Anti-Discrimination Laws and Religious Freedom, Jon Justice, 3.1.24

I was in studio with Jon Justice and Max Rymer on Jon’s Friday’s show for the entirety of Hour 3. We discussed what transpired in a Minnesota House Judiciary, Finance and Civil Law Committee meeting on Thursday, February 29, relating to the interaction between 2023 amendments to the Minnesota Human Rights Act addressing gender identity, and the amendments’ impact on religious expression.

Some of the comments made at the hearing were interesting given their timing. In his statement denying a petition for writ of certiorari in the matter of Missouri Department of Corrections v. Finney, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito expressed his concern as to equating traditional religious views on questions of sexual morality with bigotry. Some took Justice Alito’s remarks to be a threat to the Court’s 2015 decision on marriage equality, Obergefell v. Hodges. It’s a fair point, given that he and Justice Thomas have made statements in the past about whether a right of privacy exists in the U.S. Constitution, but others – myself included – read the Justice’s comment to be addressing statements and attitudes of the type displayed in Thursday’s hearing.

We also briefly discussed the Supreme Court’s taking up the matter of whether former President Trump has immunity from prosecution over matters pertaining to what took place at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021.

You can listen to our discussion here.

To listen to my past appearances on Twin Cities News Talk, head over to the show page on this site.