Amid screaming accusations of discrimination and intolerance from homosexualists, bureaucrats and their comrades in business, Indiana Governor Mike Pence just signed the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (SB 101) into law to protect citizens from the increasingly rampant lawless judiciary sweeping the American landscape.
UPDATE 4/3/15: Indiana GOP Legislature & Governor Turn on Christians, Protect Homosexuals (see article excerpts below)
UPDATE 12/7/15: Indiana Still NOT Gay Enough, so Homosexualists Launch State-wide Commerce Attack
UPDATE 4/2/15: Media, Gays Shut Down Indiana Christian Pizza Restaurant
UPDATE 3/29/15: Indiana Governor Stands Firm on Religious Liberty Law vs. ABC News (video):
UPDATE 4/3/15: Arkansas Religious Freedom Law NOT Gay Enough
For background, click headlines below to read previous articles:
New Mississippi Religious Liberty Law Infuriates Liberals
But in Arizona, Homosexualists & Liberal Media Defeat Religious Liberty
New Law Against 'Gay Rights' Ordinances Passes in Arkansas
Oregon Bankrupts Bible-clinging Baker who Refused 'Gay Wedding'
Lesbians Attack Ohio Christian Videographer over 'Gay Wedding'
Washington State Sues Christian Florist for Being 'Anti-Gay'
Pastors Face Fines, Jail for Refusing 'Gay Wedding'
Pastors Lead Local Battles Against 'Gay Rights'
Also read Corporations Embrace Gay Agenda, With a Vengeance
And read Businesses, Pro Sports, and GOP Urge Supreme Court to Go 'Gay Marriage'
-- From "Gov. Pence signs Religious Freedom bill into law" posted at WANE-TV15 (Fort Wayne, IN) 3/26/15
Governor Mike Pence today issued the following [excerpts from a] statement after signing the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (SEA 101) in a private ceremony.
“The Constitution of the United States and the Indiana Constitution both provide strong recognition of the freedom of religion but today, many people of faith feel their religious liberty is under attack by government action.
“Last year the Supreme Court of the United States upheld religious liberty in the Hobby Lobby case based on the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act, but that act does not apply to individual states or local government action. At present, nineteen states—including our neighbors in Illinois and Kentucky—have adopted Religious Freedom Restoration statutes. And in eleven additional states, the courts have interpreted their constitutions to provide a heightened standard for reviewing government action.
“In order to ensure that religious liberty is fully protected under Indiana law, this year our General Assembly joined those 30 states and the federal government to enshrine these principles in Indiana law, and I fully support that action.”
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Gov. Mike Pence signs 'religious freedom' bill this morning" by Tony Cook, Indianapolis Star 3/26/15
The measure could allow business owners to refuse services to same-sex couples and has set off a firestorm of controversy.
"This bill is not about discrimination, and if I thought it legalized discrimination in any way in Indiana, I would have vetoed it," the govenor added. "In fact, it does not even apply to disputes between private parties unless government action is involved. For more than twenty years, the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act has never undermined our nation's anti-discrimination laws, and it will not in Indiana."
The organizers of Gen Con, the city's largest convention, sent a letter to the governor Tuesday threatening to move the event elsewhere in future years if the bill becomes law. And the Disciples of Christ, a Christian denomination based in Indianapolis, said it would look to other cities for its annual convention if Pence signs the bill.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Pence set to sign 'religious freedom' bill into law" by The Associated Press 3/25/15
The proposal has drawn criticism from several business groups and convention planners who worry that it presents Indiana as an unwelcoming state and who are asking Pence to veto the measure.
Backers say the proposal is aimed at protecting religious freedom and preventing the government from compelling people to provide services for activities such as same-sex weddings that they consider objectionable.
Supporters also say discrimination concerns are overblown because the bill is modeled after a federal religious freedom law Congress passed in 1993 and similar laws are on the books in 19 states. However, the current political climate is far different than it was when most of those were approved because the U.S. Supreme Court is expected to rule this year on whether gay marriage bans violate the Constitution.
The bill has already passed the Indiana House 63-31 and the Senate 40-10. It would pass into law whether Pence signs it or not. He would have to veto the measure to stop it.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Indiana Governor To Sign Controversial Religious Rights Bill" by Tierney Sneed, U.S. News & World Report 3/25/15
Republican Indiana Gov. Mike Pence is poised to sign into law a controversial religious religious freedoms bill that critics – including groups typically aligned with Republican interests – say is discriminatory towards gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people.
"I don't believe this legislation truly represents our state or our capital city," [Indianapolis Mayor Greg] Ballard, a Republican, said Wednesday in a statement, according to the IndyStar. "We are a diverse city, and I want everyone who visits and lives in Indy to feel comfortable here."
Some of the Indiana's biggest employers – including global pharmaceutical firm Eli Lilly and Co., diesel engine manufacturing company Cummins, tech giant Salesforce and aluminum producer Alcoa Inc. – have come out in opposition to the bill, as has the Indiana Chamber of Commerce.
Adding more scrutiny to the bill is the upcoming NCAA men’s basketball Final Four championship, which will be held in Indianopolis. Jason Collins, the first openly gay athlete in the NBA, tweeted, “[I]s it going to be legal for someone to discriminate against me & others when we come to the #FinalFour?”
