Poll: Montana
Voters Favor Employment Protections for Gays

A survey by the Montana Human Rights Network shows that a majority of voters in the state favor protecting gays and lesbians from employment discrimination. According to KTVQ TV in Billings, a CBS affiliate, nearly 90% of those polled were in favor of such protections.

Activists are using the findings to push legislators to pass a bill that would ban discrimination against gay and lesbian workers.

"We really need to launch an educational effort so that people understand they're not alone in these kinds of feelings," Montana Human Rights Network executive director and out state senator Christine Kaufmann said. "When they accept and understand that employment discrimination is wrong no matter who it's directed at; that hate crimes are wrong no matter who it's directed at."

The report also showed that Montana residents tend to weight religious and political issues more heavily than LGBT issues. (The Advocate)