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Now that gay and lesbian people can get married (upon re-reading I've realized this is a very US-centric OP), what's next? Well, a lot. This thread is for discussing lgbt rights, politics, etc. beyond the right to get married. For example, there's: Workplace Discrimination In most US states, you can be fired for being gay or transgender. In 31 states, you can be fired on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity. . 21 percent of LGBT people have reported employment discrimination, that number rises to 47 percent when you look at transgender people. However, most people mistakenly believe it is already against the law. Numerous cities also have local protections in place, but conservatives at the state level are trying to fight these local successes. For example, Arkansas passed a bill, similar to one in Tennessee, that would "would prevent cities and counties from enacting or enforcing laws that ban discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity." If you're a public employee, things are a little better. 11 of 29 states without LGBT protections have executive orders or policies preventing discrimination. The president has issued an Executive Order requiring federal contractors to have non-discrimination policies in place that protect LGBT people. It's a good thing, but obviously it's not enough. We need to pass comprehensive federal legislation that bans lgbt discrimination. Hence the Equality Act. quote:The Equality Act, which was introduced by Senators Jeff Merkley, Tammy Baldwin, and Cory Booker, and Representatives David Cicilline and John Lewis, establishes explicit, permanent protections against discrimination based on an individual’s sexual orientation or gender identity in matters of employment, housing, access to public places, federal funding, credit, education and jury service. In addition, it would prohibit discrimination on the basis of sex in federal funding and access to public places. Here's John Oliver explaining it. Schools LGBT students face a 90% harassment rate vs. a 62% rate for straight students, and are 3 times more likely to report feeling unsafe at school. The US Dept. of Education has ruled that Title IX, which prevents discrimination or harassment based on sex, also applies to discrimination or harassment faced by transgender students. The DOJ is currently using Title IX to defend the rights of a transgender boy in Virginia. However, such discrimination is still rampant, and state-level efforts to legalize discrimination are currently underway. For example, in California, which currently allows transgender students to use resources (like bathrooms) consistent with their gender, a ballot initiative is in place that: "would bar people from using government-funded facilities that don’t relate to their sex as determined by birth, medical examination or court judgment acknowledging a gender change, according to the summary. Those who felt their rights were infringed upon could sue in civil court and would be entitled to at least $4,000 from a government or person found in violation. It also would allow businesses to ban transgender customers or employees from using their facilities." While a previous initiative failed, similar efforts might be more successful in other states. Health LGBT people face numerous health concerns. For example, they're 2.5 times more likely to have a mental health disorder. This article is a must-read for the broad strokes - know that gay and lesbian people are several times more likely to suffer from depression, anxiety disorders, and substance abuse. 25% of gay men and 20% of gay women report harassment. As usual in these things, the numbers go up if you look at transgender people. 19% of transgender people report being refused care by medical providers because they were transgender, 28% report harassment in medical offices. Suicide is another crucial issue. 41% of transgender people have attempted suicide (the national rate is 1.6%). LGB youth are 4 times more likely to attempt suicide than straight youth. I encourage everyone to check out The Trevor Project for more information. Other Issues Other issues include homelessness (40% of homeless youth are LGBT!), poverty, AIDS (Louisiana is terminating its medicaid provider contract with Planned Parenthood, which does HIV testing, AL, AR, and UT are following suit), and the justice system. For example, transgender people experience three times as much police violence, and almost half of transgender people who report hate crimes face discrimination from the police. With gay marriage organizations preparing to shut down, now is the critical time for people and organizations invested in lgbt rights to pivot and begin tackling other bigotries and injustices, so we can talk about that here. Sharkie fucked around with this message at 02:51 on Aug 26, 2015 |
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Aug 24, 2015 19:23
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This is a pro-click. One of the more harrowing sections is about police and incarceration. quote:One-fifth (22%) of respondents who have interacted with police reported harassment by police due to bias, with substantially higher rates (29-38%) reported by respondents of color. Some Black Lives Matter organizers are addressing the violence and abuse that black trans people face tomorrow, with rallies in Houston, Dayton, Nashville, Chicago, Columbus, and D.C. Currently there are rallies set in five cities: Houston, Dayton, Nashville, Chicago, Columbus, and Washington D.C. http://fusion.net/story/187673/blacklivesmatter-organizers-to-rally-for-black-transgender-women/ Black transgender women also face a disproportionate amount of violence in general. This article goes into detail about the 20 known murders of transgender women this year. 17 were black or latina. quote:In 2013, the group found, there were at least 12 hate-motivated homicides of transgender women, and they were all people of color...
