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Movie Theater Takes a Stand Against Disney: 'It Does Not Mean I'm a Bigot'

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Just 24 hours after the owners of a drive-in movie theater announce on Facebook they would not show Disney's "Beauty and the Beast" because of its gay character, their page was removed from the site. 

Carol Laney and her husband own Henager Drive-in Theater in Henager, Alabama.

They told WHNT-TV they couldn't show the movie after Disney promoted its first openly gay character, LeFou, who is said to have a crush on the film's villain, Gaston, and according to the film's director would have an "exclusive gay moment."

"We are first and foremost Christians. We will not compromise on what the Bible teaches," read the post. "We will continue to show family oriented films so you can feel free to come watch wholesome movies without worrying about sex, nudity, homosexuality and foul language. Thank you for your support."

Laney and her husband became owners of the theater in early December and made it clear in their post that the criteria for movie selection has changed.

"If we can not take our 11-year-old granddaughter and 8-year-old grandson to see a movie we have no business watching it," they said. "If I can't sit through a movie with God or Jesus sitting by me then we have no business showing it."

The film is set to debut on March 17th, but the content of the film became a concern for Christian parents after director Bill Condon told Attitude magazine that adding a gay character brings America closer to accepting the gay agenda. 

"Our 4-year-old was excited to see this, but we don't appreciate this new twist to the story. Let kids be kids and stop pushing an agenda Disney," one person commented. 

Evangelist Franklin Graham asked Christians to boycott the film and an online petition already has more than 78,000 signatures to "send a strong message to Disney that children's entertainment is no place to promote a harmful, sexual, political agenda." 

Condon along with cast member Josh Gad, who plays Lefou, have since tried to downplay the film's LGBT angle. 

Meanwhile, there were more than 600 shares and 500 comments to Laney's post about the film. Comments from the community were both positive and negative. 

"As business owners, we take pride and caution in showing discernment in what we play at our drive-in," Laney told WHNT. "We respect the choice of others who choose to respect other movie theaters by watching this movie. However, we hope that you respect our choice not to play it at our drive-in."

Laney told the New York Times that she is not judging anyone who is a homosexual but is adhering to her biblical convictions.

"I have family members that are homosexuals. I have a relationship with them. I love them. It does not mean I'm a bigot," she said. "I'm not judging them when I tell you that God's word says this, that's not me. God's word."

CBN News has reached out to the theater for a response to what Facebook did but they have yet to respond. 

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About The Author

Talia
Wise

Talia Wise has served as a multi-media producer for CBNNews.com, CBN Newswatch, The Prayer Link, and CBN News social media outlets. Prior to joining CBN News she worked for Fox Sports Florida producing and reporting. Talia earned a master’s degree in journalism from Regent University and a bachelor's degree from the University of Virginia.