Airline offering discount flights to gay people
An airline has infuriated Republicans – by offering to fly gay people to Pride events across the US for a discount.
Alaska Airlines – which carries the name of the state known more for being the home of anti-gay politician Sarah Palin than for inclusiveness – made the offer as part of an ‘LGBT travel’ stunt.
Though it doesn’t exclusively apply to LGBT people, the airline has discounted flights to Pride events in a number of cities across the US.
It offers flights at a discount to Pride events including LA, New Orleans and Boston – in a move that has infuriated conservatives in the country.
Alaska Air said: “At Alaska, we have been longtime supporters of the LGBT community and remain committed to a more equitable society. We were elated when the State of Washington expressed the same commitment by legalizing marriage for everyone, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity.
“To show our continued support we are encouraging the LGBT community to travel, not only to Seattle, but to Pride events and gay friendly destinations all over the country.
“With that aim, we have put together this section of our site to highlight destinations that support marriage equality, Pride celebrations, and other things of interest to the LGBT community.”
Some have decried it as “discrimination” in favour of LGBT people, with one right-wing blogger claiming: “The establishment campaign to promote disease-spreading and culture-corroding perversity has reached the point that Alaska Airlines now implies discounts for homosexuals.
“How applying cultural Marxism with special ‘Pride Discounts’ for groups favoured by liberals will make for a more ‘equitable society’ is left for college professors to explain.
“Imagine how fast Big Government would come down on them if their advertisements led people to believe they could get a discount for being sexually healthy.”
Of course, as the United States has no federal anti-discrimination law on sexual orientation – even if the offer were only open to gay people, it is unclear exactly what law it would be breaking.
