House Bill 1125, passed by a Republican majority, requires all marriage licenses to be approved by members of the clergy, effectively banning non-religious people from getting married.
Rep. Dennis Johnson who backed the bill said “Marriage was not instituted by government. It was instituted by God. There is no reason for Oklahoma or any state to be involved in marriage.”
While the bill appears to be explicitly targeting atheists, or people without a religious faith, many have criticized it as a not-so-subtle attack on same-sex union. If members of the clergy are the only issuers of marriage licenses, then it becomes more difficult for same-sex couples to get married.
Indeed, Rep. Todd Russ has explicitly cited his opposition to gay marriage as a reason for sponsoring the bill. Speaking to KSWO-TV, he said that same-sex marriage laws were “struck down our throats” by the Supreme Court despite Oklahoma voting “overwhelmingly” against it.
The head of Freedom Oklahoma, a LGBT advocacy group, Troy Stevenson said that the community would “fight back” against the “discriminatory legislation”, and noted that there are as many as “160 members of the clergy who have publicly declared their willingness to marry LGBT people” in the state.
Same sex marriage was legalized in Oklahoma on October 6, 2014 when the US Supreme Court decided against reviewing a case that banned the unions. However, opposition to gay marriage remains strong in the state. According to an Oklahoma poll published by Tulsa World, 66% of Oklahomans oppose gay marriage, and 23% support it.
