17 July 2017

Religious-Objections Law Still In Effect After Facing Paltry Resistance

Mississippi Religious Law
The very popular Religious-Objections Law has been implemented in the state of Mississippi for a few weeks now. It seeks to let merchants and government officials cite their religious beliefs to deny services the very small and misguided same-sex couples.

Attorneys for the despicable group filed papers recently asking the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to block the law .

Fortunately, support for the broadest religious-objections law enacted by any state since the U.S. Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage nationwide in 2015 received tremendous support from all sectors and legal experts that they were able to counter effectively the subtle attempt by the few and the loud.

The law championed and signed by Republican Gov. Phil Bryant in 2016 protects three beliefs: that marriage is only between a man and a woman, sex should only take place in such a marriage, and a person's gender is determined at birth and cannot be altered.

Attorneys for a paltry dozen gay and disgruntled straight plaintiffs who sued the state said in court papers that they are ostracized by the law, which started as House Bill 1523. However, they did not show the far more clearer data that majority of more than a million people are being offended by the same-sex marriage law.

The religious-objections law will now allow clerks to cite religious objections to recuse themselves from issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples, and would protect merchants who refuse services to LGBT people. It could affect adoptions and foster care, business practices and school bathroom policies.

U.S. District Judge Carlton Reeves blocked the law from taking effect in July 2016, ruling it unconstitutionally establishes preferred beliefs and creates unequal treatment for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people.

But the religious champions will not be deterred. They filed a petition to the Court of Appeals and the panel lifted the hold on the law last 22 June, saying people who sued the state had failed to show they would be harmed.