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Religious Freedom’ Laws Open Door to Discrimination Against Women
Today, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals will hear arguments in East Texas Baptist v. Burwell, a case over whether religious non-profits can use the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act or “RFRA” to block their employees’ access to contraception under the Affordable Care Act. As state legislatures across the country, including Texas, come under fire for expanding RFRA laws to allow individuals and businesses to use religion to justify discrimination, this case highlights the dangerous impact broadening religious exemptions could have on Texans’ access to reproductive health care.
Rebecca Robertson, Legal and Policy Director of the ACLU of Texas:
“We are dismayed by this reckless movement to transform RFRAs into weapons. The question in each of these recent RFRA debates is whether, in order to respect religious liberty, we must allow people of faith to impose their personal beliefs on those who may not share them. This contraception case, where the third parties at issue are women and their families, shows why the answer is clearly no. ”
Across the country, hospitals, insurance companies and pharmacies are discriminating against women by denying basic care—like birth control, emergency contraception and abortion—in the name of religion.
Kathy Miller, President of the Texas Freedom Network:
“Allowing employers to impose their religious beliefs on the people who work for them turns the concept of religious freedom upside down. This case offers a clear example of how so-called ‘religious freedom’ laws can be abused to limit the freedom of others to make decisions based on their own deeply held beliefs. While we should always protect religious liberty, we should not allow some to impose their religious beliefs on people who don’t share those beliefs.”
A diverse coalition of Texas organizations—including ACLU of Texas, NARAL Pro-Choice Texas, National Latina Institute of Reproductive Health, Planned Parenthood Texas Voted, Texas Freedom Network, Whole Woman’s Health and Texas Research Institute, Progress Texas' educational arm—warns that RFRA legislation could cause harm to countless Texans by denying them access to reproductive health care.
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http://progresstexas.org/blog/‘religious-freedom’-laws-open-door-discrimination-against-women
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