To: The Indiana State House and The Indiana State Senate
Indiana Legislature: Protect LGBTQ State Residents
We are calling on the state of Indiana to live up to the American promise of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness by guaranteeing protections for all of its residents and visitors. All Hoosiers deserve to live, eat, work, and pursue their dreams without fear. We urge you to pass and sign into law legislation that protects the LGBTQ community in housing, public accommodations, and employment.
Why is this important?
In many states throughout the country, LGBTQ individuals are still denied basic legal protections on the statewide and federal level. It is legal in Indiana to eject an LGBTQ person from a hotel or restaurant, deny them housing, refuse to hire them, deny them a promotion in the workplace, and even terminate their employment solely on the basis of their sexual orientation or gender identity/expression.
Unfortunately, the lack of statewide protections create a patchwork of "safe" and "unsafe" states throughout the country. While LGBTQ individuals may be protected in their home state, that is not necessarily the case if they leave to visit a friend or relative. The introduction of Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) bills also compound the issue by threatening to allow religious extremists to ignore existing local ordinances that offer protections to the LGBTQ community. RFRA bills will also grant a "license to discriminate" that allows any person or business to deny service provided that they can proclaim a sincerely-held religious belief.
Unfortunately, the lack of statewide protections create a patchwork of "safe" and "unsafe" states throughout the country. While LGBTQ individuals may be protected in their home state, that is not necessarily the case if they leave to visit a friend or relative. The introduction of Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) bills also compound the issue by threatening to allow religious extremists to ignore existing local ordinances that offer protections to the LGBTQ community. RFRA bills will also grant a "license to discriminate" that allows any person or business to deny service provided that they can proclaim a sincerely-held religious belief.