Less than 24 hours after releasing a statement on their website saying the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints supported workplace and housing protections for LGBTQ Utahns, church officials have altered that statement to limit the support to a local Salt Lake City ordinance passed in 2009.
Originally, the statement read “The Church website mormonsandgays.org details sincere outreach by the Church within the gay community, including support in Utah for nondiscrimination protections of employment and housing. There is room for compassion, common ground, and shared humanity among people who disagree, and Church leaders eagerly pursue these ideals, both inside and outside the Church.”
Original statement:
Get the Daily Brief
The news you care about, reported on by the people who care about you:
That statement was altered Sunday on their website to read “The Church website mormonsandgays.org details sincere outreach by the Church within the gay community, including support in Salt Lake City in 2009 for nondiscrimination protections of employment and housing.
Since publicly supporting the local ordinance in 2009, the Mormon Church has declined to publicly comment on whether or not it supports a statewide law banning housing or employment discrimination against LGBTQ people.
In a written statement, church spokesperson Eric Hawkins said Sunday that “”The reference to non-discrimination ordinances was meant to reflect the church’s support for the 2009 Salt Lake ordinance and is not an announcement of any kind. The Church has been clear that its support of this specific ordinance was due to language that attempted to balance issues of non-discrimination and religious freedom.”
