The people of Georgia, free speech, and freedom of religion lost, while corporate interests, bullying and extortion won with Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal’s veto of HB 757, the Free Exercise Protection Act.
Freedom of speech and freedom to practice one’s religion are at the heart of our individual rights and liberties both as citizens of Georgia and as citizens of the United States of America. Instead of protecting our most basic of rights, the Governor joined with large corporations, sports leagues like the NFL, and left-wing activists, to make sure that their economic interests receive protection under Georgia law, while pastors, churches, and faith-based organizations will be forced to violate their deeply held religious beliefs.
Corporate opponents of religious liberty and speech protections for ordinary Georgians falsely and unfairly claimed that the legislation authorizes prejudice. The reality is that the Free Exercise Protection Act would explicitly block discrimination already prohibited by federal or state law, while also protecting people of faith who are attempting to practice their beliefs without fear of government interference.
Deal had publicly stated his willingness to sign a religious freedom bill, but instead chose to subvert the will of the people of Georgia, who overwhelmingly support this bill. HB 757 simply codifies into state law the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993, which Deal voted for as a member of Congress. Signed by President Clinton, the federal law declared that the government “should not substantially burden religious exercise without compelling justification” and has inspired similar laws in more than 30 other states across the country.
The NFL and their partners in extortion at Disney and Time Warner, do not believe that the citizens of Georgia should have the ability to practice their religion freely. The NFL threatened Atlanta’s bid to host the Super Bowl in 2019 if the bill became law, while the other cities that the league is considering for Super Bowl 53 are Miami, New Orleans, and Tampa Bay – cities located in states with similar religious freedom laws already on the books. Florida has had a so-called RFRA or “Religious Freedom Restoration Act” protections since 1998 and a similar Louisiana law has been in effect since 2010.
Disney and Time Warner also threatened to boycott Georgia if people of faith received protection.
This fight is not over. The Faith and Freedom Coalition will continue to work alongside the courageous legislators, faith-based organizations, and thousands of individuals who worked so hard in this effort to protect free speech and religious expression. The General Assembly should vote to override Deal’s veto of HB 757 as soon as possible in order to protect the speech and religious freedoms of all Georgians.
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