Creeping Refusal to Serve for Bad Invidious Reasons strikes again – a notary at a New Jersey bank yesterday refused to notarize some documents for Amanda Knief and Dave Silverman for, the notary said, “personal reasons.”
![Photo: BREAKING: An important message from American Atheists Managing Director, Amanda Knief:
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I was just refused service -- because I am an atheist. It was embarrassing, humiliating, and pissed me off.
A notary at a local bank, where I have gone more than a dozen times to have work documents signed, asked me to explain what we were having notarized. The documents were charitable organizations registrations for American Atheists in several states. So I told her what AA is about. She looked down, then looked at me and [American Atheists President] Dave Silverman and said she couldn't sign the documents because of "personal reasons" and went to find another notary who was eating his lunch to come do the authentications.
I have been called names, threatened, hated on and all manner of ridiculed because of my atheist activism, but I think sitting in a bank and having another professional refuse to do business with me because I am an atheist was the worst slight I have ever received.
In New Jersey, notaries are not required to abide by any code of conduct or ethics that prevents them from refusing service to people based on "personal reasons." Even though we had a valid, legal document and valid, legal identification--she was legally able to refuse me service.
Time to write legislation that won't let this happen to anyone else. Fuck this.
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The bank is question was the TD Bank in Cranford, New Jersey (where American Atheists national headquarters is located).
This is completely unacceptable, and far from over.
- Your friends at American Atheists
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BREAKING: An important message from American Atheists Managing Director, Amanda Knief:
—-
I was just refused service — because I am an atheist. It was embarrassing, humiliating, and pissed me off.
A notary at a local bank, where I have gone more than a dozen times to have work documents signed, asked me to explain what we were having notarized. The documents were charitable organizations registrations for American Atheists in several states. So I told her what AA is about. She looked down, then looked at me and [American Atheists President] Dave Silverman and said she couldn’t sign the documents because of “personal reasons” and went to find another notary who was eating his lunch to come do the authentications.
I have been called names, threatened, hated on and all manner of ridiculed because of my atheist activism, but I think sitting in a bank and having another professional refuse to do business with me because I am an atheist was the worst slight I have ever received.
In New Jersey, notaries are not required to abide by any code of conduct or ethics that prevents them from refusing service to people based on “personal reasons.” Even though we had a valid, legal document and valid, legal identification–she was legally able to refuse me service.
Time to write legislation that won’t let this happen to anyone else. Fuck this.
—-
The bank is question was the TD Bank in Cranford, New Jersey (where American Atheists national headquarters is located).
This is completely unacceptable, and far from over.
– Your friends at American Atheists
—
Become a member at http://www.atheists.org/membershipSupport the cause at http://www.atheists.org/donate
Follow us at http://www.twitter.com/AmericanAtheist
Subscribe to our quarterly magazine athttp://www.atheists.org/magazine
In Washington, notaries are considered agents of the state. Pretty much the ONLY legal reason why we can refuse service is when we have reasonable doubts as to the identity of the signer or whether the signer understands what is being signed. Discriminating as a matter of religion could result in charges of malfeasance (a misdemeanor, but enough to get your notary license revoked and you banned from ever getting one again), additional criminal charges for discrimination in the course of conducting the state’s business, and very likely civil charges if the person discriminated against decides to press charges. And since revocation of the notary license is the first to go, the notary bond and insurance will not cover the bigot from resulting legal fees, as coverage is dependent on being a licensed notary.
I trust that Ms. Knief and the AA will be pressing charges.
Oops, meant to add that Washington’s laws and procedures are pretty typical for most states. I hope AA investigates New Jersey laws: it may be that notaries are considered agents of the state and/or officers of the court, and thus bound by the same anti-discrimination laws as any other such person. If it is a criminal matter for a county clerk or court bailiff to discriminate against atheists, it is very likely illegal for a notary public to discriminate against atheists.
Toronto Dominion operates in New Jersey? I’m surprised- there are very few obviously foreign banks in Canada; I assumed the same would hold true in the US.
hmmm, per the NJ Dept of Revenue website:
“A Notary Public is a public officer who serves as an impartial witness to the signing of documents and to the acknowledgement of signatures on documents. A Notary Public may also administer oaths and affirmations.”
and their Office of the Attorney General say “The New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (LAD) prohibits an owner, manager, or employee of any place that offers goods, services and facilities to the general public, such as a restaurant, hotel, doctor’s office, camp, or theater, from directly or indirectly denying or withholding any accommodation, service, benefit, or privilege to an individual because of that individual’s race, creed, color, national origin, nationality, ancestry, marital status, domestic partnership or civil union status, sex, affectional or sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or disability. “
The notary violated state law. Should lose her “seal”.
I hope AA stops doing business with TD as a result. It’s as blatant a form of discrimination as if they refused service to a black person.
