Apple has removed a Christian app from the iTunes store, following complaints that it encouraged homophobia.
The Manhattan Declaration asked users to add their names to a 5,000-word statement that ‘speaks in defense of the sanctity of life, traditional marriage, and religious liberty’.
After Apple approved the app, objectors set up an online petition that garnered thousands of names asking the company to change its mind.
‘Supporters of equal rights and the right of women to control their own bodies must stand together and say to Apple: “Applications that support hate and division have no place in the iTunes Store”,’ the petition said.
Neither Apple nor the app’s developer have commented on the decision.
Apple has been a public supporter of same-sex marriage, donating $100,000 to the campaign against an ultimately successful effort to overturn a Californian law which permitted same-sex unions.
‘Apple was among the first California companies to offer equal rights and benefits to our employees’ same-sex partners, and we strongly believe that a person’s fundamental rights — including the right to marry — should not be affected by their sexual orientation,’ the company said at the time.