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Aug 25, 2015 00:27
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Lord Windy posted:I always wondered if that had to do more with a genetic link between mental illnesses and LGBT people. I don't have a source, but my psychiatrist said there was a much higher rate of Bipolar amongst gay people. I have Bipolar and tried to commit suicide. But I literally faced nothing a normal person wouldn't have growing up. I haven't seen any evidence regarding a genetic link between a wide range of mental illnesses and lgbt people. However, the Minority Stress model has been used for some time now and has a lot of support. Prejudice, Social Stress, and Mental Health in Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Populations: Conceptual Issues and Research Evidence seems to be a pretty good overview of the literature. See also http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7738327 Also I'm not clear about what your last sentence means, sorry. Lord Windy posted:It's also my opinion that the gay struggle is over. Within a year or two Australia will have marriage equality and any lingering discrimination will disappear in a generation or two. Transgender individuals will have some trouble for awhile longer, but unlike racism we LGBT people randomly appear within families. I think "will be gone in two generations" (or even "awhile longer") is hardly "over." Given the kinds of legal and cultural discrimination gay people face, I think calling the struggle for equality over is incredibly overly optimistic, at best.
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Aug 25, 2015 01:01
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Effectronica posted:Housing discrimination is also still a major problem in the USA. In 29 states, it is legal to discriminate against LGBT people in housing, and in a further 10, it is still legal to discriminate against transgender people. This is an important part of keeping openly LGBT people sectioned off into "gayborhoods" and the like. The Equality Act would, among other things, amend the Fair Housing Act to include sexual orientation and gender identity. Of course, zero Republicans are supporting it; it's still vitally important for municipalities and states to address this where they can. Like you said, right now in most states you can legally get married, announce it, and the next day lose your job because of it.
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Aug 25, 2015 02:48
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Hollismason posted:I'm reposting this because it's a issue that people don't realize is a actual issue. Basically the exclusion of Transgender individuals from the ADA. This would immediately offer persons who are Transgender workplace protection as well as allow them access to educational benefits. Yeah, this is a big deal. If I understand the case correctly, though, the DOJ wants to see it resolved through Title VII, so that's why they haven't weighed in, but...the ADA charge is still going to go through, congruent with the Title VII charge, correct? So we're going to see a decision on the ADA charge regardless? At this point it's probably useful to make it clear that under the DSM-V, gender dysphoria is not a sexual dysfunction disorder. Also, being transgender is, strictly speaking, not a mental illness under the DSM-V. Rather, the distress caused by it is a mental state that is in the DSM-V. They've pretty much come out and said that they included it because it allows transgender people to obtain treatment, insurance (though that's not always available), and also legal protections, such as this case demonstrates. http://www.dsm5.org/Documents/Gender%20Dysphoria%20Fact%20Sheet.pdf quote:The critical element of gender dysphoria is the presence of clinically significant distress associated with the condition (gender nonconformity). quote:Advocate: There's no rational reason to exclude gd from the ADA.
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Aug 26, 2015 01:19
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Spacewolf posted:Sure there is. It politicizes the ADA, something that (to the relief of most disabled folks) is actually not a partisan issue in the US. It's rough enough being blind, I don't need what few protections I get being turned into a wedge issue for either party! I'm not sure I understand how removing gender dysphoria from the list of conditions that are specifically barred from the ADA would imperil the protections that Americans with disabilities have. And just so you know the term is "transgender people," not "transgenders." Also I'll reiterate the other posters that have pointed out the ADA is already politicized.
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Aug 26, 2015 03:23
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GhostofJohnMuir posted:So what's the next "Grand Cause" for people to focus on after marriage equality. There are still a ton of LGBT issues (especially T issues), but I feel like a lot of them, especially the ones noted in the OP, are too complicated or don't have enough mass appeal to become the new marriage equality campaign. Maybe bundling together employment and housing protections would have the best shot at picking up steam, but if we couldn't pass the ERA for women, what are the odds of passing one focusing on LBGT issues? That's a large part of why I created this thread. The Equality Act would help a lot; though I'm not super optimistic about the odds of it passing. Which is why I think it's naive when people act like marriage equality is the be-all end-all of gay rights, or that legal equality is due any week now. That being said, this might end up playing out at the local and state level, which is very good news for some people (San Antonio for example), but leaves many other behind, and as we've seen with gay marriage, that's not necessarily a successful strategy, at least when you're looking at the legislature. State-level judicial rulings may end up being vitally important here, too. Especially a case that ends up reaching the Supreme Court would be nice, but who knows what or when that will be.
