COLUMBIA, S.C. (WBTW) — A South Carolina lawmaker has proposed legislation that would make it mandatory for state treasury employees to say “Black Lives Matter” when answering the phones.
The bill filed Wednesday by Representative Chris Hart (D-SC) states: “All individuals employed by the Office of the State Treasurer shall make the statement ‘Black Lives Matter’ when answering the phone during the course of business.”
According to the congressman, the bill is in response to social media comments made by South Carolina Treasurer Curtis Loftis.
Rep. Hart specified he wants the resolution to take effect until the “Treasurer acknowledges the inappropriateness of the comments he made on Facebook in June 2020 during the Black Lives Matter protest regarding being a second-class citizen.”
WLTX reported that Treasurer Loftis said in a post that he was tired of “looters, curfews, lockdowns, and weaponized pandemics” and being a second-class citizen to people “screaming mindless chants.”
Loftis later deleted the post.
Hart is a representative for District 73 in Richland County.