Delaware: “State votes to end gay bias”The measure, Senate Bill 121, adds sexual orientation to the list of protections under Delaware’s anti-discrimination law. That law covers housing, employment, public works contracting, public accommodations and insurance . . . The debate centered on three amendments, co-sponsored by Adams, that Venables introduced last week. Venables and his supporters said the amendments would have: •Clarified that the bill could not be used to force recognition of same-sex marriages. •Prevented schools from teaching acceptance of homosexuality. •Allowed individuals and businesses who object to homosexuality because of “sincerely held religious or conscientious beliefs” not to be forced to participate in objectionable practices. As each amendment came to the floor, its supporters and opponents brought witnesses to comment on them. For each lawyer or clergyman that supporters sent to the podium, opponents had their own lawyers and clergymen. Speaking in favor of all three amendments was Tim Tracey, an attorney for the Alliance Defense Fund, a conservative advocacy group whose mission is “to aggressively defend religious liberty.”
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