Joe.My.God. LGBT News
From the Jackson Clarion-Ledger:
Gov. Phil Bryant has given notice of an appeal to the 5th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals of a federal judge ruling blocking House Bill 1523. In a motion filed Thursday in U.S. District Court, Bryant’s attorney Drew Snyder asked that U.S. District Judge Carlton Reeves stay his preliminary injunction pending appeal.
“This is a good law that was democratically enacted and is perfectly constitutional,” Bryant said Friday in a statement. “The district court’s decision is ripe for reversal and we are confident that, as this case moves ahead it will be reversed. The people of Mississippi have the right to ensure that all of our citizens are free to peacefully live and work without fear of being punished for their sincerely held beliefs. And as governor, it is my duty to uphold my oath to defend the people of Mississippi and the laws passed by those entrusted to represent them.”
Judge Reeves struck down the bill minutes before it was due to go into law at midnight on June 30th.
The next day Democratic state Attorney General Jim Hood said that he probably wouldn’t appeal the ruling because the “churchgoing public had been duped” into thinking the bill protects religious freedom.
In late May, Bryant declared that Christians will “line up for crucifixions” in order to stop LGBT rights.
HB 1523 allows any business or individual to discriminate against LGBT citizens on the basis of “sincerely held religious belief or moral conviction.”