In wake of the Trump Administration’s announcement today of so-called ‘religious freedom’ regulations impacting vital social service provisions at the departments of Agriculture; Education; Health and Human Services; Homeland Security; Housing and Urban Development; Justice; Labor; USAID; and the Veterans Administration, the Los Angeles LGBT Center issued the following statement:
“The Trump Administration today released regulations that allow faith-based organizations to discriminate against members of the LGBT community when they seek vital and life-saving social services programs. These regulations span a variety of federal departments including Labor, Education, Homeland Security, and Veterans Affairs. The Administration’s thinly disguised effort to remove regulatory guarantees that ensure equal treatment of LGBT people is yet another example of the concerted attacks against our community. Make no mistake about it: This is not about religious freedom—it’s about freedom to discriminate and harm in the name of religion. These new regulations give federally funded faith-based organizations the license to discriminate against millions of LGBT Americans. We demand the right to access social services supported by our tax dollars like all other Americans. We will continue to fight this ongoing attack on our rights. We will not be silenced or forced back into the closet.”
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