SURVEY: Majority Of Public Backs Equality Act

A survey conducted by the nonpartisan Public Religion Research Institute reveals that a majority of Americans in every state supports the Equality Act, which would ban anti-LGBT discrimination in housing, employment, and public accommodations. From the Human Rights Campaign:

Currently, 33 states lack clear, fully inclusive LGBT non-discrimination protections, leaving people at risk for being fired, denied a job or apartment, or refused service because of who they are or whom they love. In addition to showing strong, across the board support for a bill like the Equality Act, a majority in all 50 states support non-discrimination protections for LGBT people — 70 percent in Florida, 70 percent in Indiana, 70 percent in Pennsylvania and 69 percent in Ohio — all states that lack these protections.

Leading American corporations such as Amazon, AirBNB, American Airlines, Apple, the Dow Chemical Company, Facebook, General Electric, General Mills, Google, HP, Hyatt, IBM, Intel, Levi Strauss & Co, Microsoft, Nike, Oracle, Orbitz, PayPal, Symantec Corporation and Target in support of federal LGBT non-discrimination protections.

Discrimination is a real and persistent problem for too many LGBT Americans. Nearly two-thirds of self-identified LGBT Americans reported experiencing discrimination — including people like Carter Brown, a transgender man who lost his job after he was outed as transgender by his colleagues. Currently, 50 percent of LGBT Americans live in states where they risk being fired, denied housing or refused service because of who they are or whom they love.

Republican Senator Mark Kirk (IL) and Representative Bob Dold (IL) recently signed on as co-sponsors of the Equality Act, which was introduced last year by Senators Jeff Merkley (OR), Tammy Baldwin (WI), and Cory Booker (NJ), and Representatives David Cicilline (RI) and John Lewis (GA).

The bipartisan Equality Act, 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.

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