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Opponents of a religious freedom bill approved last week by Arizona legislators urge Gov. Brewer to veto the bill during a protest rally Friday at the state Capitol in Phoenix.

(Cheryl Evans, Arizona Republic via AP)

Last week the Arizona legislature approved a bill that will allow business owners to refuse service to gays and others if they believe it goes against their religious beliefs. The bill is now awaiting the approval of Gov. Jan Brewer, who has not indicated whether she will sign it.

It has put Brewer in a tough spot, according to the Christian Science Monitor. "It's very controversial, so I've got to get my hands around it," Gov. Brewer said Friday.

Conservative Christian groups have applauded the bill, according to the New York Times, citing cases where business owners were sued because they did not want to provide services (photography, flowers, cake) to gay couples who were getting married. Each time the owners cited their religious beliefs as their reason:

&amp;lt;a href="http://polldaddy.com/poll/7824597/"&amp;gt;Would you like to see a "religious freedom bill" passed in Ohio?&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt;

Arizona is not the only state considering "religious freedom" bills. Kansas had a similar bill gain approval in the House but it did not get enough support in the State Senate. A bill proposed in Maine was soundly defeated in the House and Senate. There is a proposed bill in Ohio (HB 376, the Ohio Religious Freedom Restoration Act). Idaho, Mississippi, Oklahoma, South Dakota and Tennessee also have similar bills in the works.

The bill did make it through the Arizona legislature, but the state is taking plenty of criticism, especially from gay rights groups. The Los Angeles Times reports that some business owners in the state are urging Brewer to veto the bill, worried it could hurt the state economically. They're especially worried because of previous backlash from anti-illegal-immigration laws recently enacted in the state:

Supporters of the bill tell the Los Angeles Times it is being misrepresented, the attacks against it are "over the top," and some businesses stand to benefit. However, Arthur L. Caplan and Lee H. Igel, writing for Forbes, argue that if the Brewer signs the bill then the NFL must take a stand, especially since Missouri's Michael Sam is on the verge of becoming the first openly gay player in NFL history:

Opponents are calling the legislation the "right to discriminate" bill. In a column for CNN, Matthew C. Whitaker, a history professor at Arizona State University, calls the Arizona bill "shameful":

Ken Shepherd of Newsbusters believes the bill is being misrepresented by opponents and also by some in the media. He is especially critical of comparisons to Jim Crow laws:

Josh Kredit, legal counsel of the Center for Arizona Policy, a conservative group that supported the bill, tells the Los Angeles Times that Arizona already has a religious freedom law and argues it has not been used to justify discrimination. He said the changes to the law made by the new measure are "vitally needed to ensure that in America people are free to live and work according to their faith":

The Christian Science Monitor reports that critics do believe the bill would make it easier for businesses to bypass workplace regulations and use religious beliefs as an excuse: