Controversial HB 1523 now Mississippi's law of land

Geoff Pender , Jerry Mitchell | Mississippi Clarion Ledger

Show Caption Hide Caption Court lifts injunction on Mississippi law seen as anti-LGBT A U.S. appeals court on Thursday lifted an injunction that blocked a Mississippi law allowing businesses and government employees to deny services to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people by citing religious beliefs.

Mississippi’s controversial religious objection bill, which has drawn harsh criticism from the LGBT community and others, is now in effect, thanks to an appeals court.

A three-judge panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Thursday that ministers, LGBT activists and others bringing the lawsuit lacked the standing to bring the litigation challenging House Bill 1523.

More: 5 things you need to know about HB 1523

More: Miss. U.S. Senator to Trump: Protect religious freedom

In 2016, the Mississippi Legislature passed the “Protecting Freedom of Conscience from Government Discrimination Act," better known as HB 1523, authored by House Speaker Philip Gunn. A reaction to the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling legalizing gay marriage nationwide, the Mississippi bill seeks to protect by law the belief that marriage is the union of one man and one woman and prevents government intervention when churches or businesses act "based upon or in a manner consistent with a sincerely held religious belief or moral conviction."

The measure drew protests and rallies at the state Capitol and criticism nationwide as supporting discrimination against gay people and others in the name of religion.

Last year, U.S. District Judge Carlton Reeves of Jackson concluded that HB 1523 does not, despite its name, honor the nation's tradition of religious freedom. The law has never been enforced.

Mississippi civil rights attorney Robert McDuff, the Mississippi Center for Justice and Lambda Legal brought the lawsuit on behalf of the plaintiffs and say they plan to appeal.

“We believe the 5th Circuit panel is wrong and intend to seek further review, perhaps from the full 5th Circuit and definitely from the United States Supreme Court,” McDuff said. “People should not have to live through discrimination in order to challenge this obviously unconstitutional bill. Even though the injunction has been reversed for now, I am pleased that we were able to stop the bill from being implemented thus far. Hopefully, our efforts to seek further review will prevent it from going into effect in the future.”

Beth Orlansky, advocacy director for the Mississippi Center for Justice, said HB 1523 “violates a fundamental American value and strikes at the very heart of our work towards a fairer and more just state. This law is discriminatory, and we will do everything we can to prevent it from causing any more harm. By promoting a law that singles out a particular group for discriminatory treatment, the state of Mississippi sends a message to the rest of the country that not everyone is welcome in the ‘Hospitality State.’”

Gunn said Thursday, "We are pleased to see that it is now in effect" because "the whole objective was to protect religious freedoms."

Gov. Phil Bryant, who had supported and signed the bill before the court halted it, said: "As I have said all along, the legislation is not meant to discriminate against anyone, but simply prevents government interference with the constitutional right to exercise sincerely held religious beliefs."

Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves praised the court for "clearing the path" for the law to take effect.

"House Bill 1523 simply protected Mississippians from government interference when practicing their deeply held religious beliefs," Reeves said.

House Judiciary Chairman Andy Gipson, R-Braxton, a co-author of the bill, thanked Bryant for "taking the lead in defending it in court."

"This is another victory for religious freedom and the First Amendment," Gipson said.

Kevin Theriot, senior counsel for the Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys representing Bryant, said Thursday, “Good laws like Mississippi’s protect freedom and harm no one. The court did the right thing in finding that those who have challenged this law haven’t been harmed and, therefore, can’t try to take the law down.”

He said the sole purpose of HB 1523 was to ensure “Mississippians don’t live in fear of losing their careers or their businesses simply for affirming marriage as a husband-wife union. Those who filed suit have not and will not be harmed but want to restrict freedom and impose their beliefs on others by ensuring dissenters are left open to the government discrimination that has already occurred in states without protective laws like this one.”

A lawsuit that had been on hold, pending the appeals court ruling, is now moving forward involving ACLU members Nykolas Alford and Stephen Thomas, who had planned to marry in Mississippi.

“Today’s ruling leaves us more exposed, so we will have to be more vigilant than ever before to protect our church, our families and our dignity,” said Brandiilyne Mangum-Dear, another plaintiff in the case.

“Freedom of religion is one of the most fundamental rights as Americans, but that freedom does not give any of us the right to harm or mistreat others,” said ACLU of Mississippi Executive Director Jennifer Riley Collins.

Rob Hill, Mississippi director for the Human Rights Campaign, which lobbied against the bill, on Thursday called the measure "the most discriminatory, anti-LGBTQ state law in the country," and said it is "rooted in hate."

"It targets the LGBTQ community and it is a deliberate attempt to undermine marriage equality and the dignity of LGBTQ Mississippians who lawmakers have sworn to serve and protect," Hill said. "We will continue to fight tooth and nail against HB 1523 until it no longer threatens our community."

House Bill 1523 is one bill in a wave of similar legislation proposed or adopted across the country in the last few years. Opponents argue these measures would legalize discrimination against the LGBT community.

So far this year, lawmakers across 30 states have introduced 121 anti-LGBTQ bills, Hill said.

When Bryant signed HB 1523 on April 5, the law joined a national discussion alongside North Carolina's "bathroom bill," HB 2, a portion of which deals with prohibiting transgender people from using the public restroom coinciding with their gender identity. Another provision prevented local governments from enacting anti-discrimination policies that protect classifications not protected by state law.

The ACLU challenged HB 2 on behalf of four LGBT North Carolinians. The U.S. District Court ruled that the University of North Carolina be enjoined from enforcing the public restroom portion of HB 2. Efforts to repeal the bill in the North Carolina Legislature led to a "compromise" bill opponents still label discriminatory.

Beth Littrell, counsel at Lambda Legal, vowed that the fight will continue in Mississippi and “everywhere else discrimination rears its ugly head to ensure that LGBT people everywhere are respected and protected from discrimination. This is not the end of the road for us.”

Contact Jerry Mitchell at (601) 961-7064 or jmitchell@gannett.com. Follow him on Facebook and Twitter. Contact Geoff Pender at 601-961-7266 or gpender@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter.