Sweeping LGBTI rights bill to go before Congress this week

Democrats in the House and Senate plan to unveil a sweeping new civil rights bill for LGBT Americans on Thursday, providing federal protections for sexual and gender minorities in every state.

The Democratic Party is reportedly planning to propose a broad bill LGBT rights bill this week in Congress – despite a Republican majority.

Incidents reported by LGBT people ranged from homophobic, biphobic and transphobic comments and attitudes (82 per cent), to acts of verbal (68 per cent), physical (16 per cent) and sexual abuse (7 per cent), crimes against property (12 per cent), and discriminatory treatment when accessing services (25 per cent) and in employment (24 per cent).

Openly gay Rhode Island Rep David Cicilline.

“A majority of states in our country do not have laws that protect LGBT individuals against discrimination… we need a uniform federal standard that protects all LGBT Americans from discrimination”.

Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley plans to introduce similar legislation in the Senate within the next few days.

The laundry list of protections LGBT people would be given under the Democrat-backed legislation demonstrates just some of the ways they can be discriminated against in states and cities that do not provide such protections. The Blade points out that if any LGBT-related legislation is likely to see movement in the current congress, it may be the First Amendment Defense Act, a religious freedom bill seen to enable anti-LGBT discrimination.

“No one in our community should be at risk of being fired, evicted from their home, or denied services because of who they are or whom they love”, said Human Rights Campaign President Chad Griffin in a statement.

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission already ruled recently that employment discrimination is already illegal – a ruling that directly applies to federal employers and guides lower courts on discrimination claims in the private sector. It is one of 29 states without laws protecting LGBT individuals in public accommodations.

“It is clear that while we have made welcome progress in recent years there is still much more to do before LGBT people will experience real equality in their day-to-day lives”. The 1964 act forbid discrimination on the basis of sex, race and national origin in schools, at work and in public places.