Missouri's Legislative Black Caucus members want everyone to understand: They don't like discrimination, and they don't like some colleagues' proposals to change current laws against it.
"Civil rights acts were put in place to protect people," said Rep. Steve Webb, D-Florissant, the caucus chairman. "The Black Caucus does not believe in (and) will not stand for discrimination, at all. These bills are derived in greed."
The Senate's version (Senate Bill 592) of what's called the "workplace discrimination" law could be debated again this week, after running into several hours of opposition during floor debate last week.
The House version (House Bill 1219) also could see floor debate this week, for the first time this year.
"These bills aim to weaken the (Missouri) Human Rights Act, by making it more difficult to prove discrimination, and limiting remedies for victims of discrimination," Webb said.