When I was a kid growing up in a small Southern town during the 1960s and 1970s, the Ku Klux Klan occasionally dropped literature in our driveway. The pamphlets almost always had two defining features–demeaning caricatures of African-Americans and prominent Christian imagery. Instead of attracting me to the organization, they taught me that bigotry often hides behind religion.
Yesterday, the state Senate decided they would try to hide bigotry behind religion, too. When the Senate Republicans passed a bill to allow magistrates to avoid doing their jobs by refusing to marry gay people, they essentially endorsed state-sponsored religion at the expense of people’s civil rights. They would never allow Muslims or Jews to refuse to perform work because it conflicted with their religious beliefs. They would tell them to find another job.
Phil Berger was the big disappointment. John Drescher of the N&O aptly describes Berger as “a serious elected official with ambition and vision.” But his bill is neither ambitious nor visionary. It’s reactionary and short-sighted. It cynically panders to his base at the expense of North Carolina’s LGBT citizens. Berger knows that the legislation will never stand up in court. He probably hopes it dies in the House so he doesn’t have to spend more taxpayer money to defend the indefensible.
Social conservatives have lost their battle to discriminate against gay people just like they lost the one to defend segregation 50 years ago. Like then, they are hiding behind religion in their effort to infringe on people’s rights. The Senate is indulging their ignorance and basest instincts instead of helping them to face and accept the new reality.
Today, most Southern Christians rebuke the Ku Klux Klan. They should do the same to the North Carolina Senate. State sponsored discrimination in the name of religion is not just unconstitutional, it’s unchristian.
Thomas Mills is the founder and publisher of PoliticsNC.com. Before beginning PoliticsNC, Thomas spent twenty years as a political and public affairs consultant. Learn more >
Ironically most of the bigotry actually comes from people like you, Thomas Mills.
The CSA leadership refuses to abide by Federal laws. All throughout the CSA there is opposition to the Union. States Rights has been nothing but a cover for injustice. It will only change when the heroic statues the KKK and DOC erected to their nations heroes are denounced and toppled.
So will this law allow magistrates to refuse to marry a couple if one (or both) has divorced but does not have an annulment? Because that is a violation of some religions.
I AM WHITE. I HATE THE KKK BECAUSE I HATE IGNORANCE AND LAZINESS. THERE IS NO EXCUSE TO BE SO LAZY THAT YOU WILL NOT VERIFY THE LIES THAT ARE TOLD TO YOU AND THE LIES YOU SPREAD.
LASTLY AS A GOD FEARING MAN, I SHALL NOT HATE MY BROTHER AND SISTER. AS A GOD FEARING MAN I SHALL LOVE MY BROTHER AND SISTER AS I LOVE MYSELF. AS A GOD FEARING MAN I SHALL NOT JUDGE OTHERS LEAST I BE JUDGED..
It’s not unchristian at all, at least not according the the Bible:
Leviticus 20:13 “If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them.”
Romans 1:26 -27 “For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: and likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet.”
This is the reason that politics and religion can never mix. People of faith have their beliefs and I totally accept that, but they have no business ever dictating laws. This applies to all faiths including Islam by the way, All they have to do is quote the Bible or other, and feel they are justified in whatever laws they want to impose on the rest of us. Our forefathers were very clear on no official religion and has stood the test of time.
TrUe! True! True! Very true! We should not be legislating against everything we disagree with. Legislation should be for the common good. The “common good” includes gays, Muslims blacks and all those other groups we may deplore.
Apparently, morality got in the way of a desired outcome so you renamed it bigotry.
This was a totally cynical move by the Phil Berger and the Senate to keep the base fired up. I agree it will not stand in the courts and if the House passes(expected),then the Governor should have the guts to take a stand and veto. Even if overridden, at least he won’t look like a complete pawn of the GA.
I remember well in my Baptist youth the way that bigotry against blacks was justified on religious grounds and the same justification is still at work today. Shameful times and shameful leaders we have running this great state
What is your purpose but to serve the Lord! Life is about serving!