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Aug 26, 2015 05:51
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Higsian posted:Yeah but the discrimination doesn't come from the condition itself. It comes from how particular treatments clash with established gender norms. Keep in mind that Gender Dysphoria is an adaptation of the earlier DSM's "Gender Identity Disorder," not a new addition. Title VII provides protection in some of these cases ("masculine women," etc): quote:http://www.franczek.com/frontcenter-EEOC_Transgender_Status_Gender_Identity.html A list of cases is available on the EEOC's website. Now, as for why Title VII doesn't mean employment equality for gay and transgender Americans? Well, it's complicated. But basically courts are still able to selectively interpret it. See Eure v The Sage Corp. quote:http://transworkplace.blogspot.com/2014/12/the-court-gets-it-wrong-in-eure-v-sage.html Sharkie fucked around with this message at 06:19 on Aug 26, 2015 |
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Aug 26, 2015 06:15
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Effectronica posted:I think that the next big struggles will center around bullying/harassment on the LGB end, and getting included in federal civil rights laws on the T end. Not so much because the former is the worthiest, but because housing/employment discrimination will probably have a lot more tepid support from well-off LGB people. Is there anything new trying to get done about lgbt bullying and harassment? And yeah, I think that for some lgb people, housing and employment discrimination isn't something that's on their radar as much as marriage has recently been, simply because they are in a position to not have to deal with it, or have more options available. Awareness is also an issue. I don't have the article on hand but it reported something over 60% of Americans were unaware that states legalize housing/employment discrimination. Nintendo Kid posted:Do you mean "why do Idaho and Nebraska have any counties with LGBT protections?" Because the reason for that is that those are where their biggest cities are, or where major companies are that want to ensure they can attract nationwide talent by making sure they don't have to worry about them and their families being discriminated against. Thanks for those maps. The second one also reminds me of voting patterns broken down at the county level: little islands of blue in seas of red. Though in this case obviously they are fewer and farther between.
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Aug 27, 2015 22:23
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the moose posted:Yes but gender dysphoria by itself doesnt impair some one like blindness. Gender dysphoria should be treated and can cause problems but I would not consider it a disability. What else does the ADA cover besides ramps and parking spaces that trans people should be covered? In addition to what computer parts and mandatory lesbian said, remember that the only reason gender dysphoria isn't already covered by the ADA is that it was one of a few conditions explicitly excluded when the ADA passed congress. Specifically, congress excluded sexual disorders (which is what gender identity disorder, as it was then known, was at the time classified as) from the ADA. Sharkie fucked around with this message at 00:02 on Aug 30, 2015 |
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Aug 29, 2015 23:59
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Here's a very good article about the intersection of transgender and undocumented migrant rights: http://interactive.fusion.net/trans/ (warning, there are some pretty bad stories about sexual assault in it): http://interactive.fusion.net/trans/ Hillary Clinton has been getting some pressure about trans rights in ICE detention and prison. So far her response has been....not resounding. But she has acknowledged it: http://fusion.net/story/131166/hillary-clinton-makes-transgender-immigrants-a-campaign-issue/ quote:“I think we have to do more to provide safe environments for vulnerable populations,” Clinton said in response to a question about transgender immigrants being detained in institutions that don’t correspond with their self-identified gender. Representatives of BlackLivesMatter disrupted a HRC campaign event to talk about violence against black trans women and were brushed off. I'm hoping the same happens with Bernie Sanders, as I think it would give him an opportunity to talk about what he feels he can do w/r/t trans people of color.
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Sep 5, 2015 23:18
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Is your state fighting to restrict LGBT rights? There's a good chance it is! http://hrc-assets.s3-website-us-east-1.amazonaws.com//files/documents/2015_StateLegislation-Document_2.pdf quote:Seemingly the most popular form of bill so far in the 2015 legislative session, these RFRAs require the state government to have a “compelling interest” before it can “substantially burden” personal religious practice. This sounds nice on paper, but who decides what counts as a burden? These bills are often incredibly vague and light on details — usually intentionally. In practice, most of these bills could allow individuals to use religion to challenge or opt out of state and local laws, including local laws that protect lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people from discrimination. The evangelical owner of a business providing a secular service could sue claiming that their personal faith empowers them to refuse to hire Jews, divorcees, or LGBT people. A landlord could claim the right to refuse to rent an apartment to a Muslim or a transgender person. In addition, OK is fighting to protect conversion therapy, 10 states are fighting to restrict trans people's rights, TX, WV, AR, and MS are trying to, or have already, overrule local LGBT ordinances Once again, education is a very important part of fighting these kinds of restrictions. Most Americans don't know that in many states, employment and housing discrimination is legal.
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Sep 6, 2015 02:35
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