Five male friends were ejected from a Chico’s Tacos in El Paso in late June, when security guards observed two of the men kiss, saying “they didn’t allow that faggot stuff to go on there.” When police arrived to investigate the incident, they refused to hear the complaint first, citing that it was illegal for two men or two women to kiss in public… in Texas.

At about 12:30 a.m. on the morning of June 29, the five men were placing their order at the Chico’s Tacos on Montwood when the two men made their public display of affection, sparking the ire of two contracted security guards at the restaurant, police and witnesses said. After the group sat down, the security guards told them “they didn’t allow that faggot stuff to go on there,” and made them leave, de Leon said. An officer arrived at the restaurant about an hour later, after police received five calls, including from the security guards and de Leon. The men were told to leave the restaurant and had anti-gay slurs directed at them while they waited for the police.

“I went up to the police officer to tell him what was going on and he didn’t want to hear my side,” de Leon said. “He wanted to hear the security guard’s side first.” The officer informed the group it was illegal for two men or two women to kiss in public, de Leon said. The five were told they could be cited for homosexual conduct – a charge the U.S. Supreme Court ruled unconstitutional in 2003 in Lawrence v. Texas. That same year, the city of El Paso passed an ordinance banning discrimination based on sexual orientation by employees of the city and by businesses open to the public. El Paso Police Detective Carlos Carrillo said a more appropriate charge would probably be criminal trespass. “The security guard received a complaint from some of the customers there,” Carrillo said. “Every business has the right to refuse service. They have the right to refuse service to whoever they don’t want there. That’s their prerogative.”

More from ABC7 in El Paso:

Rockstar Energy Drink has reached an agreement with various LGBT groups and bloggers affirming their support for LGBT rights, by expanding internal corporate policies and donating $100,000 to LGBT rights organizations. Recently the company has come under fire due to its association with hate-talk radio host Michael Savage, who is father of Rockstar’s CEO Russell Weiner and husband of Rockstar CFO Janet Weiner. From the press release:

The contribution [100K donation] will be shared among the Gay and Lesbian Community Center of Southern Nevada, the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN), and The Trevor Project, and ROCKSTAR Energy Drink will also financially sponsor the National LGBT Bloggers Initiative. The donations and affirmation of LGBT-friendly corporate policies mark steps by ROCKSTAR to demonstrate support for the LGBT community.

“It has recently come to ROCKSTAR’s attention that there might be a misconception about our company’s policy and my personal support for LGBT rights,” said Weiner. “We apologize for that misunderstanding, and want to make clear today that our company fully supports our LGBT employees and our LGBT customers.”

“Some have erroneously associated our company with offensive language directed at LGBT people, specifically statements coming from Michael Savage, who is not and has never been a shareholder or officer of ROCKSTAR Energy Drink. On behalf of our company and directors, including myself and CFO Janet Weiner, I would like to take this opportunity to disavow any offensive statements directed toward LGBT people, including statements from Michael Savage. ROCKSTAR assures our customers and the general public that our brand will never be associated with any language that does not affirm the essential dignity of every person in our diverse national community.”

Among those groups involved in negotiating the agreement with Rockstar: Change.org, The Bilerico Project, The Gay and Lesbian Community Center of Southern Nevada, GLSEN (The Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network), The Trevor Project, and Michael Rogers of PageOneQ.com.

At this time the press release is still unavailable at Rockstar website.

And the court has agreed to hear the petition.

In his petition, Sushil Kumar Kaushal said “even animals don’t indulge in such activities,” adding that allowing gay sex would help spread HIV/AIDS.

The latest development indicated that despite a recent Delhi High Court ruling, gays in India still face a long battle to gain acceptance – social and legal – in this deeply conservative country where even heterosexual sex is talked about in hushed tones.

“If such abnormality is permitted, then tomorrow people might seek permission for having sex with animals,” Kaushal said.

Wow. What a slap in the face to those who worked so hard to overturn the ban.

And in related news, India’s top television yoga expert Swami Baba Ramdev is also challenging the ruling, claiming homosexuality is a “disease” that can be cured by yoga.

Pardon me but what century is this?

Pastor Bill Devlin, president of Redeem the Vote, a non-profit that engages youth through faith, presented the same tired and alarmist arguments against a new gay marriage bill in a “trainwreck” of an appearance on Good Morning Philadelphia yesterday. State Sen. Daylin Leach who introduced the lesislation, was on hand to defend the bill with sound, unlike Pastor Devlin. Watch: