Government employees who oppose marriage equality because of their religious beliefs are not entitled to refuse service to same-sex couples, Americans United for Separation of Church and State has informed officials in all 50 states today.
From The Washington Post:
"Gay rights advocates in Virginia and across the country have said repeatedly that they have no interest in forcing religious leaders to marry gay couples if they don’t want to. Gilbert said if that’s the case, “no one will mind if we put that in writing.”
“Religious people are right to be wary of where this agenda is headed,” he said. “It remains my position that the far left does not simply want to protect the rights of gay individuals. Their ultimate goal is to tear down religious institutions and belief systems.”...
From Raw Story:
"Ermold tells the employee that he has a letter from Gov. Steve Beshear ordering all county clerks to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, and he says he also brought the Supreme Court ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges.
“We know what it reads, sir, and we’re not issuing any licenses,” the woman says. “You need to talk to her. You can go to any other county and get your marriage license. We’re just not doing it at this time – not even for other people.”
From Americans United's Wall of Separation blog:
"[Protect Thy Neighbor] hits the ground running today with its first initiative: AU’s Legal Department is sending a letter to every state attorney general in the country as well as every county clerk in the states of Texas and South Dakota reminding them that they have a legal obligation to give wedding licenses and otherwise provide service to all qualified couples, including those who are of the same sex.
From The New York Times:
"At issue was whether Jack Phillips, a Colorado bakery owner, had broken state antidiscrimination laws when he refused to make a cake for a gay couple’s wedding reception, citing his religious beliefs. With same-sex marriage now legal everywhere nationally in the wake of the United States Supreme Court ruling in June, his case is being closely watched as a test of the boundary between personal religious objections and legal discrimination.
From an Americans United press statement:
Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback today issued executive order 15-05, which purports to prohibit the state from discriminating against religious organizations that hold “the belief or moral conviction that marriage is or should be recognized as the union of one man and one woman.” What the order really does is sanction government-funded discrimination, says Americans United for Separation of Church and State.
From Raw Story:
"“I think I deserve some sort of relief that I took my oath to do this job to the best of my ability so help me God," Davis said. “I can’t go beyond what my conscience allows.”... The Casey County attorney said he respected the county clerk – but he said Davis was wrong about this issue.
From Americans United's Wall of Separation blog:
"The project is designed to counter the Religious Right’s stated intentions to undermine civil rights for LGBT people in the wake of the high court’s Obergefell v. Hodges ruling – and reclaim religious freedom as a democratic principle that protects everyone.
From The AP's The Big Story blog:
"The [Colorado bakery] case underscores how the already simmering tension between religious-freedom advocates and gay-rights supporters is likely to become more heated in the aftermath of the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark ruling last month legalizing same-sex marriage nationwide."
From The Advocate:
The Attorney General of South Dakota has taken the position that “country clerks in his state who oppose marriage equality on religious grounds can refuse to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, so long as another clerk in the office will issue the license.” And if every clerk in the county refuses to issue licenses, “the state itself could issue the license.”
From Slate:
"There is nothing in Avakian’s order that bars the Kleins from talking about the ruling. They can rail against it, march against its injustice, and pen Facebook screeds complaining about anti-discrimination law. What they cannot do is proclaim (publicly!) that their business will not serve gay couples."
From The Texas Tribune:
"After blasting the high court’s ruling, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, the state’s top lawyer, issued an opinion last week saying that federal and state religious freedom laws protect county clerks, justices of the peace and judges who opt out of issuing same-sex marriage licenses or performing same-sex wedding ceremonies because they believe it violates their religious beliefs.
But the opinion came with a warning: Be prepared to get sued."
From The Los Angeles Times:
"Adopting one of the most far-reaching vaccination laws in the nation, California on Tuesday barred religious and other personal-belief exemptions for schoolchildren, a move that could affect tens of thousands of students and sets up a potential court battle with opponents of immunization."
From MSNBC:
"By October, the highest court...may also decide to take a sequel to Burwell v. Hobby Lobby, the 2013 case in which the court struck down a regulation requiring employers to cover certain contraceptives and ruled that closely held for-profit corporations can opt out of certain laws with which they have religious objections. Religious nonprofits say the Obama administration’s opt-out form itself violates their religious consciences, although without disagreement in the lower courts, there is arguably less urgency there."
