For Immediate Release
August 21, 2008
Contact: Steve Ralls
(202) 467-8180, ext. 214 / sralls@pflag.org
Louisiana Families Urge Governor Jindal
to Renew Anti-Discrimination Order
“There is nothing ‘pro-family’ about rolling back protections for some families,” says PFLAG
New Orleans, LA – Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) is urging Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal to rescind his pledge to allow a state anti-discrimination order to expire on Friday. The order, originally signed into law by former Governor Kathleen Blanco, bars state agencies and contractors from harassment and discrimination on the basis race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, political affiliation or disabilities. Jindal has said he will refuse to renew the order, in part, out of fear that it would hinder faith-based organizations’ ability to contract with the state.
“Governor Jindal is proposing an unacceptable step backwards for Louisiana,” said Julie Thompson, president of PFLAG’s New Orleans chapter. “Our state’s proud history of ‘Union, Justice, Confidence’ is undermined when our public leaders strip our families of basic protections we should all enjoy. There is nothing ‘pro-family’ about rolling back protections for some families.”
Jindal, who has been mentioned as a possible Vice Presidential running mate for presumptive Republican presidential nominee John McCain, has wrongly insinuated that other state and federal laws would protect workers and contractors, saying that discrimination is prohibited under other statutes. No such laws, however, protect gay Louisiana workers from discrimination.
“Allowing Louisiana’s anti-discrimination order to expire would mean the end of any legal protection for gay citizens in the state,” said PFLAG executive director Jody M. Huckaby, a native of the state. “By not renewing this critically important measure, Governor Jindal would remove the welcome mat from Louisiana’s front door. It is imperative, and urgent, that the Governor not allow the state’s commitment to non-discrimination to expire.”
The Louisiana executive order has been in effect since December 2004.
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Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) promotes the health and well-being of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender persons, their families and friends through: support, to cope with an adverse society; education, to enlighten an ill-informed public; and advocacy, to end discrimination and to secure equal civil rights. PFLAG provides opportunity for dialogue about sexual orientation and gender identity, and acts to create a society that is healthy and respectful of human diversity.