“Religious freedom” bill dies in Virginia Senate

A religious freedom bill failed to advance passed a Virginia Senate committee on Wednesday.

This bill would have excused certain religious and religious-affiliated groups from sticking to state nondiscrimination laws.

According to the Hill, in order for the bill to become a law, it would have to be amended to exempt “any place of accommodation owned by or operated on behalf of a religious corporation, association, or society from the nondiscrimination of accommodation provisions of Virginia Human Rights Act,” according to the bill.

The bill was first introduced by Representative Les Adams (R) into Virginia’s House of Delegates. It passed late last week. The bill argued that nothing in the Virginia Human Rights Act prohibits a religious or affiliated organization “from taking any action to promote the religious principles for which it is established or maintained.”

However, LGBTQ+ advocacy group, Equality Virginia, called the fall of the bill “good news” Their tweet said that it would have “allowed religious-based discrimination against LGBTQ+ Virginians.”

Currently, over 260 anti-LGBTQ+ bills are being considered in state legislatures across America, according to the Human Rights Campaign. Eight of those are in Virginia.