So as you heard, the main point brought out at the ceremony was the anticipated outcome to the Section 53 challenge. Now in this case, both sides: the LGBT and religious communities believe they have the upper hand. But they surely disagree with the effects of the final decision. On one hand Caleb says the outcome won't have a polarizing effect on the community while the religious leaders say it definitely will. Here are both sides.
Lisa Shoman, Advocate
"Any legal decision is only one component. I think there is a cultural shift and the groups that Caleb mentioned that have been growing and getting support, demonstrate that polarization is only one face, the other face is unification and that is absolutely happening."
Caleb Orozco, LGBT Advocate
"I'd like to complement that and reference the UN's report of 2013. The UN's report points out that 68 percent of all people are accepting or tolerant. What we are seeing or what we are allowing is a small minority of our population to take hostage, the upholding of dignity and rights of their own citizen based on extreme thinking. We are not a society of extreme thinking. We are not facetious in our response to governance and we're not extreme in our response of excluding people based on a personal bias. So, polarization may occur, but it will not occur with the majority of Belizeans who are fair and just."
Pastor Lance Lewis, President, Evangelical Association
"I think if it drops in favour of the LGBT Community, it will create much more collateral damage. So, we are praying for the Chief Justice, that he will rule according to what was done 3 years ago. We saw overwhelming evidence that the LGBT group were not the winners. They were the losers from some of what we saw. So, for it to have been delayed 3 years, a lot of things can come in to play including what happened today, because he has until July 27th to make his decision. If it happens, whichever way, the worst case scenario will be for it to be in favour of the LGBT group. This will create much more chaos and confusion and concern and division in the nation."
The judgment will be delivered at the end of July.
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