As more and more states rush to legalize same-sex marriage, concerned citizens in Oregon who fear being forced into providing services for unions that violate their religious beliefs are pushing for the passage of a new "opt out" law that will protect their rights to disagree without fear of being sued for discrimination.

According to a report by Reuters, Oregon voters are probably going to face two separate ballot issues this fall on the subject of same-sex marriage: 1) will they become the 18th state to let same-sex couples wed, and; 2) should the state be the first to allow florists, photographers and others to refuse to participate in these weddings on religious grounds.

Like 20 other states, it's illegal in Oregon to discriminate against someone because of their sexual orientation; however, these laws give little or no protection to the First Amendment rights of small business owners with religious beliefs that do not allow them to sanction or participate in these unions.

The Oregon initiative will be the first of its kind and while it's still in need of formal approval and could face legal challenges, it may create an exemption for these religious-minded folks.

Some are calling this press for conscience protection the next big front in the marriage debate.

"This is not a sideshow issue," said James Esseks of the American Civil Liberties Union, referring to the Oregon ballot initiative and the coming debate over religious exemption. "This is going to be the issue that we fight about for the next ten years, at least, in the (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) rights movement."

It's a fight that won't be limited to the LGBT arena. Lawyers representing businesses such as the Oregon-based Sweet Cakes by Melissa, which was sued for refusing to bake a wedding cake for same-sex couple, will also be fully engaged in this war for equal rights.

Teresa Harke, whose group Friends of Religious Freedom proposed Oregon's religious exemption referendum, said that as the marriage debate continues, guarantees are needed to ensure those on both sides of the issue are treated fairly.

"We want to make sure that, no matter which way marriage is defined in Oregon, that folks who hold a view based on their faith that marriage is between one man and one woman are not going to be discriminated against or be silenced for declining to participate in same-sex weddings," said Teresa Harke, founder of Friends of Religious Freedom, the group that proposed Oregon's religious exemption referendum.

She believes cases like Sweet Cakes and others across the nation where Christian-owned photography studios and bakeries are being hauled into court for refusing to violate their religious beliefs by providing services to same-sex unions are making it necessary to insure that both sides of the issue are treated fairly.

Legal scholars in general have long cautioned that states legalizing same-sex unions should include robust protections for religious dissenters to avoid the kind of battles that are to surely to come in the nation's courts. Some states, such as Connecticut and Vermont did include religious exemptions in their same-sex marriage laws stating that religious institutions would not be required to provide these services, but the "little guy" in a wedding-related business is not usually protected by these exemptions.

Opponents of the exemption such as Esseks claims these business owners just want a special license to discriminate against homosexuals.

However, Jordan Lorence, a lawyer with Alliance Defending Freedom, who represents a photography studio facing a similar lawsuit, said the First Amendment protects the right of people not to endorse messages with which they disagree.

"The right of conscience protects all Americans," he said.

This is a battle that will be fought in more and more states over the coming years as same-sex marriage becomes mainstreamed in U.S. society.

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