The Week The 'Religious Freedom' Movement Hit Its High Water Mark
DYLAN SCOTT – FEBRUARY 28, 2014, 6:00 AM EST
If the events of the last week are any indication, the anti-gay movement personified in the Arizona bill vetoed by Gov. Jan Brewer Wednesday has already hit its high-watermark.
At the beginning of this month, by TPM's count, bills had been introduced in at least eight states that would legitimize discrimination against LGBT people. The Arizona bill advanced the farthest, clearing the state legislature before Brewer rejected it with her veto stamp. The rest are dead or dying.
Though they expect future fights, gay rights advocates portrayed this week as a "turning point" in the debate.
"I suspect the bright spotlight that’s been put on the broad potential adverse consequences means that a great many legislators and most governors now will think much harder about these bills and be reluctant to endorse them," Jenny Pizer, senior counsel at Lambda Legal, a gay rights organization, told TPM. "I do believe we’ve just witnessed a turning-point moment against these bills. But I also don’t expect the folks who hold this worldview to give up their political goals without further popular repudiation.
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http://talkingpointsmemo.com/dc/anti-gay-religious-freedom-bills-burned-out
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