‘Religious freedom’ law likely to spark appeals, more lawsuits
The Human Rights Campaign, an LGBTQ-rights organization, hosted a news conference on Thursday with several other organizations including the ACLU of Mississippi and Planned Parenthood, all of whom said they would continue fighting HB 1523.
Rob Hill, state director of HRC Mississippi, said he will assume the law goes into effect immediately as his organization formulates strategies.
“LGBTQ Mississippians who are already vulnerable in our state, because there are no statewide protections as it relates to housing, employment and public accommodations, are even more vulnerable as a result of this bill,” Hill said.
Jennifer Riley-Collins, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Mississippi, said there is a possibility that the law may not go into effect right away. In May 2016, the ACLU sued the state’s vital records registrar, Judy Moulder, to prevent Moulder’s office from enforcing the law.
“We believe it would go into effect immediately, but there is a possibility that we would have to wait about 21 days for the 5th circuit to issue its mandate,” Riley-Collins said Thursday. “That would be the only thing that would keep that bill from being legally in effect today.”
MS Today
6/26/17
Magnolia Tribune
