As I expected, Arizona\’s Governor Jan Brewer vetoed SB 1062 – legislation which attempted to traverse the line between civil rights and religious expression.
Here, in her own words, is why she did so:
“SenateBill 1062 does not address a specific or present concern related toreligious liberty in Arizona. The bill is broadly worded and couldresult in unintended and negative consequences.”
Funny she should mention. Here is what I wrote about SB 1062 earlier this week:
In simple terms, it was supposed to mean, for example, that if a gay couple walked into a bake shop and asked for a wedding cake celebrating the marriage of two men or two women, and the bake shop was run by devoutly religious people who believed same-sex marriage to be a mortal sin, they could refuse to do so.
If that were all it did mean – i.e if it were a specific exception for very narrow, clearly defined reasons which most people would agree with – there might have been a reasonable basis for the law. But it was written in so general a fashion that it could be interpreted as open season for businesses to refuse service to just about anyone for just about anything.
It is one thing for a devoutly Christian bake shop owner to tell a gay couple “I\’ll bake your cake and charge you a fair price for it, but I won\’t write anything on the cake that is contrary to my deeply held religious beliefs”. It is another for a bake shop to tell a gay couple “get out of my store, we don\’t serve gays here”. The way SB 1062 is written, I can see both situations occurring.
Call me a dreamer, but I think Ms. Brewer and I see eye to eye on this one.
Good for you, Governor. You did the right thing.
