"... creating laws based on religion may not be the wisest thing to do"

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Politics and religion don't mix
I once heard that starting a discussion on politics and religion is akin to opening a can of worms and that might be what lawmakers did when they passed the Religious Freedom Restoration Act.
By Jimmie E. Gates, April 11, 2014

When I was growing up, I used to hear people say all the time that politics and religion just don't mix.

I don't know the rationale behind the adage, but I also heard that starting a discussion on politics and religion is akin to opening a can of worms.

And it might have opened that proverbial can of worms when our lawmakers decided to pass the Religious Freedom Restoration Act.

Although the final version of the bill didn't include some of the objectionable language that critics said would condone discrimination against gay people, it still has the state cast once again in a negative light nationally.

Last week, a state senator opposed to the bill said Mississippi has to be sensitive to concerns about discrimination.

For some, the state's well-documented history of racial discrimination will always be a burden.

Being African-American and growing up during segregation in Mississippi, it's certainly a time I will never forget. Discrimination is never right in any form.

I'm not saying that's what Senate Bill 2681 will do. Supporters say their goal is to protect a person's right to freely practice their religion, not condone discrimination in any form.

Supporters said the legislation, in its final version, follows the language in the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act passed during the Clinton Administration in 1992 in response to a bad court decision.

But I think this legislation is probably an example of our lawmakers not thinking about the consequences.

Whether the intentions were good or not, the bill has subjected the state to further ridicule from those who continue to see it as backward thinking.

Last year, another piece of legislation brought the same type of national attention. It was a bill that sought to nullify federal laws. Thankfully that bill died. Late-night television hosts had a field day with the idea of Mississippi lawmakers in modern times trying to pass a nullification law.

Mississippi is considered a conservative state, and I agree we all should be able to practice our religious beliefs. We have freedom of speech in this country.

However, it seems creating laws based on religion may not be the wisest thing to do.
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