Tag: LGBT protections

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Over 100 CEOs Of Tech Industry Call For National LGBT Non-Discrimination Protections

The Human Rights Campaign reports that more than 100 technology industry leaders (and counting) have joined in an unprecedented statement to legislators calling for the addition of non-discrimination protections for LGBT people to civil rights laws.

Just a few of the companies represented include YouTube, Google, Uber Technologies, Intuit, Facebook, GoPro, Cisco, Pinterest, Pandora Media, Yahoo! and Logitech.

Here’s the language of the declaration:

The values of diversity, fairness and equality are central to our industry. These values fuel creativity and inspiration, and those in turn make the U.S. technology sector the most admired in the world today.

We believe it is critically important to speak out about proposed bills and existing laws that would put the rights of minorities at risk. The transparent and open economy of the future depends on it, and the values of this great nation are at stake.

Religious freedom, inclusion, and diversity can co-exist and everyone including LGBT people and people of faith should be protected under their states’ civil rights laws. No person should have to fear losing their job or be denied service or housing because of who they are or whom they love.

However, right now those values are being called into question in states across the country. In more than twenty states, legislatures are considering legislation that could empower individuals or businesses to discriminate against LGBT people by denying them service if it they felt it violated their religious beliefs.

To ensure no one faces discrimination and ensure everyone preserves their right to live out their faith, we call on all legislatures to add sexual orientation and gender identity as protected classes to their civil rights laws and to explicitly forbid discrimination or denial of services to anyone.

Anything less will only serve to place barriers between people, create hurdles to creativity and inclusion, and smother the kind of open and transparent society that is necessary to create the jobs of the future. Discrimination is bad for business and that’s why we’ve taken the time to join this joint statement.

Read the full list of signees on the HRC website here.

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Nevada: RFRA Legislation Declared ‘Dead’

News from my home state Nevada!

In the aftermath of Indiana and Arkansas seeing public outrage over so-called “religious freedom” legislation, Nevada lawmakers have wisely decided to step away from similar legislation.

And it wasn’t just the last week’s news that helped kill the Nevada bill.

From the Las Vegas Review-Journal:

“The Governor believes that this bill is not necessary because the interests of all Nevadans are protected under current law,” Mari St. Martin, spokeswoman for Gov. Brian Sandoval said Thursday night.

Even the bill sponsors are backing away from it.

“After careful reflection and consultation with legislative counsel, I have determined that Nevada’s Constitution already contains adequate safeguards and protections for the civil liberties of Nevada’s citizens, and further legislative emphasis of these rights would be unnecessary,” freshman legislator and Assembly Judiciary Committee Vice Chairman Erven Nelson, R-Las Vegas, said Thursday.

The reaction to Indiana’s legislation was a factor in deciding to withdraw the bill, Nelson said.

“We obviously do not want to have happen in Nevada what’s been threatened to happen in Indiana as far as a boycott and things like that.”

Running down the list, that’s Indiana, Arkansas, Georgia and Nevada all turning back the hate.

Forward.

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Georgia Ends Legislative Session Without Passing RFRA

The Georgia lawmakers closed their legislative session without passing a controversial “religious freedom” bill. Similar legislation has held the nation’s attention this past week thanks to bills in Indiana and Arkansas.

From the Atlanta Journal-Constitution:

Gov. Nathan Deal, who has repeatedly said he would support legislation that mirrored the 1993 law, signaled the debate has become too toxic. He said in an interview that supporters ensure that anti-discrimination language is in the measure next year if they want to earn his signature.

“That’s the most important thing. And that is a delicate thing to do,” he said. “There’s been so much hyperbole. It’s hard to identify what can you say without saying too much, what can you say without saying too little, and what will people read into either version that you like.”

A version of the legislation was swiftly approved by Senate lawmakers, but it was tabled in the House after three Republicans joined with Democrats to add an anti-discrimination amendment. And the uproar over similar bills in Arkansas and Indiana, along with growing pushback from iconic Georgia businesses, seemed to seal its fate.

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Arkansas Governor Signs Newly Tweaked “Religious Freedom” Bill Into Law

After just a few short days, Arkansas lawmakers have tweaked their “religious freedom” law to more closely mirror the federal version, and today Gov. Asa Hutchinson has signed the legislation into law.

In the wake of intense backlash against a similar law in Indiana, first-term Republican governor had rejected the first version Arkansas lawmakers had sent to his desk, instead asking for two tweaks so there would be no daylight between his state’s law and the one President Bill Clinton signed in 1993.

“I think it’s sending the right signal, the way this has been resolved, to the world and the country that Arkansas understands the diversity of our culture and workforce but also the importance of balancing that with our sincerely held religious convictions,” Hutchinson said Thursday afternoon.

Hutchinson has also announced he is considering issuing an executive order that would ban discrimination against state employees.

We shall see.

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Indiana Governor Approves “Fix” To Religious Freedom Law

Indiana lawmakers have announced changes to the state’s current RFRA bill that specifies the new religious freedom law cannot be used as a legal defense to discriminate against patrons based on their sexual orientation or gender identity.

