Apple rejects reworked anti-gay marriage Manhattan Declaration app
Fri. December 31, 2010 2:24 AM by OnTopMag.com
Cupertino, CA -
Apple has rejected a Christian conservative group's modified app the company originally called "offensive."
The Manhattan Declaration app is a mobile version of the manifesto unveiled last year in New York by religious leaders opposed to gay marriage.
Apple originally removed the app from its iTunes store in November because "it violates our developer guidelines by being offensive to large groups of people."
The group behind the app said it had resubmitted the app after removing a four-question survey. One question asked, "Do you support same-sex relationships?" Users who answered "yes" were told that they had replied incorrectly.
"As a sign of goodwill, we have removed the poll and have resubmitted the app without it," the group's Chuck Colson said in a statement.
According to the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD), Apple has also rejected the modified version of the app.
"Apple rejected the second submission on the same grounds as the first, noting that the app is likely 'to expose a group to harm' and 'to be objectionable and potentially harmful to others,'" GLAAD wrote in post at its website.
The app was deleted from the digital store after more than 7,000 people signed a Change.org petition urging Apple to remove it.
But the Christian group behind the app responded with its own online petition. More than 43,000 people signed onto the petition asking Apple to restore the Manhattan Declaration app, the group said.
"Despite the claims of some, the Declaration does not promote hate or homophobia. It is not anti-gay. Rather, it proclaims that all human beings are loved by God and are worthy of respect," the petition reads.
In a video released by the National Organization for Marriage (NOM), Apple CEO Steve Jobs is labeled "big brother" for removing the anti-gay marriage app.
Backers of the app said in a statement that they would take the issue to Apple's App Review Board.
The Manhattan Declaration app is a mobile version of the manifesto unveiled last year in New York by religious leaders opposed to gay marriage.
Apple originally removed the app from its iTunes store in November because "it violates our developer guidelines by being offensive to large groups of people."
The group behind the app said it had resubmitted the app after removing a four-question survey. One question asked, "Do you support same-sex relationships?" Users who answered "yes" were told that they had replied incorrectly.
"As a sign of goodwill, we have removed the poll and have resubmitted the app without it," the group's Chuck Colson said in a statement.
According to the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD), Apple has also rejected the modified version of the app.
"Apple rejected the second submission on the same grounds as the first, noting that the app is likely 'to expose a group to harm' and 'to be objectionable and potentially harmful to others,'" GLAAD wrote in post at its website.
The app was deleted from the digital store after more than 7,000 people signed a Change.org petition urging Apple to remove it.
But the Christian group behind the app responded with its own online petition. More than 43,000 people signed onto the petition asking Apple to restore the Manhattan Declaration app, the group said.
"Despite the claims of some, the Declaration does not promote hate or homophobia. It is not anti-gay. Rather, it proclaims that all human beings are loved by God and are worthy of respect," the petition reads.
In a video released by the National Organization for Marriage (NOM), Apple CEO Steve Jobs is labeled "big brother" for removing the anti-gay marriage app.
Backers of the app said in a statement that they would take the issue to Apple's App Review Board.
Article provided in partnership with On Top Magazine