Gary Johnson’s Deseret News piece on the issue of religious liberty and Mormons

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Please read this article here.

Here is an excerpt:

Yet there have also been times in our history when religion has been invoked to justify serious harm. In years past, opponents of interracial marriage, desegregation and other efforts to protect civil rights too often cited scripture and religion in making their arguments.

To be blunt, certain politicians have twisted religious liberty and used it as a tool to discriminate.

Thus, in response to a question thrown at me while walking down a street (in the rain), I expressed my reservations rather emphatically — and cited the experience of Mormons as a case-in-point where religious persecution resulted in violent episodes right here in America.

My point was that even a respected, peaceful people experienced tragic harm in the name of religion and was, in fact, persecuted by the government itself by politicians who opposed their beliefs and practices.

And on a personal level, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints came to mind because I had been in Utah the day before, as my campaign is actually based in Salt Lake City. I am well aware of the painful history of government interference with Mormons and the practice of their faith.

In part because of this unique history, I believe Utah has found an appropriate balance in a religious freedom law that serves as an example to the rest of the country that non-discrimination and religious freedom are not opposing forces, but can instead go hand in hand.

I want to be clear. I believe we can, and must, strike a balance between our shared American values of religious liberty and freedom from discrimination. My concerns lie with the possible consequences of politically-driven legislation which claims to promote religious liberty but instead rolls back the legal protections held by LGBT Americans.

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About Geoff B.

Geoff B graduated from Stanford University (class of 1985) and worked in journalism for several years until about 1992, when he took up his second career in telecommunications sales. He has held many callings in the Church, but his favorite calling is father and husband. Geoff is active in martial arts and loves hiking and skiing. Geoff has five children and lives in Colorado.

11 thoughts on “Gary Johnson’s Deseret News piece on the issue of religious liberty and Mormons”

  1. So far as I’m concerned, he’s just digging that hole deeper and deeper.

  2. His response in the Deseret News is MUCH better than his previous remarks.

    BUT, he still seems to think that photographers should be forced to photograph same-sex weddings, and that exemption should be carved out *only* for “bone fide religious institutions.”

    I don’t like how he thinks that the “Fairness for All” approach justifies and supports his perspective, because it does not. The Utah Compromise allows exemption for private business too, under a number of circumstances.

    He’s just taken his original opinion (“non-discrimination in all circumstances”), made an exception for “bone fide” religious institutions, and then implies that this was exactly the Utah Compromise approach. But that’s not really true.

  3. His original statement cast Mormons as those who might PERPETRATE violence. His statement in the Deseret News claims he said Mormons might SUFFER violence.

    That’s some serious flip-flopping. Does he really think we can be so eadily fooled?

  4. In case no else has spelled it out, here’s the chain of connection that I’m sure led to Johnson picking the example he did:

    Gary Johnson
    Mt. Everest
    Into Thin Air
    Jon Krakauer
    Under the Banner of Heaven
    Killer Mormons

  6. Ardis, yeah — it’s a hard sell to claim that religious liberty increases the dangers that Mormons might suffer violence at the hands of the government. A very hard, bewildering sell indeed.

  7. Ardis,

    “Does he really think we can be so eadily fooled?”

    Why not? He’s had a spectacular run so far.

  8. The main problem for Gary Johnson, beyond just being incompetent, is that he’s running as a liberal on a libertarian ticket. Makes zero sense to me. He’s getting big numbers but just because so many are fundamentally dissatisfied with Trump and Clinton. But I really think that had the Libertarian Party a better candidate that they’d be doing much better.

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