Going by what ’16’ wrote above, create a stink with the bank, get her fired… then she’s being persecuted for her beliefs. So it’s a win-win situation!
@5 To be fair, it is not clear that TD condones or endorses the action of their employee. I’d wait to see what kind of statement they make.
NitricAcid (#3) –
After the 2008 economic meltdown, Canadian banks went on shopping sprees in the US, buying up insolvent banks because the Big Five had the cash. Canada was the only G20 country that had no bank failures during or after the 2008 crisis, mainly because the Canadian government still requires banks play by the old and safe rules (i.e. Glass-Stegall type rules).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Five_(banks)
It would be funny if it wasn’t so horrifying to watch the spreading mood of “I can do anything I want because religion!.
I wonder how long it’s going to take for it to dawn on people in general that beliefs and state don’t mix. I realize it’s a completely new and original idea that’s never been tested so it may take a while.
Quixote, I see what you did there….
I’m pretty sure that can be religious discrimination, in the sense that, for purposes of equal access under the law, atheism is just as protected as any theism is.
This is one of the points that the theocrats use to conflate atheism with being religion. Well, in this case, it is treated as one, so this notary should certainly be punished appropriately (I think having her notary license suspended until she can take an appropriate class on what she is or isn’t allowed to refuse service for would be appropriate.).
Don’t we already have legislation preventing discrimination (in the performance of professional duties or services in organizations open to the public) on the basis of religion? Something with “Civil Rights” in the name? And also state-level protections like those hexidecima cites in comment #4?
The notary public in this case is, as far as I can tell, working out of a public accommodation and considered a appointed public official of the state under New Jersey law. In both capacities she would be forbidden from discriminating on the basis of religion or the lack thereof.
John Horstman, we also have the Hobby Lobby case.
@hexidecima #4 – The situation Ophelia mentioned is a bit of a gray area regarding the second statute. According to the National Notary Association, every state makes it illegal for a bank employee who is also a notary to refuse services to non-customers: that is because notarizations are a function of being a state officer, not of being a bank employee. Likewise, if she were to leave the bank’s employ, she MUST retain her seal and register: they are HER property even if the bank paid for them.
It may well be the case that she could not be prosecuted under the state’s LAD, and would have to be prosecuted for violating laws governing the behavior of officers of the state.
Going literal here because very little legal and none US*, I first note that a Notary Public is a Public notary – a writing servant of the People. Second, that this is a position of trust coming from both the Governing Powers That Be and that Populus which NP’s are set to serve. Third, that this seal pup has impeached herself as betraying that trust and proven it misplaced in her case.
Terminate, expel, fire, sue and re-spell exterminate. Then let her pop a small grilled fish maybe.
* a Dangerous Trend, I know
Oh, and to attack on a different tack, one perhaps more forgiving to flaming amateurs than the professional:
It seems to me that this Notary has embarked on an ethically problematic route by picking and choosing which papers she might deem worthy of her official stamp of authenticity – thereby turning it into a stamp of approval. That course of action can and even should bring with it a more or less super-human responsibility for diligent scrutiny after any hint of not-good, less she may find herself having promised something unwanted to Diabolus Terribilis. Which could turn out to be contra-productive to her objectives.
May she get plenty of time to ponder this implication – away from that desk.
I wonder if Dave will be able to think of any “secular reasons” why it would be okay for people to discriminate on the basis of religion.
Wylann, I actually meant that the *notary* felt it wasn’t up to her to do her job because of her religion. Like pharmacists who couldn’t possibly dispense birth control. Etc. I didn’t actually mean to equate atheism and religion there. But I can see how my not-so-stellar attempt at humor could look that way. Not what I meant.
What pathetic, petty behaviour by (no doubt) a True Christian.
If the notary finds she’s in legal trouble, will she frantically look for non-religious “personal reasons” (need to go to the toilet, sudden recurrence of old football injury, etc), as an excuse.
Re no 8, I’m pretty sure Australia is also a G20 country, and we had no bank failures in 2008 either. /minor patriotic point.
jagwired@17:
Ouch. Well played!
Ophelia, please update us if there is any followup from AA on this story. I am very interested to see if the bank takes action, or AA files a suit or something else.
Left this comment elsewhere but thought I’d share here too:
I’m a notary and I know that in VA, the notary handbook just has one line about not notarizing by choice (“A Virginia notary may REFUSE to notarize a document.”). If that’s the case here, I’m wondering if it would be an employer/company policy issue rather than a legal one? (I have almost no legal knowledge though!) Really though, I’m pretty sure if I told someone at work I wouldn’t notarize something for “personal reasons,” I’d hear about it. I’ve notarized people’s gun permit applications, which I personally don’t have super awesome feelings about.