GetEQUAL Responds to Senate Momentum on LGBT Workplace Protections Bill
WASHINGTON, DC — Following this morning’s successful vote on the Employment Non-Discrimination Act of 2013 in the Senate HELP Committee, GetEQUAL — a national social justice organization working toward the full equality of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) Americans — issued the following statement:
“Today’s bipartisan passage of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act out of committee signals a strong opportunity for our community to finally find freedom in the workplace. We are one step closer to the American Dream of being judged by the work we do, not who we are or who we love.
Just two weeks ago, the Supreme Court of the United States finally said what we always knew — that our love and our lives are equal and should be treated equally under the law. But we can’t fully be equal if displaying our wedding picture at work can still get us fired. We commend Senators Kirk, Hatch and Murkowski for their courage and their leadership within the Republican Party in supporting this bill. We also thank Senators Harkin, Mikulski, Murray, Sanders, Casey, Jr., Hagan, Franken, Bennet, Whitehouse, Baldwin, Murphy and Warren for their ongoing support of this bill. Today’s vote shows extraordinary progress — but the work continues. We need Senator Reid to bring this important bill to the Senate floor for a vote as soon as possible so that work can then turn to the House of Representatives.
Although we firmly oppose the religious exemptions in the current form of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, the cries from the millions of LGBT workers seeking workplace protections are thunderous. We are counting on leadership from Senators Nelson, Pryor, and Portman as we move forward, and we will continue to hold accountable those who attempt to set the clock backwards in our country and oppose this important piece of legislation, such as Senator Rubio. We have taken a historic step forward today, but we know the work will continue.”
GetEQUAL is a national grassroots social justice organization whose mission is to empower the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) community and allies to take bold action to demand full legal and social equality, and to hold accountable those who stand in the way. For more information, go to www.getequal.org. You can also follow GetEQUAL on Facebook at www.facebook.com/getequal or on Twitter at www.twitter.com/getequal.
You can also join HRC by calling on your senator to end workplace discrimination now.
[From a News Release]
