The Issues Facing LGBT Americans

A report reviewing the major areas in which unfair laws and Christianist fanned stigma create extra burdens for LGBT Americans in their every day lives has been released by a coalition comprised of the Human Rights Campaign, Log Cabin Republicans, the Movement Advancement Project, Stonewall Democrats and the Victory Fund.  The report is aimed at educating straight allies Many of the findings are disturbing and underscore the reality that while life for LGBT Americans have improved in some states. in most states LGBT citizens are treated as third or fourth class citizens at best.  Unfortunately, Virginia is one of the states where there has been little improvement in the legal climate for LGBT individuals.  Indeed, during the last decade in Virginia, other than the invalidation of Virginia's sodomy laws under the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in Lawrence v. Texas, nothing has improved.  In fact, things have gotten worse (e.g., passage of the Marshall-Newman Amendment in 2006).  Here is the report's abstract followed by some excerpts from the report which can be found in full here:

ABSTRACT: Despite historic gains in the last few years, LGBT Americans are simply still not treated equally under federal law. Contrary to popular belief, federal legislation does not protect LGBT people from discrimination in housing, public accommodations, credit or employment—and LGBT people also lack such protections in most states. LGBT workers often cannot extend their health insurance coverage to their partners or children. Without family and marriage tax deductions, LGBT families pay additional taxes but lack access to critical protections that many Americans often take for granted, like Social Security Survivor Benefits. Due to these and myriad other inequalities, LGBT people are more likely to live in poverty and suffer from health disparities.

FAIR AND INCLUSIVE WORKPLACES:  The vast majority of Americans (73% according to the latest poll by the Center for American Progress) believe that workers should be treated fairly and equally and that no one should be fired for reasons that have nothing to do with their job performance. Yet LGBT people continue to face pervasive discrimination in the workplace. According to an analysis of the 2008 General Social Survey by the Williams Institute, more than one in-four lesbian, gay and bisexual (LGB) employees (27%) reported experiencing employment discrimination based on their sexual orientation in the past five years.11 The National Transgender Discrimination Survey found that 50% of transgender employees had been harassed at work.12 There is no federal law explicitly prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity.

As shown in Map 1, only a minority of states have legislation that protects workers for being unfairly fired .  .  .  .

Click on image to enlarge

ACCESS TO WORKPLACE BENEFITS:  LGBT people are less likely to have health insurance coverage.  No federal law requires employers to offer health benefits to the same-sex spouses or partners of LGBT employees, and most employers do not offer such benefits.  Even when employers do offer such benefits, LGBT employees (unlike married straight employees) and employers are taxed on the value of domestic partner health insurance benefits, making health insurance more expensive for LGBT employees and their families. 

FREEDOM FROM DISCRIMINATION:  Many LGBT people experience discrimination when just going about their daily activities–whether eating at a restaurant with their families or friends, trying to obtain safe, clean housing, or applying for a loan. One study found that in 27% of cases, same sex couples encountered discrimination when trying to rent or buy a home, and another study found that 19% of transgender respondents had been refused a home or apartment because of their gender identity or expression.20 Under federal law, LGBT people are not protected from discrimination in housing, public accommodations, credit or employment.

FREEDOM TO MARRY:  Many states in the U.S. have state-level laws banning same-sex couples from marriage and/or prohibiting other forms of relationship recognition. These state-level laws stand in the way of same-sex couples’ ability to take care of one another and tell them that their relationships and families don’t matter.

There much more detail, but these excerpts hopefully will help straight readers realize that there votes against anti-gay politicians are crucial to ending the daily inequality that we in the LGBT community face daily.