The couple, along with Matt’s six-year-old son, have claimed that they were denied access to a home as the owner said that they not a “family” because they are not a “man and woman.” A couple with a young child have said that apparent homophobia denied them shelter in a house after they were evacuated during wildfires in Rhodes. Sean Palmer, 34, and Matt Smith, 35, said that they were “absolutely gobsmacked” when the couple and Matt’s six-year-old son were refused access to the home as the owner said they are not a “family” because they are not a “man and woman.” The blow came after the family received an emergency text message in the middle of the night on July 22, telling them to immediately evacuate their hotel in Pefkos on the east coast of Rhodes. The family had been on a one-week TUI holiday and could see the flames from their balcony as ash fell from the sky “like it was snowing.” After a night sleeping in a local school, they were offered a house while waiting to fly back to Newcastle. But the offer was pulled once the owner saw Sean and Matt were in a homosexual relationship. As the homeowner arrived to pick them up, he said he was expecting a “family”, to which Sean responded: “We are a family.” The male owner replied they are “not a man and woman” and left without the couple and young child.
via edinburghlive: Brit couple fleeing Greece wildfires on TUI trip refused home ‘because they’re gay’