A federal lawsuit filed Friday seeks to roll back portions of Michigan’s civil rights law that protect abortion rights.
The lawsuit filed by Right to Life of Michigan and the Pregnancy Resource Center alleges a 2023 state law that expanded the definition of “sex” to protect against discrimination based on terminating a pregnancy infringes on constitutional free speech protections.
“Recent changes to Michigan’s employment law force religious and pro-life groups to employ and associate with persons who do not share or live by—and may even oppose—the organizations’ beliefs on human life,” said the introduction to the lawsuit filed in the U.S. Western District Court in Grand Rapids. “This violates the First Amendment.”
Abortion rights proponents in Michigan enjoyed some political success following the U.S. Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision that reversed long-standing protections for reproductive health care. Voters in 2022 approved an amendment to the Michigan Constitution with sweeping protections for reproductive rights.
Democrats also swept into all the top spots in Michigan government that year with Governor Gretchen Whitmer, Attorney General Dana Nessel and Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson easily winning reelection, and Democrats took full control of the Legislature for the first time in decades.
Under Democratic control, the Legislature approved and Whitmer signed laws to expand abortion rights.
The lawsuit filed Friday argues some of those laws trample on the rights of groups opposed to abortion to recruit and hire employees who share their mission.
“The bottom line here is that the First Amendment ensures that the pro-life organizations can employ people who agree with their beliefs, who act consistently with their beliefs without the threat of government punishment,” said attorney Brian Neihart. He told Michigan Public Radio that state employment law requires them to provide health coverage that includes paying for abortions.
“So not only does the law require our clients to hire employees who disagree with their views on life,” he said, “it also actually requires them to include insurance that covers abortions in direct violation of their beliefs.”
The 2023 law says the definition of “sex” in the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act “includes, but is not limited to, pregnancy, childbirth, the termination of a pregnancy, or a related medical condition.”
Whitmer’s office declined to comment on the lawsuit.
The Attorney General’s office did not respond to requests for comment. Nessel is a named defendant in the lawsuit.
