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Rocco's Little Chicago Pizzeria Serves Up Fantastic Response To Arizona's Anti-Gay Bill

Pizzeria Serves Up Fantastic Response To Arizona's Anti-Gay Bill
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By 

Deputy Director of News & Analytics, HuffPost

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An Arizona pizzeria served up a piping-hot plate of payback in response to a discriminatory bill that threatens the rights of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community.

This week, both houses of the state legislature passed Senate Bill 1062, which gives Arizona business owners the right to deny service to gays and others on the basis of religious freedom. While conservatives contend the legislation is meant to prevent discrimination against the faithful, Arizona Democrats say it is plain old discrimination.

"SB 1062 permits discrimination under the guise of religious freedom," state Senate Democratic Leader Anna Tovar said after the bill passed. "With the express consent of Republicans in this Legislature, many Arizonans will find themselves members of a separate and unequal class under this law because of their sexual orientation."

Now, at least one small business is fighting back against the proposed measure with a bold declaration of its own.

On Thursday, Tucson-based restaurant Rocco's Little Chicago Pizzeria displayed a window sign directed at the very legislators who back the regulation. A photo of the sign was posted to Facebook, along with this message: "Funny how just being decent is starting to seem radical these says [sic]."

"A customer posted the sign to my Facebook feed, so I printed it up and laminated it," owner Anthony Rocco DiGrazia told The Huffington Post Friday in a Facebook message. "The response has been overwhelming and almost all positive from across the globe. I just want to serve dinner and own and work in a place I'm proud of. Opening the door to government-sanctioned discrimination, regardless of why, is a huge step in the wrong direction. Thanks for all the support."

The sign was created by Barbie Donovan from Tucson.

A message posted to the restaurant's Facebook on Friday read: "Hey, just want to say that all we want to do is cook you some dinner. Not trying to be anything but your neighborhood pizzeria. Thanks for the support!"

The bill has been sent to the desk of Gov. Jan Brewer (R), and she can either sign the bill into law or veto it. She has not yet taken a public position.

(Hat tip, The Bilerico Project)

This post has been updated with a statement from DiGrazia.

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Before You Go

LBGT Service Cases
(01 of07)
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An Iowa lesbian couple might have hoped to find a wedding cake that was both delicate and sweet, but they say their experience with a Des Moines-based baker left behind a sour taste. As KCCI-TV is reporting, the owner of Victoria's Cake Cottage refused to bake a cake for Trina Vodraska and Janelle Sievers, who are planning a June wedding, because she is Christian. Victoria Childress, who runs her bakery from home, says it's her right as a business owner to turn away customers."I said, 'I'll tell you I'm a Christian, and I do have convictions.' And I said, 'I'm sorry to tell you, but I'm not going to be able to do your cake," Childress, who met the couple during a taste-testing appointment, said. "I didn't do the cake because of my convictions for their lifestyle. It is my right, and it's not to discriminate against them. It's not so much to do with them, it's to do with me and my walk with God and what I will answer [to] Him for." (credit:AP)
(02 of07)
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A Phoenix-based lesbian couple cried foul after being told to "get a room" by a hotel restaurant manager during a romantic dinner. The Arizona Republic says Kenyata White and Aeimee Diaz, both 38, chose to celebrate their two-year anniversary at the District American Kitchen and Wine Bar, located inside the Sheraton Phoenix Downtown Hotel, on Sunday because they met there. "My partner and I were reminiscing...in one of the tall booths," White told the paper. "I had my arm around her neck, and she had her hand around my waist. I gave her a hug for about a minute, pulled myself away to give her a quick kiss, and then we continued talking."White told AZ Family that she and Diaz were then approached by a restaurant manager, who "came up to us and said we should get a room. That our behavior was inappropriate and we should leave the establishment."
(03 of07)
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Rose Marie Belforti, the town clerk in Ledyard, N.Y., drew national attention after refusing to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples. The town's government is behind Belforti, saying it cannot force her to issue licenses. (credit:AP)
(04 of07)
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A Florida-based lesbian couple said they were humiliated by their driver's license application "nightmare" after the Pinellas County DMV rejected their name change request after an hour-long wait.
(05 of07)
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The owner of a new gay bar on Seattle's Capitol Hill neighborhood said he was refused service because a printing company thinks homosexuality is wrong. The printing company's owner argued he didn't approve of the artwork on the promotional material. (credit:Getty )
(06 of07)
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Earlier this year, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed suit against the Wildflower Inn in Lyndonville, Vermont after the proprietors refused to host Katherine Baker and Ming-Lien Linsley's same-sex wedding reception. As ABC is reporting, the inn updated its website shortly thereafter to announce it is "no longer hosting weddings or special events." (credit:AP)
(07 of07)
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In August, Alix Genter, a lesbian bride-to-be, claimed to have been denied service at Here Comes the Bride in Somers Point, N.J., after the salon's manager said she didn't want to be associated with the pending "illegal action," according to the Philadelphia Daily News. (credit:Alamy)
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