Did a Virginia B&B Reject a Gay Couple?

It sounds like a B&B in Fairfax County is trying to fast talk and fast dance itself out of a PR nightmare now claiming that the refusal to take the reservation of a gay couple was some sort of mistake made during "policy transition." In an update to a Washington Blade story, Donna Stafford, an owner of Stafford House, told the Washington Blade that the bed and breakfast has changed its policy and will no longer bar anyone from making a reservation. She also pointed out that under Virginia's Neanderthal laws, by rejecting the gay couple's request for a reservation, Stafford House had been within the letter of all relevant state and local housing laws. In Virginia, gays are the new blacks and can still legally be turned away from housing, hotel accommodations and fired at will because of the religious prejudice of bigoted employers. I hope people - both gay and straight - see through the ruse of the Stafford House is attempting and mark it as an establishment to be avoided like the plague. Here are highlights from the original Blade story:
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A legally married gay man claims that a Virginia bed and breakfast denied him and his spouse a reservation for a room because they are of the same gender.
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Russell Williams, 56, of Hanover, Pa., said his spouse, David Schaefer, 54, tried to make reservations in late February at Stafford House in Fairfax, Va., as part of a trip for the wedding of their nephew. However, they say they were denied a room over the phone on the basis of their relationship.
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Virginia has no LGBT-specific non-discrimination law, nor one that protects same-sex couples against discrimination in public accommodations. Williams said facing this discrimination reminded him of the mistreatment that racial minorities in the United States once faced in similar situations. “The first thing that popped into my head was now I knew how black people felt 50 years ago,” Williams said. “It was bizarre. David felt the same way.”
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Virginia State Del. Adam Ebbin (D-Alexandria), the only openly gay member of the General Assembly and a candidate for a Virginia State Senate seat, called the alleged discrimination faced by Williams and Schaefer “an embarrassment to Virginia.”
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Fred Sainz, vice president of communications for the Human Rights Campaign, also expressed frustration that no legal protections exist to protect LGBT people from discrimination in public accommodations.
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“These kinds of things should not be happening in this day and age, and the frustrating part is that they happen all too frequently in areas all across our country,” Sainz said. “It’s even more frustrating when they happen right across from the nation’s capital — in a city that is virtually within walking distance of the nation’s capital.”
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Virginia has much natural beauty and amazing historical points of interests for travelers. Sadly, it remains a state best avoided by LGBT tourists because there is no guarantee that one won't be treated like a dog - or worse - and it's all perfectly legal. As I have argued many times, the LGBT community needs to punish anti-gay states and take their travel dollar elsewhere. When the boyfriend and I vacation, it is NOT in Virginia.