Mary Rice Hasson, member of RFI’s Board of Directors, testified today before the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee at a hearing entitled, “The Equality Act: LGBTQ Rights are Human Rights.”

Hasson, who serves as the Kate O’Beirne Fellow in Catholic Studies at the Ethics and Public Policy Center, began her remarks by stating, “I believe unjust discrimination is wrong and all Americans should be treated fairly. Affirming the dignity of all human persons is central to my Catholic faith.” She explained, however, that the Equality Act is not about eliminating unjust discrimination but rather “cementing into the law the ideological belief that identity is wholly self-defined, regardless of the sexed body. It suppresses the opposing belief—and punishes those who would dissent.”

Turning to the enormous religious liberty infringements in the bill, Hasson states:

The Equality Act threatens serious harm to religious believers and religious organizations, stripping away crucial protections afforded under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act—a law enacted in 1993 with overwhelming, bipartisan support. The Equality Act attacks First Amendment rights as well, inserting language that attempts to tip the scales against believers if they assert claims under the First Amendment or Equal Protection.

After laying out a range of foreseeable consequences of the Equality Act that will be devastating for religious individuals and institutions across civil society, Hasson concludes:

The Equality Act [seeks] to coerce people of faith to exit the public square unless they trade their religious beliefs for the reigning ideology of today. If the First Amendment means anything, it means protection for people to live out their beliefs even—and especially—when people disagree.

Read Hasson’s testimony on the Equality Act.

Watch the full hearing: