The Legacy of the Hobby Lobby Case: Protectg Anti-Gay Discrimatn?

HOW HOBBY LOBBY SPL THE LEFT AND SET BACK GAY RIGHTS

But the major nflict that has epted the wake of that cisn has been between relig eedom and gay rights. The rultg ntroversy has spl gay-rights and fah groups on the left, wh wi-rangg polil fallout that some now fear uld hurt both chapter of the ntroversy is set to close on Monday, when Print Obama plans to sign a long-awaed executive orr banng feral ntractors om discrimatg agast gays and lbians, acrdg to a Whe Hoe official.

Many proment gay-rights groups have now whdrawn their support om a top legislative prry, the Employment Non-Discrimatn Act, over the relig exemptn ntas. “The relig exemptn bate has now been polarized to the pot where people are sayg, ‘All or nothg, ’” said Lanae Erickson Hatalsky, director of social policy for the center-left thk tank Third Way, whose rearch and activism on gay marriage have been stmental to that e’s mastream acceptance.

Some gay-rights and civil-liberti advot had lled on Obama to elimate that provisn. But the new orr will not clu a broar relig exemptn that would allow nonprof ntractors to refe employment to gays if they viewed as nsistent wh their fah.

DO THE HOBBY LOBBY DECISN THREATEN GAY RIGHTS?

(ENDA’s exemptn don’t apply to for-prof pani like Hobby Lobby, but would allow a Catholic school, for example, to fire a gay teacher or janor.

) Such an exemptn ma many gay-rights mpaigners nervo, but most accepted as a necsary polil promise to get the vot of morate Catholic Bishops reneged on the al, g out opposn to ENDA 2010 spe the exemptn. Many of the Republins who voted for the bill, such as Utah Senator Orr Hatch, ced the exemptn as the reason they uld support the Republin-ntrolled Hoe clg to brg ENDA up for a vote, gay groups lled on Obama to take executive actn by applyg s provisns to feral ntractors. Gay-rights groups lobbied agast cludg an exemptn the executive orr.

On July 8, the Amerin Civil Liberti Unn, Gay & Lbian Advot & Defenrs, Lambda Legal, the Natnal Center for Lbian Rights, and the Transgenr Law Center announced they would no longer support ENDA as long as clud the relig exemptn. The Gay & Lbian Task Force even lled on Obama to veto ENDA if reached his sk wh the exemptn language gay-rights voic urged utn. The Human Rights Campaign, the natn’s largt gay-rights anizatn, said still supported ENDA but would fight for a narrower relig exemptn the bill.

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HOW HOBBY LOBBY SPL THE LEFT AND SET BACK GAY RIGHTS