The Indianapolis Star reports:

Indiana Republicans said Thursday morning that they are presenting an addition to the controversial RFRA legislation that will make it clear no one will “be able to discriminate against anyone at any time.” Senate President Pro Tem David Long, R-Fort Wayne, and House Speaker Brian Bosma, R-Indianapolis said at a press conference at the Statehouse that leaders will present the proposal to lawmakers at 9:30 a.m. after speaking with corporate and civic leadership this week. “Hoosier hospitality had to be restored,” Bosma said.

The leaders referenced the intense backlash that rained down on Indiana after Gov. Mike Pence signed the bill last week. “It was never intended to discriminate against anyone,” Long said. “That perception led to the national protests we’ve seen.”

A legislative report says the RFRA will be amended to say the law “does not authorize a provider to refuse to offer or provide services, facilities, use of public accommodations, goods, employment, or housing to any member or members of the general public on the basis of race, color, religion, ancestry, age, national origin, disability, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, or United States military service.”

UPDATE:

By a vote of 66-30 in the House, and 34-16 in the Senate, Indiana lawmakers have approved changes to the state’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act to allay fears that it would allow businesses to discriminate against gays and lesbians.

The revised law explicitly bars a business from denying services to someone on the basis of categories that include sexual orientation and gender identity.

Gov. Mike Pence signed the legislation this afternoon.

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Indiana: New Language Could Specify RFRA Cannot Be Used As Defense Of Discrimination

The Indianapolis Star is reporting on new language that is being vetted to “clarify” the recently passed “Religious Freedom Restoration Act” which has caused turmoil in the state and across the country.

A copy of the language obtained by The Indianapolis Star was being presented to Gov. Mike Pence Wednesday morning. The measure would specify that the new religious freedom law cannot be used as a legal defense to discriminate against residents based on their sexual orientation.

The measure goes much further than a “preamble” that was proposed earlier in the week, explaining exactly what the RFRA law does. But it doesn’t go as far as establishing gays and lesbians as a protected class of citizens or repealing the law outright, both things that Republican leaders have said they could not support.

The clarification would say that the new “religious freedom” law does not authorize a provider – including businesses or individuals — to refuse to offer or provide its services, facilities, goods, or public accommodation to any member of the public based on sexual orientation or gender identity.

Churches or other nonprofit religious organizations would be exempt from the language.

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Indiana: Gov. Mike Pence Blames “Sloppy Reporting” on State’s “Perception Problem”

Gov. Mike Pence of Indiana

At a Tuesday morning press conference, Gov. Pence announced plans to amend the law before the end of the week. He added the changes will clearly state that RFRA is about “religious liberty, not discrimination,” adding the the law does not give anyone the right to turn away customers on religious grounds.

The odd take-away from the press conference was that the Governor plans to “fix” a law that he claims is not broken.

Blaming the national media for “sloppy reporting,” a beleagured Gov. Mike Pence of Indiana admitted the state’s “Religious Freedom Restoration Act” has caused a huge headache for the state and a terrible “perception problem.”

Pence said he concluded that it is necessary to move legislation to amend the law to make it clear that it does not give businesses the right to deny services to anyone.

“This law does not give anyone the right to discriminate. This law does not give anyone the right to deny services,” said the governor.

“I don’t support discrimination against gays and lesbians or anyone else. I abhor discrimination.”

That being said, the governor indicated that adding sexual orientation to the state’s civil rights laws was not on the table right now.

Pence said he will work with the Indiana legislature this week to make the changes he is seeking to the RFRA law.

“We will fix this and we will move forward,” he said.

(source)

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Connecticut: Governor Dan Malloy Bans State-Funded Travel To Indiana

First, San Francisco’s mayor issued a ban on city-funded travel to the state of Indiana over the recently passed (and highly controversial) “license to discriminate” legislation SB101.

Then, Seattle’s mayor followed suit.

Today, the governor of Connecticut has now issued his own executive order banning state-funded travel to the Hoosier state.

Malloy’s communications director, Mark Bergman, followed up with tweets pointing out that Connecticut’s religious freedom laws only pertain to religious institutions – not private organizations.

And, unlike other states Connecticut doesn’t permit discrimination on sexual orientation in any private establishment or institution.

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New Poll: Huge Majority Of Americans Support Federal LGBT Protections

According to a new Greenberg Quinlan Rosner poll, a big majority of Americans – 69% – support a federal law that would make it illegal to discriminate against LGBT folks.

Predictably Democrats showed strong support for such legislation at 80%. But independent voters weren’t far behind at 72%. Even Republicans eked out a majority of support at 51%.

LGBT advocacy groups have tried for years to get the Employment Non-Discrimination Act passed which would cover many of these protections. Unfortunately, it hasn’t passed in both Congressional chambers in one session.

Perhaps with this kind of support out there, politicians may find more courage to do the right thing on the issue.

Read more from the survey here.