A pizzeria in Red Bank, Tennessee, has announced on social media that it won’t cater same-sex weddings because doing so would violate the business owners’ personal beliefs.

Its announcement was spurred by a screenshot of a text exchange between an unknown person and Pizzeria Cortile that was posted on Reddit.

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The person asked if the pizzeria could confirm rumors that it had recently refused to cater a same-sex wedding. In response, the business wrote, “We do not cater same sex weddings.” Many of the over 1,300 comments on Reddit expressed disappointment and pledged not to patronize the business.

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The business later posted a public statement on its Facebook page, declaring that it had “made the difficult decision not to cater a wedding due to our personal beliefs.”

“This belief comes from a place of personal conviction and we know is not shared by everyone, and it is one we hold without judgment toward others,” the business wrote, adding that it didn’t intend for its decision to harm anyone and apologizing for “the pain this has caused for people who have been a part of our community.”

The statement also said the business has been privileged to serve people “from all walks of life … with open arms and genuine care.” It also asked for people to “extend grace” and “treat each other with dignity and love” even though “we may not always agree,” adding, “We hope you will give us the chance to continue showing love to you when you come through our doors.”

The pizzeria turned off comments on its Facebook statement.

In response to the statement, another local business, The Book & Cover, a local bookstore, wrote via Facebook, that it would no longer allow the pizzeria to operate a part-time food truck on its property.

The bookstore wrote, “It is vitally important to us that it is clear we treasure and respect the queer members of our community and celebrate the rights and love that they carry.”

The bookstore also asked that its customers not use its physical or digital spaces for commenting on the matter.

A 2015 Tennessee law passed after the U.S. Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage says forbids local governments from penalizing any businesses or individuals that refuse service based on “profoundly held beliefs.”

“We as the queer community, should work to put the businesses on a pedestal who do support us and do work to make the city a better place,” Crynne Phenere, program director at local The Seed Theatre, told WDEF.

Another unnamed LGBTQ+ community member told the aforementioned news outlet that the incident has at least resulted in an outpouring of public support for the queer community.

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