WASHINGTON — It’s no secret that the United States is headed toward marriage equality. A majority of states recognize same-sex marriage, and the Supreme Court will soon decide whether to extend that right nationwide. In this progressive climate, the battle has shifted to the state level, where conservatives are waging a last-ditch campaign to target LGBT Americans.
The fight also reveals unrest within the Republican Party, with conservatives rehashing controversial legislation that was vetoed last year, backing down from certain bills and struggling to agree on a unified strategy to fight what they deem to be judicial overreach.
Two months into 2015, the volume of legislation that allows religion to be used for discrimination is already higher than the total number of these kinds of bills introduced in 2014, said Eunice Rho, advocacy and policy counsel with the American Civil Liberties Union. Rho said she expects that the state-level battle is “going to be more contentious” because “this is line-drawing on how equal are the rights going to be.”
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Lawmakers must also contend with the fact that national tide is turning in favor of same-sex marriage and many Americans aren’t finding this kind of legislation palatable. After facing national criticism, Oklahoma Republican State Rep. Sally Kern recently withdrew a bill she introduced that would have allowed businesses to refuse LGBT customers.
When The Huffington Post contacted Utah State Rep. Jacob Anderegg (R), who sponsored a bill that would exempt any officiant from marrying same-sex couples, he said that his legislation was incomplete. Anderegg said he is currently working on revisions to strike a better balance between religious liberty and equal protection.
“I am not happy with the current bill,” he said. “It is completely one-sided.”
