Creation Museum Date Night controversy

Political activist Joe Sonka, and his friend Brandon, conspired with Jonathan Meador, a staff writer for Leo Weekly, to attend the Creation Museum Date Night pretending to be a gay couple.

2011

• February 23. TPMMuckraker. New York City, New York. USA. Same-Sex 'Couple' Denied Entry To Creation Museum Date Night Event by David Taintor.
  "The Creation Museum in Petersberg, Ky. denied a "same-sex couple" entry to a date-night event on Feb. 11. But the "couple" wasn't actually gay."

• February 22. Huffington Post blog. New York City, New York. USA. 2 Men Denied Admission To Event At Creation Museum.

• February 22. KSDK, Channel 5, NBC. St Louis, Missouri. USA. Straight Louisville man denied entry at Creation Museum; staffer thought he was gay by Kristen Gosling.
  "Chris Hartman, Director of the Fairness Campaign, said the Creation Museum did nothing illegal."

• February 22. The News Record. Cincinnati, Ohio. USA. The independent student newspaper of at the University of Cinncinnati. Denying same-sex couple entry to Creation Museum unjustified by Stephanie Kitchens.
  "Answers in Genesis and the Creation Museum representatives assert that they were set up and that this was a premeditated attack on the museum, citing a blog called "Barefoot and Progressive," which is Sonka's blog."

• February 22. USA Today. McLean Virginia. USA. Gay couple shut out of Creation Museum date night by Mark Hansel, Cincinnati Enquirer.

• February 22. OneNewsNow.com. Tupelo, Mississippi. USA. 'Flamboyantly gay' couple turned away by Becky Yeh.

• February 21. Cincinnati.com. Cincinnati, Ohio. USA. Creation Museum denies admission to two men: What do you think? by kwellesley.

• February 21. The Advocate. Los Angeles, Californai. USA. Creation Museum Bars "Gay" Couple by Advocate.com Editors.

• February 21. Barefoot and Progressive blog. Lexington, Kentucky. USA. Intellectual child abusers at AiG admit to AP that they discriminate against gays, yet call me "intolerant" by Joe Sonka.
  "Ken Ham and the good folks at Answers in Genesis are in full out damage control mode. Getting caught red-handed discriminating against what they perceived to be a gay couple, they now realize that their chance to get a $40 million welfare hand out from the government to build a giant Dineysore Boat is now seriously in jeopardy."

• February 21. WXIX, Channel 19, Fox. Cincinnati, Ohio. USA. Creation Museum denies alleged gay couple entrance to dinner by Stefano DiPietrantonio.
  "They were here to disrupt, they may say something else, but all you have to read is that January 13th blog," said Mark Looy, who is a spokesperson for The Creation Museum."
  "Since then, both of them admitted they are straight," Looy said. "It was a stunt, this is a manufactured story, to draw attention to themselves."

• February 21. WSCH-FM, 99.3. Lawrenceburg, Indiana. USA. Same Sex Couple Turned Away At Creation Museum.
  "Answers in Genesis said the museum has been tolerant and welcoming of gay couples since opening in 2007."
  "In the past, our staff has observed what they believed to be “gay” couples walking through the museum, and these guests were not approached (except in the rare instance where they were deemed to be acting in a disruptive manner). The Creation Museum has always welcomed individuals and groups who do not necessarily share our views."

• February 20. Chillicothe Gazette. Chillicothe, Ohio. USA. Creation Museum rejects same-sex couple from Date Night event by Mark Hansel, Cincinnati Enquirer.

• February 20. Newark Avocate. Newark, Ohio. USA. Creation Museum rejects same-sex couple from Date Night event by Mark Hansel, Cincinnati Enquirer.

• February 20. Louisville Courier-Journal. Louisville, Kentucky. USA. Louisville same-sex couple denied entrance to Creation Museum event by Mark Hansel, Cincinnati Enquirer.
  "Meador admitted the other member of the group, Joe Sonka, had posted a blog entry in January suggesting that it was the patriotic duty of his readers to send a flamboyantly gay couple to the event."

• February 20. Lebanon Daily News. Lebanon, Pennsylvania. USA. 2 men denied admission to event at Creation Museum via Associated Press.
  "A progressive blogger and another man who tried to go to a special event at Kentucky's Creation Museum said they were denied admission because they told security that they were a same-sex couple."
  "Sonka wrote in an e-mail to The Associated Press that neither he nor the other man denied entry is gay."

• February 20. Bennington Banner. Bennington, Vermont. USA. 2 men denied admission to event at Creation Museum via Associated Press.
  "Looy defended the decision not to allow the two men in and cited a blog post that Sonka wrote in January, encouraging readers to raise money to send a "flamboyantly gay" couple to the event."

