Bistro boots brunching lawmaker over anti-gay remarks

A restaurant in Knoxville, Tennessee has refused service to a state lawmaker over his anti-gay views, The Raw Story has confirmed.

An employee of Bistro at the Bijou told Raw Story that owner Martha Boggs turned away state Sen. Stacey Campfield (R) over the weekend.

"He just came in for Sunday brunch and the owner refused him service and he left," the employee, who did not wish to be named, said. "There wasn't a scene or anything, but she was a little excited. No, there was nothing ugly."

"She just feels that he is a bully and she wanted to stand up to him," the employee added.

Campfield had falsely claimed on Thursday that it was nearly impossible for someone to contract AIDS through heterosexual contact.

“Most people realize that AIDS came from the homosexual community,” he told Michelangelo Signorile, who hosts a radio program on SiriusXM OutQ. “It was one guy screwing a monkey, if I recall correctly, and then having sex with men. It was an airline pilot, if I recall.”

“My understanding is that it is virtually — not completely, but virtually — impossible to contract AIDS through heterosexual sex.”

Campfield briefly gained national attention in 2011 when he introduced legislation that critics derided as “the don’t say gay bill” to prevent homosexuality from being discussed in public schools.

“[Homosexuals] do not naturally reproduce,” he told Signorile. “It has not been proven that it is nature. It happens in nature, but so does beastiality. That does not make it right or something we should be teaching in school.”

Boggs told the Knoxville News Sentinel that she felt like she had to take a stand after his latest remarks about AIDS.

"He's gone from being stupid to dangerous," she said. "It's just my way of standing up to a bully."

Following the incident Sunday, the restaurant posted a brief comment on their Facebook page: "I hope that Stacy Campfield now knows what if feels like to be unfairly discrimanted against."

That comment had been "liked" by over 1,200 people by Monday afternoon.

On Monday, a sign outside the restaurant read, "Today's Special: Fried Chicken. Crispy Chicken Livers. No Stacey."

Campfield was not available for comment by the time of publication.

-- with earlier reporting by Eric W. Dolan

(H/T: Towleroad)