You probably remember the story of Oregon’s Aaron and Melissa Klein, two Christian bakers who said they could not in good conscience bake a cake for a lesbian couple’s wedding. The state ruled their decision constituted discrimination, and leveled a $150,000 fine against them. Now, a self-described gay Evangelical Christian named Matt Stolhandske, who sits on the board for Evangelicals for Marriage Equality, is raising money to help the Kleins pay their fine. In an op-ed for the Washington Post, Stolhandske said “As a gay man, I should hate Melissa and Aaron Klein. … But I don’t hate the Kleins. In fact, I’m raising money to cover the $150,000 punitive fine they received from Oregon.”
He went on to write that “The Kleins say the $150,000 fee will bankrupt her family. I’m raising money to help offset that cost. I’ll send whatever we raise along to the Klein family with a message of love and peace. I don’t want them to suffer.” So far, the campaign has raised just shy of $4,000, but Stolhandske is asking others to chip in and hopes to cover the whole fee …
