Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton has
banned non-essential travel for state workers to Mississippi over
passage of a law he's criticized as discriminatory.
The law, signed Tuesday by Mississippi
Governor Phil Bryant, allows religious organizations and businesses
related to the wedding industry to deny service to gay and
transgender people.
Dayton has also banned state travel to
North Carolina after the state's Republican governor signed a law
that blocks cities from enacting ordinances that prohibit
discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity and
bars students attending public institutions from using the bathroom
that does not conform to their gender at birth.
Dayton, a Democrat, called
Mississippi's law “a step backward.”
“I mean, the one in Mississippi is so
egregious,” Dayton
is quoted as saying by Fox 9. “I mean, open the door. I respect
anyone's religious beliefs, that’s a First Amendment right. But to
say anybody can say this is my belief and I don’t have to follow
laws of equal rights, equal guarantees, equal services to people,
based on their sexual orientation, is a fundamental violation of
their constitutional guarantees which have been established by
federal law, longstanding. The fact that they’re changing
this...it’s just a step backward for this country.”
“This act of discrimination is
discriminatory against many Mississippi residents, and violates their
Constitutional rights. We cannot allow this injustice to go
unanswered. When the rights of some Americans are threatened, it is
the responsibility of all Americans to stand in opposition to those
discriminatory acts. Minnesota has made great progress to protect the
rights and dignity of all people in our state. Now, we will do what
we can as Minnesotans, to support and defend the rights of others.”