I just wrote a story about a new, popular, luxury events venue in a city near me in western Michigan that has announced it will not rent the space for same-sex weddings. The Christian owners cite some sort of amorphous harm to their liberty if they have to follow the city's non-discrimination laws. They look determined to take their case to court, where they probably stand a pretty good chance of prevailing given how conservative the federal judiciary has become.

This is a big problem for LGBTQ people in many parts of the U.S. The majority of people living around here think those Christian owners are heroes. There's going to be no defeating them with boycotts or peer pressure. They will never lack customers. And more businesses will emulate them if they succeed in having the city law overturned.

It's already tough to be LGBTQ out here. We queer people already have fewer rights and opportunities than people who live elsewhere in the United States.

We live out here anyway, many people liking the rural life enough to put up with inconveniences and worse. That should not be. Our nation should offer equal opportunity and freedom to all people coming no matter where we live.