Photo via iPhoto, with added text by DCist.

Mayor Muriel Bowser banned city-funded travel to Tennessee following the state’s passage of a bill that allows mental health counselors to turn away patients based on their religious beliefs or personal principles.

“The legislation allows therapists to discriminate against persons seeking professional counseling, and could be particularly harmful for the lesbian, gay, bi-sexual, transgender and questioning (LGBTQ) communities,” the order reads.

Bowser and the other members of the Mayors Against Discrimination coalition sent a letter last month to Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam, urging him to veto the legislation when it arrived on his desk. “While clearly aimed at LGBT individuals, the legislation as written would allow for discrimination against patients based on many factors, including race, religion, and gender,” the letter says. Haslam signed the bill a week later.

Bowser and the other Mayors Against Discrimination also banned official city business travel to North Carolina and Mississippi, after the implementation of anti-LGBT laws in those states.

Jordan Bennett, a spokesperson for the mayor, says that “Mayor Bowser directly communicates with members of the Coalition as necessary. Additionally, members of her staff communicate weekly with staff from the other mayor’s offices. Decisions are made through these communications.”

We’ve reached out to Governor Haslam’s office and will update this if we receive a response.

While the executive branch currently implements these bans on a case-by-case basis using mayoral orders, legislation introduced in early April by At-large Councilmember David Grosso would ban all city-funded travel to states with laws that discriminate against lesbian, gay, transgender or bisexual people.

Prohibition – Ban on Travel to the State of Tennessee