Legislation aimed at expanding LGBTQ+ civil rights in the United States, including in the workplace and for healthcare and housing, was reintroduced by lawmakers in the House and Senate on Wednesday. The Equality Act previously passed the House in 2019 and 2021 but stalled in the Senate both times.
“When I first came to Congress in the early ’90s, Rep. Nancy Pelosi and I stood as the lone members of Congress in the Gay and Lesbian March on Washington for Lesbian, Gay and Bi Equal Rights and Liberation,” Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) said in a statement. “While we have made critical strides in pursuit of LGBTQI+ equality since then, I couldn’t have imagined in the year 2023 we’d still be fighting to ensure the community’s protection from being denied medical care, fired from their jobs or thrown out of their homes simply because of who they are.”
Nadler, a ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee, co-sponsored the House version of the bill with Rep. Mark Takano (D-CA) and House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY). The bill has the support of every Democrat in the House of Representatives.
“Every American should have equal protection under the law, but in the majority of states across the country, including Kansas, LGBTQI+ Americans lack explicit nondiscrimination protections in housing, education, public accommodations and other core areas of daily life,” Equality Caucus Co-Chair Rep. Sharice Davids (D-KS) said.
The Equality Act would amend existing civil rights laws to explicitly prohibit discrimination against LGBTQI+ people in employment, housing, public accommodations, education, federally funded programs, credit and jury service.
The bill also would prohibit discrimination on the basis of sex in public accommodations and federally funded programs while expanding the definition of public accommodations in the Civil Rights Act, strengthening protections not just on the basis of sex (including sexual orientation, gender identity and sex characteristics) but also on the basis of race, color, national origin and religion.
“LGBTQ+ older people have been fighting for their entire lives to ensure that they and those who follow in their footsteps can live their lives free from discrimination. … It’s time for Congress to pass comprehensive, explicit, non-discrimination protections,” SAGE’s Managing Director of Government Affairs & Policy Advocacy Aaron Tax, told the McKnight’s Business Daily.
The legislation has been endorsed by more than 630 healthcare, civil rights, education and faith-based organizations and is backed by more than 530 companies employing more than 15.9 million people across 33 states, according to the Human Rights Campaign.
“Without protections, millions of LGBTQ+ people in the United States remain vulnerable to being evicted from their homes, kicked out of a business that’s open to the public, surcharged unnecessarily for goods and services, or denied healthcare, home loans, taxis/car-sharing and government services in a majority of states simply because of who they love or who they are,” HRC said.
