Utah is the second most Republican and fourth most conservative state in the country, according to annual Gallup rankings of states by party and ideology for 2014. It’s also home of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which not so many years ago took a leading position in opposition to same-sex marriage in California. This is what makes last week’s events in Utah so remarkable.
By overwhelming majorities, the state legislature adopted a pair of bills that banned discrimination against lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgender individuals in employment and housing while carving out accommodations for individuals and institutions with conscience-based objections to these measures. Individual local officials who object to same-sex marriage are not required to preside over such ceremonies, for example, but each local office is responsible for doing so.
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