Georgia governor signs religious liberty law, worrying LGBTQ+ advocates who say it'll allow discrimination

Georgia’s Republican Gov. Brian Kemp on Friday signed the Restoration of Freedom Act, which critics believe will permit discrimination against the LGBTQ+ community under the guise of religious freedom, the Atlanta News First reports.

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The new law, Senate Bill 36, entitled the Restoration of Religious Freedom Act, purports to protect religious freedom for Georgians by mandating the state government “shall not substantially burden a person’s exercise of religion even if the burden results from a rule of general applicability” except in rare instances.

“Today I signed SB 36, also known as the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, or RFRA, ensuring that once again at the state level, that Georgians are protected, including Georgians of faith,” Kemp said in a short speech following the signing. “I wanted to let everybody know that despite signing that legislation, Georgia still remains a state that has no place for hate, and I can assure all Georgians of that today.”

The only Jewish member of the state House, state Rep. Esther Panitch, who earlier said the bill would be used “as a sword and not a shield,” last Wednesday was equally critical after the bill was signed into law.

“State-sponsored discrimination, that’s what this is,” she said, adding, “You just have to ask yourself, why won’t they incorporate anti-discrimination provisions if they say that they’re not going to discriminate?”

Local LGBTQ+ support and advocacy group Georgia Equality released a statement following the bill’s passage by a 96 to 70 vote last week.

“Over the last eleven years, a broad, bipartisan coalition has repeatedly rejected the Religious Freedom Restoration Act due to its potential harms to vulnerable communities.” Georgia Equality said in a statement posted to social media. “It is reflective of the challenging times we are in that there simply was not enough momentum to stop it this year.”

The bill’s sponsor, Republican state Rep. Ed Setzler, congratulated Kemp and defended the bill’s religious protections.

“Every Georgian should be free to exercise their faith without unfair federal, state, and local government intrusion,” Setzler said at the signing ceremony.