Mississippi Redefining Hatred, Pass Worse Anti-Gay/Religious Rights Bill Ever!

Unswayed by the backlash over similar bills in North Carolina and Georgia, the Mississippi State Senate on Thursday (30 March) passed a ‘religious freedom’ bill that would make discrimination against LGBT people legal.
The bill, known as the ‘Protecting Freedom of Conscience from Government Discrimination Act,’ passed by a vote of 31-17 after just over two hours.
The bill was presented by Senator Jenifer Branning who called it ‘a solution to the crossroads we find ourselves in today’ as a result of the US Supreme Court ruling last June which made same-sex marriage legal in all 50 states.
‘Ministers, florists, photographers, people along those lines – this bill would allow them to refuse to provide marriage-related business services without fear of government discrimination.’
Officially known as HB 1523, is considered by LGBT activists to be the worst of the anti-gay bills currently under consideration by state legislatures in the US.
If signed into law by Governor Phil Bryant, religious institutions would be legally protected should they decide to not recognize the legality of same-sex marriages or refuse to place children with qualified, deserving LGBT families.
They could also deny housing and public services to anyone even if the institution receives grants and subsidies from the government.
The bill also sanctions the use of ‘conversion therapy’ to ‘cure’ LGBT people.
‘The government of Mississippi has foolishly decided that hatred and discrimination is more valuable than the protection and dignity of its citizens,’ said National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce Co-Founder and President Justin Nelson.
‘This law isn’t a protection from “government discrimination” as its name implies; it’s government sanctioned discrimination that will have lasting effects on the economic well-being of the state.
‘Religion is being used for the most immoral purpose possible: the denigration of entire populations to second-class citizens based entirely on fear and propaganda. This is the most broadly discriminatory bill we’ve seen introduced.’
The Human Rights Campaign called on Bryant to veto the bill.
‘Following the shameful actions of Lt. Governor Reeves and the Mississippi Senate, Governor Bryant is left with a very clear choice on how to lead his state forward when H.B. 1523 comes to his desk,’ HRC president Chad Griffin said in a statement.
‘Will he follow the example of Georgia Governor Nathan Deal and South Dakota Governor Dennis Daugaard, who understood that discrimination in any form is unacceptable? Or will he align himself with North Carolina’s Governor McCrory, who, in sanctioning discrimination, has harmed both his constituents and the economy of North Carolina?’