Despite the recent landmark Supreme Court ruling in favor of the freedom to marry, the road to full equality for everyone in our state continues to be pocked with obstacles. Few obstacles currently loom as large as the potential danger of SB 4, the "religious freedom restoration act" (RFRA) now being debated in the state legislature.
If passed, the bill would allow faith to be used to legally discriminate against LGBT communities and others.
The bill is so onerous that even a child can see its potential to hurt Michiganders and set our state back--and that's exactly what happened recently. After sitting in on a RFRA hearing in Lansing earlier this year, 11-year-old Ava Joyrich came up with the image below, a manga-style drawing that poses the most fundamental question about RFRA legislation that should be considered: Would the law be used a shield to protect freedoms--or as a sword to harm already vulnerable segments of our state?