What a Difference a Decade Makes: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Nondiscrimination Law and Policy in the United States

Over the past three decades, states, counties and cities have pioneered the passage of laws mandating equal treatment for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people, and they have done so at an ever accelerating rate. Seven of the 15 state laws prohibiting sexual orientation-based discrimination...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inDiversity Factor (Online) Vol. 13; no. 1; p. 18
Main Author Suffredini, Kara S
Format Trade Publication Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Philadelphia Diversity Factor 01.01.2005
Subjects
Cities
Employment discrimination
Gays & lesbians
Gender identity
Jurisdiction
LGBTQ people
Political activism
Polls & surveys
Sexual orientation discrimination
Social conditions & trends
State laws
Task forces
Transgender persons
Voters
United States > US
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Summary:Over the past three decades, states, counties and cities have pioneered the passage of laws mandating equal treatment for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people, and they have done so at an ever accelerating rate. Seven of the 15 state laws prohibiting sexual orientation-based discrimination and four of the five state laws prohibiting discrimination against transgender people were passed in the last ten years. At the local level, more than 200 US cities and counties ban sexual orientation discrimination and over 70 ban discrimination against transgender people. Nondiscrimination laws vary in scope from prohibiting discrimination only in public sector employment to covering private employment, housing, credit, places of public accommodation and education. A federal nondiscrimination law could extend protection to vulnerable populations by creating a uniform minimum level of coverage across the US, but attempts to pass such legislation have failed for three decades.
ISSN:1545-2808