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| We're not done yet. What's next in the fight for LGBT rights | We're not done yet. What's next in the fight for LGBT rights |
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| There's not a day that goes by that I don't get asked about lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) civil rights, marriage equality, and how we can move my home state of Pennsylvania forward. As the first openly gay state legislator in the "keystone state" (the birthplace of the American democracy), I've had the great opportunity to advocate for equality and watch as the LGBT movement has swept the nation. I've also seen first-hand how these changes have (and sometimes unfortunately, have not) trickled down to communities around my state, and I've come to understand that the fight for equality is hardly over. | There's not a day that goes by that I don't get asked about lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) civil rights, marriage equality, and how we can move my home state of Pennsylvania forward. As the first openly gay state legislator in the "keystone state" (the birthplace of the American democracy), I've had the great opportunity to advocate for equality and watch as the LGBT movement has swept the nation. I've also seen first-hand how these changes have (and sometimes unfortunately, have not) trickled down to communities around my state, and I've come to understand that the fight for equality is hardly over. |
| The realities of life for an LGBT Pennsylvanian today merit closer attention. While many states in the northeast have been leaders in LGBT rights, Pennsylvania has lagged far behind, akin to a number of states in south and midwest. Before I was elected to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives in 2012, Pennsylvania was the second largest state in the United States to have never elected an "out" state official. | The realities of life for an LGBT Pennsylvanian today merit closer attention. While many states in the northeast have been leaders in LGBT rights, Pennsylvania has lagged far behind, akin to a number of states in south and midwest. Before I was elected to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives in 2012, Pennsylvania was the second largest state in the United States to have never elected an "out" state official. |
| Not only that, but Pennsylvania does not provide a single LGBT civil right. Pennsylvanians may still legally be fired from their job, kicked out their apartment, or denied services at a diner or other business all because they are lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender. There are no protections from discrimination, no protections from hate crimes, no protections from predatory and harmful "reparative" or "conversion therapy" practices, no anti-bulling laws, and of course, no marriage equality. | Not only that, but Pennsylvania does not provide a single LGBT civil right. Pennsylvanians may still legally be fired from their job, kicked out their apartment, or denied services at a diner or other business all because they are lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender. There are no protections from discrimination, no protections from hate crimes, no protections from predatory and harmful "reparative" or "conversion therapy" practices, no anti-bulling laws, and of course, no marriage equality. |
| To many Americans and those overseas, Pennsylvania sticks out like a sore thumb among the progressive changes seen in our northeastern neighbor states. It's also the reason so many other states are watching what happens here. If change can happen here, it will set a model for other places around the country. | To many Americans and those overseas, Pennsylvania sticks out like a sore thumb among the progressive changes seen in our northeastern neighbor states. It's also the reason so many other states are watching what happens here. If change can happen here, it will set a model for other places around the country. |
| But we are beginning to see important successes and critical victories. As civil rights advocates fight for equality, the inequalities and discrimination we face as LGBT Americans have become more visible to the public, leading to greater action and pressure on lawmakers to respond. For many of these glaring omissions in public safety and jurisprudence, there have been efforts for years to make change. For others, the events and momentum of the last several years have proven to be the impetus to spark change, much of which we've seen just over the past several months. | But we are beginning to see important successes and critical victories. As civil rights advocates fight for equality, the inequalities and discrimination we face as LGBT Americans have become more visible to the public, leading to greater action and pressure on lawmakers to respond. For many of these glaring omissions in public safety and jurisprudence, there have been efforts for years to make change. For others, the events and momentum of the last several years have proven to be the impetus to spark change, much of which we've seen just over the past several months. |
| On 9 July, just weeks after the landmark US Supreme Court marriage equality rulings, the American Civil Liberties Union of PA (ACLU) filed a lawsuit in federal court on behalf of 23 plaintiffs seeking to overturn Pennsylvania's ban on same-sex marriage. The case is know as Whitewood v Corbett and will most likely take years to reach a resolution, yet the inevitable demise of the discriminatory Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) should surprise no one. | On 9 July, just weeks after the landmark US Supreme Court marriage equality rulings, the American Civil Liberties Union of PA (ACLU) filed a lawsuit in federal court on behalf of 23 plaintiffs seeking to overturn Pennsylvania's ban on same-sex marriage. The case is know as Whitewood v Corbett and will most likely take years to reach a resolution, yet the inevitable demise of the discriminatory Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) should surprise no one. |
| Unexpectedly, two days after the ACLU filed their lawsuit, our state attorney general, Kathleen Kane, the first woman and the first democrat ever elected to the post in Pennsylvania, refused to mount a defense for DOMA. Kane, echoing the opinion of the US Supreme Court, said: | Unexpectedly, two days after the ACLU filed their lawsuit, our state attorney general, Kathleen Kane, the first woman and the first democrat ever elected to the post in Pennsylvania, refused to mount a defense for DOMA. Kane, echoing the opinion of the US Supreme Court, said: |
