LGBT Activists And Allies Protest Religious ‘License To Discriminate’ Bill (Video)

Activists were out in force this morning, sending a strong message to Michigan senators: don’t vote for religious discrimination.

The highly-controversial Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) bill that Michigan House Republicans passed earlier this month is awaiting a vote in the Senate. Should it pass – it’s likely GOP Governor Rick Snyder would sign it into law – it could give Michigan citizens the license to discriminate, as long as they cite their “sincerely-held religious beliefs.”

This morning, LGBT activists and allies, and others, joined together to send a strong message to the Michigan Senate, by protesting the RFRA.

“We will not stand for hate,” protest organizer Nikki Gestwite told MLive. “We don’t agree with the bill. We don’t think it’s right, and we think it’s kind of a step back to the ’60s. That’s not cool.” 

“I happen to be a lesbian, so it’s very important to me in that way, but it’s really about anybody who is different,” said Gestwite, who works with a volunteer community group called “Changing Adrian.”

As The New Civil Rights Movement has reported, supporters of these RFRA bills claim they merely allow people of faith to exercise their religion without government interference, but in reality, they are trojan horses, allowing discrimination under the guise of religious observance.

For example, under a Religious Freedom law, a pharmacist could refuse to fill a doctor’s prescription for birth control, or HIV medication. An emergency room physician or EMT could refuse service to a gay person in need of immediate treatment. A school teacher could refuse to mentor the children of a same-sex couple, and a DMV clerk could refuse to give a driver’s license to a person who is divorced. 

Supporters also claim that these laws wouldn’t be used in such a manner, but when the state codifies a license to discriminate into law, there are people who will, as “Stand Your Ground” laws have proven.

Opponents of RFRA legislation also include people of faith who embrace equality and oppose discrimination:

More photos and responses from today’s grassroots protest, via Twitter:

 

 

Image via Twitter
Video via MLive