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Democrats Introduce LGBTQ Equality Act in House and Senate

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The bill has been introduced over and over since the 1970s, but this time the Biden Administration has made clear that passing the Equality Act is “a priority” for the President.

In almost every Congress since the 1970s, the LGBTQ Equality Act has been introduced in some form or another. On Thursday Congressman David Cicilline (D-RI) and Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR) once again introduced the legislation.

This very well may be the year it passes and is signed into law. Speaker Pelosi is expected to allow the bill to go to the floor for a full House vote next week.

The Equality Act remains a much-needed tool in the protection of LGBTQ people, women, and other minorities, because 29 states still do not protect these people in all areas, including employment, education, credit, jury service, federal funding, housing, and public accommodations, as Rep. Cicilline said in a statement Thursday.

“In 2021, every American should be treated with respect and dignity,” Cicilline says in a press release. “Yet, in most states, LGBTQ people can be discriminated against because of who they are, or who they love. It is past time for that to change. I’m proud to introduce the Equality Act today, and I look forward to continuing to work with Senator Merkley to get this bill signed into law.”

In 2019 the Equality Act passed the House in a historic 236-173 bipartisan vote. But then-Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) refused to even allow it to be taken up in a committee.

“All of us go to work and school, go home, and go shopping, and none of us should have to keep our families hidden or pretend to be someone we’re not to do those things,” Merkley added. “But in 29 states, Americans can still be evicted, be thrown out of a restaurant, or be denied a loan because of who they are or whom they love. We all love the vision of America as a land of freedom and equality, but are we willing to take the steps to make that vision closer to reality? Let’s make 2021 the year the Equality Act crosses the finish line and is signed into law by President Biden.”

Since the 2019 version’s passage the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled in favor of LGBTQ equality. The landmark 2020 Bostock v. Clayton County ruling found Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 protects people from sexual orientation or gender identity discrimination in the workplace.

That alone should make passage easier.

But not a guarantee.

The Washington Blade notes West Virginia Democrat Joe Manchin did not support the bill in 2019. Republicans who might be considered more moderate are also not guarantees. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT), who once, as governor of Massachusetts told a group of same-sex parents “I didn’t know you had families,” is a no currently.

Unless Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer allows the filibuster to die, 60 votes would be needed to pass the Equality Act. At least 10 Republicans would have to vote for the bill, which might be possible, a Republican lobbyist told the Blade.

Meanwhile, President Joe Biden on the campaign trail promised to pass the Equality Act in his first 100 days. He has since amended that based on the pandemic. Cicilline and Merkley say the President has “has made a priority for his first 100 days in office.”

Written by David Badash, The New Civil Rights Movement. Top Image: Reintroduction of the Equality Act in 2015, photo by Senate Democrats via Flickr and a CC license

Trump Political Appointee Sues Biden After Refusing to Resign

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Roger Severino, the anti-LGBTQ right-wing Christian activist who made things difficult for LGBTQ Americans during his time running HHS’s Office Of Civil Rights for Trump, is suing the Biden administration for firing him.

Roger Severino, a former Trump appointee at the Dept. of Health and Human Services who targeted LGBTQ Americans in his religious crusade as head of the Office of Civil Rights, is suing the Biden administration for firing him from his appointment by the former president to an obscure but powerful federal government agency known as ACUS.

He is refusing to resign, despite being a political appointee.

“President Biden’s attempt to remove me contrary to law exposes his lofty promises of healing and uniting all Americans as nothing more than cynical manipulation,” Severino defiantly told Newsweek.

“Because I am not one to be bullied, not even by the President himself, I will not resign my duly commissioned post and look forward to seeing how President Biden tries to justify his vindictive actions in court.”

Severino’s lawsuit claims that “President Biden has no constitutional authority under Article II to terminate Mr. Severino’s appointment to the Council.”

“The Council” is the Administrative Conference of the United States (ACUS), which holds sway over how U.S. government regulatory agencies operate.

Slate’s Mark Joseph Stern, who covers the courts and the law, writes on Twitter that “Severino’s substantive argument … seems to suggest that ACUS is part of no branch of government, but instead sits outside the executive branch on some heavenly plane.”

He calls the lawsuit “bonkers, BONKERS, just eye-melting galaxy-brain-level drivel.”

