Lawmakers Pull Ohio Religious Freedom Bill After Comparisons to Arizona Legislation
A controversial, so-called “religious freedom” bill in the Ohio legislature is being pulled. The legislation, similar to the bill that recently passed in Arizona, has been widely criticized for opening the door to discrimination against LGBT Ohioans. Ohio Public Radio’s Jo Ingles reports on why the Ohio legislation is dead for now.
One of the sponsors of the religious freedom bill being considered in the Ohio legislature, Democratic Rep. Bill Patmon, says the plan is dead.
“We are pulling the bill, the entire bill, not just support or anything, but the bill is being pulled off of the legislative agenda—and by my request,” Patmon said. “And there is too much of a misunderstanding and misinterpretation of what’s going on in this particular case. And when you find that, then you have to maybe go back to the drawing board, because we are not Arizona nor were we ever intended to be or to have a bill that is reflective of what they’re doing.”
Patmon says he was pushing the bill because he wanted to make sure there were protections for people who wear a cross necklace, a yarmulke or some other religious symbol in their workplaces.
http://www.ideastream.org/news/feature/lawmakers-pull-ohio-religious-freedom-bill-after-comparisons-to-arizona-leg
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