March 16, 2008

Speaking of Boycotts (And We Were), We Certainly Won’t Be Staying in Any Hyatt or Marriott Hotels, Anywhere

This man wants your money, which he uses to keep you from achieving equal rights.

Developer is foe of same-sex marriage

Developer Doug Manchester and other prominent San Diego County businessmen have given significant financial support to an initiative that would ban same-sex marriage targeted for the November statewide ballot.

Manchester’s $125,000 donation has prompted a gay-rights activist to urge a boycott of the Manchester Grand Hyatt and the Manchester-owned San Diego Marriott Hotel and Marina.

In addition to Manchester, Mission Valley developer Terry Caster has donated $162,500; Robert Hoehn, owner of Hoehn Motors in Carlsbad, has given $25,000; and La Jolla businessman Roger Benson has given $50,000, state records show.

. . .

Donations from San Diego residents make up a significant part of the $1 million raised for the initiative.

That has allowed the campaign to hire professional signature gatherers to help collect the 700,000 signatures needed to qualify the constitutional amendment for the ballot, said Andrew Pugno, an attorney for Protectmarriage.com, which is sponsoring the amendment.

. . .

Keith Gran, a gay-rights activist and global project manager for a medical device company, said he is outraged by Manchester’s donation.

“He’s paying people to add a bigoted, discriminatory amendment to the constitution,” Gran said. “I think that’s appalling. I think people ought to know that.”

. . .

Manchester said his hotels and restaurants welcome gays and lesbians as employees and as customers. “I don’t want to offend anybody,” he said.

. . .

News of Manchester’s contribution has been circulating throughout the gay and lesbian community for several weeks. State Sen. Christine Kehoe, a San Diego Democrat who is a lesbian, said she was disappointed by Manchester.

“I was surprised that Doug Manchester would make such an enormous contribution to try to deny a small group of Californians their civil rights,” Kehoe said.

Gran has contacted officials with the Hyatt Corp., which operates the Manchester Grand Hyatt, to discuss the issue.

Hyatt employees plan to meet next week with the Greater San Diego Business Association, which promotes businesses owned by gays and lesbians. …

Manchester said his hotels and restaurants welcome gays and lesbians as employees and as customers. “I don’t want to offend anybody,” he said.

Translation: “I don’t want to offend anybody who puts money in my pocket — especially homos blissfully unaware of how I use their money against them.”

Posted by: Sapphocrat