Press Call Monday: Experts and Advocates Condemn Discrimination Disguised as Religious Freedom

WASHINGTON – On Monday, March 21 at 3:00 p.m. ET, experts, civil rights leaders and a member of Congress will host a press call to condemn the “religious freedom” arguments used to justify discrimination in state-based legislation and in the upcoming Supreme Court arguments in Zubik v. Burwell.

On the call, The Leadership Conference Education Fund will release an update to its recent report Striking a Balance: Advancing Civil and Human Rights While Preserving Religious Liberty, which documents how religious arguments have been used to justify discrimination against diverse communities including opposing the abolition of slavery, women’s suffrage and equality, racial integration, inter-racial marriage, immigration, the Americans with Disabilities Act, same-sex marriage, and the right to collectively bargain.  Click here to access the report.

The call comes as more than 100 anti-LGBT bills—many attempting to create religious carve-outs for discrimination—have been introduced in states nationwide this year, and days before the Supreme Court hears arguments in Zubik v. Burwell, a case considering whether non-profits may use religion to justify denying employees health insurance that includes contraceptives.  

RSVP is requested to [email protected].

WHAT: Press Call Monday: Experts and Advocates Condemn Discrimination Disguised as Religious Freedom

WHEN: Monday, March 21 at 3:00 p.m. ET

WHO:

• Wade Henderson, president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights and The Leadership Conference Education Fund
• Congressman Bobby Scott (D-Va.), Ranking Member on the Committee on Education and the Workforce
• Sarah Warbelow, legal director at the Human Rights Campaign (HRC)
• Gretchen Borchelt, vice president for reproductive rights and health at the National Women’s Law Center

DIAL-IN INFO: RSVP is requested to [email protected]. Number is 877.876.9176Verbal passcode is “civil rights.”

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