An openly homosexual Texas pastor who sued Whole Foods Market for allegedly putting an anti-gay slur on a cake he bought has withdrawn his lawsuit, admitting the entire story was a hoax.
Jordan Brown, founder and pastor of Church of Open Doors, an Austin, Texas, congregation that describes itself as “a non-denominational, non-traditional, Christ-centered, welcoming, LGBT-friendly, worshiping church,” issued a statement Monday saying he was “wrong to pursue this matter and use the media to perpetuate this story,” according to KVUE-TV.
On April 14, Brown selected a cake from the Austin Whole Foods Market and asked a bakery associate to write the phrase “Love Wins” on the cake. Love Wins is the title of a controversial 2011 book by former Michigan pastor Rob Bell that considers the possibility that all people, not just those who accept Jesus Christ as their savior, are spared God’s judgment for sin. Bell has since stated that he has no problem with homosexuality and favors same-sex marriage.
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Brown said that he purchased the cake without looking at the full inscription, which he later discovered read “Love Wins F*g,” the last word an offensive term for a homosexual. How the bakery associate would know Brown is homosexual is unclear since, as Brown himself stated, “I didn’t tell her anything about me being gay.”
According to CNN, Brown “said he has ordered many cakes from Whole Foods before and never had an issue. He called the company and was given an apology and an offer [sic] a gift card and replacement cake by the outlet’s manager.” The offer was later rescinded following an internal investigation that found Brown’s charges baseless.
Nevertheless, Brown filed suit against Whole Foods, “requesting a jury trial and … seeking unspecified damages and monetary relief for mental anguish, court costs and other expenses,” reported the Austin American-Statesman.
During an April 18 press conference in which he was, according to the paper, “overcome with emotion,” Brown said, “I’m horrified that this has happened and I’m hopeful that through my actions I can protect others in the Austin LGBT community.”
Whole Foods, also based in Austin, did not sit idly by as its reputation was besmirched. After its own investigation showed that Brown was lying, the company filed a countersuit seeking at least $100,000 in damages from Brown. The suit stated that the pastor “intentionally, knowingly and falsely accused Whole Foods and its employees of writing the homophobic slur.”
The company also released a statement summarizing the results of its investigation along with security-camera video to corroborate it. Simply put, the cake was decorated exactly as Brown requested; adding the slur would have been against company policy, which “prohibits team members from accepting or designing bakery orders that include language or images that are offensive.” Moreover, the bakery associate who wrote the message surely would not have included the slur since she “is part of the LGBTQ community.” In addition — and this is the clincher — the video clearly shows the UPC code on the top of the cake box as it is being scanned at the checkout, but video of the cake with the slur that Brown posted to YouTube (and which has since been made private) shows the UPC code on the bottom and side of the box, and Brown “admits that he was in sole possession and control of the cake until he posted his video.”
About a month later, obviously sensing that the jig was up, Brown finally confessed that he had woven the tale out of whole cloth and dropped his lawsuit.
“I want to apologize to Whole Foods and its team members for questioning the company’s commitment to its values, and especially the baker associate who I understand was put in a terrible position because of my actions,” Brown said in his statement.
“I apologize to the LGBT community for diverting attention from real issues,” he added. “I also want to apologize to my partner, my family, my church family, and my attorney.”
Whole Foods responded to Brown’s announcement with this statement: “We’re very pleased that the truth has come to light. Given Mr. Brown’s apology and public admission that his story was a complete fabrication, we see no reason to move forward with our counter suit to defend the integrity of our brand and team members.”
Why would Brown even attempt this stunt when his charges could be debunked so easily? As with many other, similar hoaxes, Brown undoubtedly knew that the mainstream media would automatically assume the charges were true and that even if he lost, far fewer people would hear about that than heard about the initial charges. On the other hand, Brown may well have had the oldest motive in the book for hoping that Whole Foods — which, after all, trumpets its commitment to “diversity” — would cower before such charges and pay him thousands of dollars: He is being sued for defaulting on $28,000 worth of student loans.
Photo: AP Images
