You’ve heard about the florist, baker, photographer, and graphic-tee printer. Perhaps you’ve also heard about the videographer and the fire chief. But a new case is bringing home the clear and present danger to religious freedom in a new way: Country Mill Farms v. City of East Lansing. [1]

Capitol Connection Episode 21

The Case for Country Mill Farms

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Country Mill Farms is a 120 acre family farm located 22 miles outside the city of East Lansing, Michigan. There, the Tennes family grows sweet corn, organic apples, blueberries, pumpkins, and a variety of other fruits.

Country Mill Farms sets up at the farmers market.

For 6 years, Country Mill Farms has sold its produce without any problems at the East Lansing seasonal farmer’s market. In fact, city officials repeatedly praised Country Mill for their participation. But in 2017, the City denied the farm a vendor license.

At this point you might assume that Country Mill must have violated a vendor guideline or perhaps the city received complaints about their participation in the market. But neither of these things ever happened. Not one violation. Not one complaint.

A Controversial Facebook Post

So what happened to em-battle this family farm in a legal dispute with the city of East Lansing? A Facebook post that referenced the Tennes family’s biblical beliefs about marriage.

Here’s the story. In the fall of 2014, two women who wanted to have a same-sex wedding ceremony at an orchard contacted Tennes. Because promoting and participating in a same-sex wedding at Country Mill would violate his deeply held religious beliefs, Tennes referred the women to a nearby orchard he knew hosted same-sex weddings.

According to the official motion filed by Mr. Tennes, the conversation he had with the women was short and civil, and he only spoke with them on one occasion. The women were married at another orchard in 2015. [2]

In August, 2016, one of the women began calling for Country Mill’s customers to boycott the farm because they declined to participate in her wedding. In response to the attention that their Facebook received about the issue, the Tennes family decided to clarify their position: “[due] to our personal religious beliefs,” he would refer any request to celebrate a same-sex ceremony at Country Mill to another mid-Michigan orchard nearby.

The City Responds

After city officials became aware of the Facebook post, the City of East Lansing took extreme actions to target Country Mill Farms and exclude them from the farmer’s market.

The Farmers Market in East Lansing, Michigan

First, city officials harassed them, calling and emailing repeatedly and requesting that they not attend the market for the remainder of the 2016 season. They were certain there would be protesters if there was a vendor with such controversial opinions. Country Mill knew their rights and attended anyways for the next two months. No one ever protested.

See, the Tennes family and Country Mill Farms had in-fact broken no state or county law, violated no market policy, and was outside the jurisdiction of the city. So what did the city do next? It changed the rules of the game in the 3rd quarter. They wrote a new policy for their farmer’s market.

East Lansing Illegally Targets the Farm with a New Policy

City officials crafted a new policy requires all vendors to comply with East Lansing’s Human Relations Ordinance and the city’s “public policy against discrimination… while at the [Market] and as a general business practice. Ex. 1, Vendor Guidelines p. 3 (emphasis added).

And this new policy is illegal. It violates the Tennes’ right to Freedom of Speech, Free Exercise of Religion, the Establishment Clause, Equal Protection, and Due Process. It also violates Michigan State Law, which prohibits municipalities from exercising their power beyond city limits.

In fact, the city appears to be in violation of the policy it’s accused Country Mill Farms of violating. According to the ordinance, it’s illegal to exclude a person from public service on the basis of religion – which is exactly what the city has done. They have excluded Country Mill Farms from the farmer’s market based on Tennes’ statement of his religious beliefs about marriage.

Country Mill Farms Files Lawsuit to Protect Religious Freedom

Steve Tennes, owner of Country Mill Farms, speaks at a press conference.

Steve Tennes and his wife Bridget, owners of Country Mill Farms, speaking at a press conference.

Kelly Anderson, an attorney working on the Country Mill Farms case, summed up the situation well:

“People of faith, like the Tennes family, should be free to live and work according to their deeply held beliefs without fear of losing their livelihood. If the government can shut down a family farmer, just because of the religious views he expresses on Facebook, by denying him a license to do business and serve fresh produce to all people, then no American is free.”

Americans should be free to operate their businesses according to their convictions without fear of being ejected from the market. All Americans, including the Tennes family, have the right to live and work according to their beliefs. It’s one of the principles on which this country was founded.