By John Mack Freeman
This week, two states passed legislation opposed to LGBT rights in the United States.
In North Carolina, the legislature overcame a gubernatorial veto to pass a law that would allow registers of deeds and magistrates to decline to perform any weddings on religious grounds. Although broadly written, the measure is obviously aimed at same-sex couples. However, the statute also requires each county to offer at least 10 hours of marriage services spread across three days per week to all couples that can enter in to legal marriage.
In Michigan, Governor Rick Snyder signed a law that would allow faith-based adoption agencies to reject applications from same-sex couples on the basis of sexual orientation. Agencies that decline couples are required to provide a list of alternative agencies that may help the couple adopt a child at that time. Although the bill is not written to specifically stop adoptions by same-sex couples, the bills parameters to allow adoption agencies to operate based on their religious convictions will have a deleterious effect on same-sex adoption within the state.