| I cannot ethically defend the constitutionality of Pennsylvania's version of DOMA where I believe it to be wholly unconstitutional. | I cannot ethically defend the constitutionality of Pennsylvania's version of DOMA where I believe it to be wholly unconstitutional. |
| While Kane has publicly stated she supports the right of LGBT Pennsylvanian's to marry, her decision not to defend the Commonwealth's DOMA is well-grounded in established law. Kane, however, is not alone in her public support for equality in Pennsylvania. Allyson Schwartz, the stalwart congresswoman and front-runner to defeat our entrenched Republican Governor Tom Corbett next year, is fully supportive of LGBT civil rights. Congresswoman Schwartz famously stood up against the Pennsylvania DOMA as one of just five state senators to do so, in the mid-1990s, long before any state had sanctioned same-sex marriages. Her vote against the now-embattled law was a courageous act of solidarity with Pennsylvania's LGBT community in a time when there were few allies in positions of power. | While Kane has publicly stated she supports the right of LGBT Pennsylvanian's to marry, her decision not to defend the Commonwealth's DOMA is well-grounded in established law. Kane, however, is not alone in her public support for equality in Pennsylvania. Allyson Schwartz, the stalwart congresswoman and front-runner to defeat our entrenched Republican Governor Tom Corbett next year, is fully supportive of LGBT civil rights. Congresswoman Schwartz famously stood up against the Pennsylvania DOMA as one of just five state senators to do so, in the mid-1990s, long before any state had sanctioned same-sex marriages. Her vote against the now-embattled law was a courageous act of solidarity with Pennsylvania's LGBT community in a time when there were few allies in positions of power. |
| Not only is the LGBT civil rights struggle building momentum in the judicial and executive branches, but in the state legislature, I've seen support for LGBT equality thrive. For the first time, Representative Dan Frankel (Democrat from Allegheny County) and Representative Chris Ross' (Republican from Chester County) House Bill 300, the comprehensive LGBT-inclusive nondiscrimination bill has garnered bipartisan support and has more than 90 cosponsors in the House. Similar legislation in the Senate, SB 300, has 25 cosponsors, half the Pennsylvania Senate! This kind of support would have been unheard of only a few years ago. | Not only is the LGBT civil rights struggle building momentum in the judicial and executive branches, but in the state legislature, I've seen support for LGBT equality thrive. For the first time, Representative Dan Frankel (Democrat from Allegheny County) and Representative Chris Ross' (Republican from Chester County) House Bill 300, the comprehensive LGBT-inclusive nondiscrimination bill has garnered bipartisan support and has more than 90 cosponsors in the House. Similar legislation in the Senate, SB 300, has 25 cosponsors, half the Pennsylvania Senate! This kind of support would have been unheard of only a few years ago. |
| Further, a Republican, Representative Dan Truitt (Republican from Chester County) has introduced an LGBT-inclusive anti-bullying bill that would be one of the strongest in the nation. And following the US Supreme Court's equality rulings, fellow Democratic Representative Steve McCarter (Democrat from Montgomery County) and I introduced marriage equality legislation that has already garnered 30 bipartisan cosponsors during the summer recess. I've also announced, along with my colleague Rep. Gerald Mullery (Democrat from Luzerne County), the introduction of legislation to ban anti-gay conversion therapy practices for minors in Pennsylvania (similar to what was recently passed in New Jersey). Each of these pieces of legislation has garnered bipartisan support: a first in Pennsylvania history. | Further, a Republican, Representative Dan Truitt (Republican from Chester County) has introduced an LGBT-inclusive anti-bullying bill that would be one of the strongest in the nation. And following the US Supreme Court's equality rulings, fellow Democratic Representative Steve McCarter (Democrat from Montgomery County) and I introduced marriage equality legislation that has already garnered 30 bipartisan cosponsors during the summer recess. I've also announced, along with my colleague Rep. Gerald Mullery (Democrat from Luzerne County), the introduction of legislation to ban anti-gay conversion therapy practices for minors in Pennsylvania (similar to what was recently passed in New Jersey). Each of these pieces of legislation has garnered bipartisan support: a first in Pennsylvania history. |
| Lastly, it can't go unsaid that one of the many reasons that my hopes for realizing the dream of LGBT equality in Pennsylvania are so high is because of the organizations, both new and old, that are gathering together to make equality a reality. All across the state, Pennsylvanians are working with non-profit and public interest organizations, religious groups, community and neighborhood coalitions, and through their employers in a way that has never before happened. Thanks to hard work and support from groups like Equality Pennsylvania, the ACLU, and the Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund, the prospects for LGBT equality in Pennsylvania have never been brighter. | Lastly, it can't go unsaid that one of the many reasons that my hopes for realizing the dream of LGBT equality in Pennsylvania are so high is because of the organizations, both new and old, that are gathering together to make equality a reality. All across the state, Pennsylvanians are working with non-profit and public interest organizations, religious groups, community and neighborhood coalitions, and through their employers in a way that has never before happened. Thanks to hard work and support from groups like Equality Pennsylvania, the ACLU, and the Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund, the prospects for LGBT equality in Pennsylvania have never been brighter. |
| I hope those living in other states that still do not recognize same-sex marriage and other civil rights for all keep fighting and see the changes that are taking place. | I hope those living in other states that still do not recognize same-sex marriage and other civil rights for all keep fighting and see the changes that are taking place. |
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