• February 20. Museums & Heritage magazine. Manchester, England. Same-sex couple denied museum entry.
  "Mark Looy, chief communications officer for the museum, claims that the marketing material explicitly said the event was for heterosexual couples only and involved a talk from museum founder Ken Ham, who is also the founder of Answers in Genesis-US and one of America’s most famous Christian speakers."

• February 20. Pasadena Star-News. Pasadena, California. USA. 2 men denied admission to event at Creation Museum via Associated Press.

• February 16. Leo Weekly. Louisville Eccentric Observer (LEO) an alternative newspaper. Louisville, Kentucky. USA. Date Night in the Garden of Eden by Jonathan Meador.
  "We knew that someone was coming to be flamboyant to essentially be disruptive,” Mark Looy, chief communications officer for the Creation Museum and its parent company, Answers in Genesis (AiG), tells LEO Weekly. “They were trying to stir things up, be disruptive,” he adds, claiming that Sonka wrote on his blog that he planned to crash the event."

• February 15. Answers in Genesis. Petersburg, Kentucky. USA. Attempted Crashing of “Date Night” at the Creation Museum.
  "Mr. Sonka was aware that Answers in Genesis/Creation Museum accepts the Bible’s teaching in Genesis regarding God’s plan for the institution of marriage, as one man, one woman—for life. (According to his blog, he has visited the museum at least twice before.) Like many other Bible-upholding ministries, we do not hide the fact that we oppose redefinition of marriage or the altering of the biblical stance on relationships between men and women. Knowing the ministry/museum position on these issues, Mr. Sonka deliberately wanted to manufacture a scene at our special event by being “flamboyantly” disruptive. His obvious purpose was to gain attention and generate news coverage, not to enjoy the evening’s pro-marriage message based in Genesis. In the process of stirring up trouble, he hoped to create a news spectacle and provide fodder for his blog. Curiously, though Mr. Sonka was the instigator of the party-crashing scheme, he was reluctant to pay for the two tickets himself, extending his stunt by creating a public auction to pay for the tickets and cover his expenses to get to the museum."

• February 12. Barefoot and Progressive blog. Lexington, Kentucky. USA. No same sex couples allowed at the Creation Museum Date Night (UPDATE) by Joe Sonka.
  "I rushed back from DC to my old Kentucky home last night to attend the spectacular "Date Night at the Creation Museum", where my date and I were to take in a nice dinner and listen to Ken Ham explain what makes a good relationship work."

• February 12. Pharyngula blog. Morris, Minnesota. USA. We missed Date Night at the Creation "Museum"! by PZ Myers.
  "If only I could learn about romance from a sleazy fundamentalist atavism with a neck beard."

• February 12. Panda's Thumb blog. USA. Answers in Genesis Steals Money from Couple by Reed A. Cartwright.<nr />"Answers in Genesis hosted a “date night” last night at their Kentucky Kreationism Komplex, where couples could attend a talk by Ken Ham, dine in the main hall, and attend a concert. Talk about romance! And since AiG has pledged to not discriminate in order to obtain government subsidies, we all expect them to welcome gay couples to their event, right?"

• February 12. Leo Weekly. Louisville Eccentric Observer (LEO) an alternative newspaper. Louisville, Kentucky. USA. Same sex couples denied entry to Creation Museum’s “Date Night” by Jonathan Meador.
  "Some attempts at backtracking were made: I said there had been a misunderstanding; that I didn’t say” partner” and meant that Joe and Brandon’s girlfriends had cancelled and that, ha ha, neither Joe nor Brandon was gay, but no dice: Just the suspicion of being gay was grounds enough to refuse paying customers access to Ham’s magical speech on biblical incest and how you should love your wife for who she is because, in time, she’ll be as ugly as her mother."

• January 13. Barefoot and Progressive blog. Lexington, Kentucky. USA. Date Night at the Creation Museum by Joe Sonka.
  "And finally, let's get to work doing a fundraiser so we can send the most flamboyantly gay couple imaginable to this dinner. I consider that our patriotic duty."

• January 13. Creation Museum. Petersburg, Kentucky. USA. Date Night.
  "This special evening begins at 6:00 PM with an inspiring message about love and the biblical view of marriage from Creation Museum founder, Ken Ham. After Ken’s talk, couples will dine in the museum’s Main Hall, which will be transformed into a one-of-a-kind banquet hall. This delicious buffet-style meal from one of the Cincinnati area’s premier caterers will include Mela Verde Salad, several entree items, and an assortment of gourmet desserts."