Severino spent his four years in the Trump administration working tirelessly to kill protections, many installed by the Obama administration, for LGBTQ patients, effectively promoting discrimination based on gender and sexual orientation. He also expanded opportunities for people of faith to claim anti-religion discrimination by creating the Conscience and Religious Freedom Division at HHS.

At HHS Severino called Obama-era protections for transgender patients “unnecessary.”

And in defending an anti-LGBTQ “religious freedom” regulation, Severino told reporters, “Patients want doctors who match their values.”

As NCRM has previously reported, Severino has been called a “radical” anti-LGBTQ religious right activist by the Human Rights Campaign. He once served as CEO and counsel for the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, a religious right non-profit that opposes separation of church and state. He has also served as the Director of the DeVos family’s Center for Religion and Civil Society in the Institute for Family, Community, and Opportunity.

He is married to Carrie Severino, president of the Judicial Crisis Network, which spent millions to install President Donald Trump’s extremist judges, including reportedly tens of millions of dollars to help secure Trump’s three Supreme Court nominees.

Written by David Badash, The New Civil Rights Movement. Image via NCRM.

Biden Just Reversed Trump’s Transgender Military Ban

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The Biden Executive Order allows “all qualified persons to serve in the military.”

President Joe Biden has just signed an executive order reversing President Trump’s total ban on transgender service members.

The order “sets the policy that all Americans who are qualified to serve in the Armed Forces of the United States should be able to serve. The All-Volunteer Force thrives when it is composed of diverse Americans who can meet the rigorous standards for military service, and an inclusive military strengthens our national security.”

“President Biden believes that gender identity should not be a bar to military service, and that America’s strength is found in its diversity. This question of how to enable all qualified Americans to serve in the military is easily answered by recognizing our core values. America is stronger, at home and around the world, when it is inclusive. The military is no exception. Allowing all qualified Americans to serve their country in uniform is better for the military and better for the country because an inclusive force is a more effective force. Simply put, it’s the right thing to do and is in our national interest.”

Video of the signing:

Written by David Badash, The New Civil Rights Movement. Image via NCRM.

Biden Nomination of Rachel Levine, First Openly Transgender Person for Senate-Confirmed Role, Praised by LGBTQ Orgs

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President Joe Biden has nominated Pennsylvania Secretary of Health Rachel Levine to become the Assistant Secretary of Health in the Department of Health and Human Services, which will make her the first openly trans presidential cabinet official in United States history.

Incoming President Joe Biden will officially nominate Pennsylvania Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine to become the Assistant Secretary of Health at the Dept. of Health and Human Services. The Biden transition team calls Dr. Levine a “deeply experienced and effective public servant and public health expert,” who is now “poised to become the first openly transgender federal official to be confirmed by the U.S. Senate.”

Dr. Levine, who is also a Professor of Pediatrics and Psychiatry at the Penn State College of Medicine, also previously served as Pennsylvania’s Physician General. She is a Harvard College and Tulane University School of Medicine graduate, and trained at the Mount Sinai Medical Center.

Governor Tom Wolf, a Democrat, nominated Dr. Levine to both Pennsylvania positions, where she was unanimously confirmed.

LGBTQ organizations are praising the choice of Dr. Levine.

“Our nation is fortunate to have Dr. Rachel Levine nominated for a position so important to ending this pandemic and her experience on the frontlines in Pennsylvania will prove invaluable as Assistant Secretary,” said Annise Parker, the former Houston mayor who now serves as President and CEO of the LGBTQ Victory Institute, in a statement. “Her nomination is groundbreaking and shows the Biden administration will choose the most qualified individuals to lead our nation regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity. Dr. Levine is making history and will transform Americans’ perceptions of trans people when she takes office and begins to work on their behalf.”

“Dr. Levine is imminently qualified to serve as assistant secretary at Health and Human Services,” Rea Carey, Executive Director of the National LGBTQ Task Force said in a statement. “Her work in Pennsylvania was exemplary and impactful to the health of all Pennsylvanians. When the National LGBTQ Task Force praised the nomination of Pete Buttigieg as Transportation Secretary, we said it should the ’the first of many firsts,’ and this is exactly what we meant. The appointment of more diverse LGBTQ people at all level of the administration is imperative and that includes trans and non-binary people and people of color. We are thrilled that Dr. Levine has been nominated, especially at HHS, where the LGBTQ community has been under serious attack by the outgoing administration.”

Written by David Badash, The New Civil Rights Movement. Photo via Biden Transition Team.