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Salesforce CEO joins late effort to stop 'religious freedom' bill" by Jared Council, Indianapolis Business Journal 3/25/15
Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff late Wednesday joined a last-ditch effort by at least a dozen Indiana tech company executives to persuade Gov. Mike Pence to veto the controversial "religious freedom" bill, even as Pence made clear he planned to sign the measure Thursday.
Benioff, along with six other Indiana tech CEOs, co-signed a letter opposing the measure. When asked about his participation in the effort, Benioff said in an email to IBJ: "We will be forced to dramatically reduce our investment in Indiana based on our employees' and customers' outrage over the Indiana religious freedom bill."
The letter was authored by Jon Gilman, CEO of Indianapolis-based Clear Software, and addressed to Pence. It includes the signatures of Scott McCorkle, CEO of Salesforce Marketing Cloud, and John McDonald, CEO of CloudOne.
Several corporations, including Cummins Inc., have for weeks decried the measure as it advanced through the Legislature. But in recent days, tech executives in particular have gone public with their sentiments, many labeling it as damaging to their efforts to attract and retain tech talent in Indiana.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Indiana governor to sign law that allows businesses to turn away gay customers" by CNN Wire Service 3/25/15
The [bill signing] comes as Pence considers a bid for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination — and just a year after Pence and socially conservative lawmakers lost their first policy battle against gay Hoosiers. In 2014 they had sought to amend Indiana’s constitution to ban same-sex marriages — but were beaten back by a highly-organized coalition of Democrats, traditionally right-leaning business organizations and fiscally focused supporters of Pence’s predecessor, former GOP Gov. Mitch Daniels.
If Pence decides to mount a dark horse presidential bid — which looks increasingly unlikely as candidates like Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker court the same supporters he would need — the “religious freedom” bill could give him a boost among GOP primary voters, especially in socially conservative states like Iowa.
They’d hoped it would become Pence’s “Jan Brewer moment” — a reference to the Arizona Republican governor who vetoed a similar bill last year, saying “it could divide Arizona in ways that we could not even imagine and no one would ever want.”
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
UPDATE 4/2/15: From "Arkansas, Indiana governors sign amended religious freedom laws" by Michael Muskal and Matt Pearce, Los Angeles Times
The governors of Arkansas and Indiana on Thursday quickly signed revised versions of their respective religious freedom laws, hoping to quell a national uproar that united business leaders and gay rights activists who fought the measures as potentially discriminatory.
The amendment is “a very strong statement to [ensure] that every Hoosier’s right will be protected,” House Speaker Brian Bosma, an Indianapolis Republican, said at a news conference where the new language was unveiled. The law “cannot be used to discriminate against anyone.”
The amendment offers some protection against discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity, the first time an Indiana law has addressed the issue. But the amendment stops short of being a separate anti-discrimination law, which some critics of the law had sought. Indiana has anti-discrimination laws, but they do not cover cases involving sexual orientation.
The Human Rights Campaign, a national advocacy group for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people, said more battles would come.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
UPDATE 4/2/15: From "Becket Fund: ‘Fix’ Would 'Create Very Dangerous Change in Indiana Law'" by Barbara Hollingsworth, CNSNews.com
. . . a lawyer for The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty says the proposed legislative “fix” is not only unnecessary, it would undermine the religious rights of Hoosiers and leave them vulnerable to criminal prosecution for following their religious beliefs, the opposite of what RFRA was intended to do.
“Individuals asked to be part of a same-sex wedding who decline because they feel it violates their religious beliefs would not be able to raise the RFRA under the ‘fix’,” [Becket legal counsel Daniel] Blomberg told CNSNews.com. “It would leave them defenseless. It also makes specific allowances for criminal prosecution. So not only is the ‘fix’ not helpful, it should not be accepted.
“We have a choice on how to handle these situations. We can allow government to drive religious people out of business, fine them and possibly imprison them, or we can allow religious people to have their day in court, and let the courts balance their religious claims against other competing values.”
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
UPDATE 4/3/15: From "Changes to Indiana law 'largest step ever toward gay rights'" by Greg Corombos, World Net Daily
“Nothing in this law would enable a small business to refuse to offer or provide services, facilities, use of a public accommodation, goods, etc.,” said Americans for Truth About Homosexuality President Peter LaBarbera, reading in part from the proposed changes before they were signed into law by Indiana Gov. Mike Pence Thursday evening.
“This language is unacceptable. It actually reverses the progress of the religious freedom law,” LaBarbera said. “No law would be better than eviscerating this religious freedom bill as it was with the new language.”
“The actions taken by the Indiana General Assembly do not clarify our Religious Freedom Restoration Act’s purposes or goals. Our legal advisers tell us that it actually changes our law in a way that could now erode religious freedom across Indiana. If this revised law does not adequately protect religious liberty for all, it is not really a religious freedom act,” said AFA of Indiana Executive Director Micah Clark in a statement.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
Also read how the Gay Agenda attacks Christians one town at a time across America because the homosexualists have been unable to force the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) through Congress.
For example, read Houston Lesbian Mayor Subpoenas Sermons of Pastors Who Oppose 'Gay Rights' as well as Homosexualists Admit Goal to End Religious Liberty in Arizona
UPDATE 3/28/15: From "Backlash builds over Indiana's religious freedom law" CBS News (video)
