Hispanic Caucus Endorses Passage of ENDA

To listen to the reality deniers in the GOP, Hispanics ought to be natural supporters of the GOP.  These loons conveniently overlook the GOP's blatant racism and opposition to immigration reform that tell Hispanics all too clearly that Republicans are anything but their friends.  Hispanics also do not subscribe to the Christofascists' unrelenting jihad against gay equality.  The latest evidence of this later fact is the Congressional Hispanic Caucus voted Wednesday to endorse the passage of ENDA, the Employment Non-Discrimination Act which would at long last give gays in 29 states protection from being arbitrarily fired by falsely pious bigots.  The Washington Blade looks at this development.  Here are excerpts:

The caucus for Latino members of the U.S. House has added its name to the long list of supporters of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act amid a push for a House vote on the bill.

The Congressional Hispanic Caucus voted Wednesday to endorse the legislation, which would prohibit anti-LGBT bias in the workforce, as a result of a resolution proposed by Rep. Linda Sanchez (D-Calif.).

In a statement, Sanchez, vice chair of the caucus, called ENDA “an important, long overdue civil rights law.”

“Equality shouldn’t wait,” Sanchez said. “We need to break down the barriers of intolerance and bigotry that have kept too many talented people out of the workplace. The vast majority of Americans believe that job performance is what should determine whether you get hired, fired or promoted. It’s time for the House to pass ENDA and end workplace discrimination.”

House aides said two-thirds of the caucus voted to endorse ENDA . . . .

he legislation already passed the Senate last month in a historic 64-32 bipartisan vote. In response to repeated requests to bring up ENDA for a House vote, Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) has said he opposes the measure.

It’s not the first time the Congressional Hispanic Caucus has endorsed a pro-LGBT initiative. In November, the caucus included protections for bi-national same-sex couples as part of its list of principles for comprehensive immigration reform. Although the Senate Judiciary Committee opted not to include the LGBT language in its version of reform, the issue became moot after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act.

Last month, Sanchez held a congressional field hearing in Los Angeles on the impact of workplace bias on LGBT Latinos in the aftermath of the publication of a Movement Advancement Project report titled, “A Broken Bargain for LGBT Workers of Color.”

Other Latino organizations that support ENDA are the Mexican American Legal Defense Fund, the League of United Latin American Citizens and the Trans-Latina Coalition.