A Tennessee state senator is pushing a bill to allow mental health students to refuse to counsel LGBT or atheist students.
Remember State Senator Stacey Campfield, who spent much of his time as a Tennessee lawmaker pushing his infamous “Don’t Say Gay” bill? He fortunately lost re-election in November, but the man carrying on his legacy is Tennessee State Senator Joey Hensley. That’s him in the photo (circled) at a 2012 bill signing with Gov. Haslam at the table.
A medical doctor, Hensley several years ago sent out letters to every water district across the state asking them to stop fluoridating their water. “Just because we’ve been doing something for 50 years doesn’t make that right” he told a local news channel.
That same claim about tradition apparently doesn’t apply to Sen. Hensley’s other interests, like working to demean and disempower LGBT people.
In 2012, Hensley ushered a “Don’t Say Gay” bill through committee. The following year, he began his push to carve out a religious exemption in state law that would allow discrimination against LGBT people and atheists by mental health students, allowing them to refuse to treat people, as part of their required training, if they expressed a deeply held religious belief.
In short, it is a get out of jail free card, teaching students who are learning to counsel mental health patients to not have to counsel them.
The bill didn’t survive the session, but Sen. Hensley is back at it again.
SB 397Â “prohibits public institutions of higher education from disciplining or discriminating against a student in a counseling, social work, or psychology program because the student refuses to counsel or serve a client as to goals, outcomes, or behaviors that conflict with a sincerely held religious belief of the student.”
The Tennessee Equality Project is voicing concern over the discriminatory bill.
“Clients should not experience stigma from counselors, psychologists, or social workers. Students in these programs should learn to serve the whole public, regardless of their personal views. It’s just part of good education and good practice.”
Â
Image via Facebook