a heap of PR trouble…trust me.

Do the vendors and shops of Cameron Village want to see their sales drop as the pink dollars walk away?

BTW, The Flying Biscuit Cafe, where the couple had eaten earlier, support Breedlove and Ammons. Breedlove:

“Bullying is just another word for violence, and it is not just one or two bad apples that say this is OK but mainstream culture in general. Regardless of whether Cameron Village is private property or not, no one deserves to be bullied in public, and if we don’t stand up and say that all discrimination is wrong we contribute to a society where only some people get to feel safe in living their daily lives.”

Southerners on New Ground (SONG) will hold their demonstration at 1 p.m., Sunday, Oct. 17 at Cameron Village. For more information, visit southernersonnewground.org.

York Properties

Cameron Village

Office Phone – 919-821-1350

Fax – 919-828-9240

lynneworth@yorkproperties.com

Related:

* No kissing at Cameron Village (Indy Weekly)
Pam’s House Blend – Front Page