New Report: Cristine Drazan Supports Allowing Employers to Discriminate Against LGBTQ+ Employees

Drazan’s Extreme Agenda “Conflicts With Her Recent Ads” 

New reporting from Willamette Week is exposing how dangerous Christine Drazan’s extreme agenda would be for LGBTQ+ Oregonians. According to the report released today, Drazan supports allowing Oregon businesses to discriminate against LGBTQ+ employees, which is a harmful position that “conflicts with her recent ads.”

When seeking the endorsement of the ultra-conservative, anti-gay marriage, and anti-abortion organization, Oregon Family Council, Drazan answered on a candidate questionaire that she supports “including religious exemptions in legislation to prevent restrictions of religious freedom in hiring and insurance mandates.”

According to Willamette Week, “Conservative Christian organizations ask such questions in part because they don’t want religious employers to have to pay the insurance costs for gender affirmation treatment or abortions.”

Legislation like this would endanger protections for LGBTQ+ Oregonians and allow for discrimination in housing, health care and employment.

Willamette Week writes that Drazan also “would have leeway as the state’s top executive to slow-play civil rights protections that conflicted with religious beliefs.”

In addition to Drazan’s dangerous position on protections for LGBTQ+ Oregonians, Drazan also supports ripping away Oregonians’ reproductive freedoms. She sponsored legislation that could jail nurses and doctors and has previously said she “looks forward to the day” abortion is restricted in Oregon.

“Christine Drazan wants to restrict rights so LGBTQ+ Oregeonians face discrimination in hiring or be denied insurance solely based on who they are and who they love,” said DGA Deputy Communications Director Sam Newton. “Banning abortion, eliminating protections for LGBTQ+ Oregonians, and gutting worker’s rights — that’s Drazan’s extreme agenda for Oregon. Tina Kotek is the only candidate in the race who wants to move Oregon forward and who will protect rights for women, workers, and the LGBTQ+ community.”