Monday, March 11, 2013

Press Release: Don't send religious people to the back of the bus, group tells Governor

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 12, 2013

LEXINGTON, KY—The Family Foundation today joined with representatives of several church organizations, including those representing Catholics and Protestants in calling on Gov. Steve Beshear to sign the Religious Freedom Act passed by large margins in both chambers of the General Assembly.

Spokesman Martin Cothran called on the governor to resist calls by the ACLU and other special interest groups calling for a veto. "A veto of this legislation would be tantamount to telling religious people to go to the back of the bus," said Cothran.

In an op-ed submitted today to the Louisville Courier-Journal, Cothran called the campaign being waged by these groups "ugly and virulent." "If there had been no evidence before of the anti-religious sentiment that now threatens religious freedom in Kentucky," he said, "these groups have provided it."

"All this bill would do is to return long-standing legal protections to people of faith that the Kentucky Supreme Court took away in a decision last October. The bill's language is almost identical to that of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, passed by Congress in 1993, sponsored by Chuck Schumer and Ted Kennedy, and supported by the ACLU, the very group that is now at the head of a disinformation campaign about this bill."

Cothran said opponents of the bill have made false charges of racism, and have even accused the Catholic Church of trying to facilitate child abuse. "This kind of hate speech directed toward religious people is reprehensible," he said. “If charges like this were made, for example, against gay rights groups like the ones opposing this bill, there would be universal condemnation."

The Family Foundation's remarks came the same day as letters to the Governor in support of the bill from the Catholic Conference of Kentucky and the Kentucky Baptist Convention.

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1 comment:

Unknown said...

Thank you, Martin, for standing up, standing boldly and courageously!