The NAACP has issued a travel advisory to people of color, warning them that traveling to Missouri might just be dangerous for their health.
Missouri’s NAACP conference issued the advisory in June, and it was recognized by the NAACP’s annual convention last week.
The advisory was issued in response to Missouri’s Senate Bill 43, which makes it more difficult to prove that a protected class like race or gender is what directly led to discrimination in lawsuits.
While Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens, who signed the bill into law shortly after it was passed, and others have insisted that the bill simply makes sure that Missouri’s lawsuit laws line up with those in other states, the NAACP has called it a “Jim Crow Bill.”
“This does not follow the morals of Missouri,” Conference President Rod Chapel Jr. told CNN. “I hate to see Missouri get dragged down deep past the notion of treating people with dignity.”
Citing other examples of discrimination in the state as signs of “looming danger,” the NAACP urges travelers to “warn your families, co-workers and anyone visiting Missouri to beware of the safety concerns with travel in Missouri.”
Chapel stated that in order for the advisory to be lifted, not only would the law need to be repealed but also Missouri would have to make improvements in the way its police stop people of color and the way the state deals with hate crimes.
“We need to have some basic ground rules for how human beings treat each other,” Chapel said.