Trump order protects ‘freedom to discriminate’ against LGBT people

The Trump administration has issued a directive giving the go-ahead for religious businesses to discriminate against LGBT people.

The federal government directive was issued today by Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who had been tasked by Trump to head a ‘review’ of religious liberty protections, after pressure from anti-LGBT lobbying groups.

The guidance overrides executive orders issues by President Obama that protected LGBT people from some forms of discrimination, declaring that people should be free to discriminate on the grounds of religion.

Sessions’ guidance claims that the Constitution “protects the right to perform or abstain from performing certain physical acts in accordance with one’s beliefs”, granting an unlimited license to discriminate based on religion.

It adds: “Except in the narrowest circumstances, no one should be forced to choose between living out his or her faith and complying with the law.

“To the greatest extent practicable and permitted by law, religious observance and practice should be reasonably accommodated in all government activity.”

Jeff Sessions (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

And it’s not just your local mom and pop shop that has carte blanche to discriminate either.

The order clarifies that the protections apply “not just to individuals, but also to organisations, associations, and at least some for-profit corporations”.

Human Rights Campaign President Chad Griffin said: “Today the Trump-Pence administration launched an all-out assault on LGBTQ people, women, and other minority communities by unleashing a sweeping license to discriminate.

“This blatant attempt to further Donald Trump’s cynical and hateful agenda will enable systematic, government-wide discrimination that will have a devastating impact on LGBTQ people and their families.