The Struggle for Equality: A Review of the Current Events Involving the Equality Act
Written by Kole Kemple
Graphics by Wendy Lan
For most Americans going to bed on the night of the 26th of June in 2015 was just like any other night, but for others it was much more significant; they were going to bed with the freedom and right to marry whoever they wanted to. Under the Obama administration, same-sex marriage was legalized for American citizens in the summer of 2015. The fact that it took so long to legalize gay marriage in the first place remains a problem within itself, but nonetheless, America’s LGBTQ+ community spent the rest of the summer celebrating their new found freedoms, until they discovered the homophobic limitations that continued to prevail in American society.
Currently, 22 out of the 50 states in America prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identiy, with the other 28 states only having limited protections, or none at all. To combat this issue, the Equality Act was introduced in the early spring of 2019 in Congress by Democratic Representative David Cicilline of Rhode Island. The passing of the Equality Act would provide explicit anti-discrimination laws regarding sexual orietation in all 50 American states. This would include the outlawing of sexual orientation or gender identity based discrimination within the workplace, housing, credit, education, public spaces and services, federally funded programs, and jury service.
The Equality Act was first passed in May of 2019 by the U.S. House of Representatives, but was never officially passed by the U.S. Senate. The Equality Act was reintroduced under the Biden administration in February of 2021 and was once again passed by the U.S. House of Representatives on February 25th, 2021 with a 224-206 vote. Now the Equality Act is on its way to the U.S Senate, where if approved with a super majority (60 votes), it will be sent to President Biden’s desk for the final stamp of approval. President Biden has already endorsed the Equality Act, making it extremely likely that if the Senate passes the bill, the Equality Act will become a U.S Federal law.
In support of the Equality Act, President Biden wrote, “I urge Congress to swiftly pass this historic legislation. Every person should be treated with dignity and respect, and this bill represents a critical step toward ensuring that America lives up to our foundational values of equality and freedom for all."
Apart from political advocates, the Equality Act has also received support from a collection of celebrities and influencers. For example, singer/songwriter Taylor Swift released the song “You Need to Calm Down” in June of 2019 in celebration of LGBTQ+ pride month. Along with the release of her song, Swift urged a Tennessee senator to vote for the passing of the Equality Act, and encouraged her fans to speak out on behalf of the Equality Act to their state senators as well.
“Please, please think about the lives you could change for the better if you were to vote to support the Equality Act in the Senate and prohibit this harsh and unfair discrimination,” Swift wrote in a letter she wrote to Tennessee Senator Lanar Alexander.
Other celebrities like Ariana Grande, Kacey Musgraves, Katy Perry, Jesse Tyler-Ferguson, Ryan Reynolds, and the cast of Queer Eye have also shown their support for the Equality Act. Although celebrities are not legislators, their influence brings the public’s attention towards important issues, and consequently mobilizes the American public in support for momentous policies like the Equality Act.
According to a 2020 Catalyst study, over 22% of LGBTQ+ community members in the workplace have expressed that they have been discriminated against because of their sexuality or gender identity when they have been interviewed for jobs. Moreover, there has been a 32% increase of discrimination among LGBTQ+ people of color in recent years, further showing the racial disparities in the rate of discrimination against the LGBTQ+ community.
The Equality Act, however, would ban this type of behavior along with much more. For instance, public education systems could no longer discriminate against trans gendered students, and fair housing laws would provide equal housing opportunities for members of the LGBTQ+ community.
In order to be passed by the U.S. Sentate, the act needs support from every Democratic Senator as well 10 Republican Senators. While many political pundits claim it is unlikely that 10 Republicans will support the Equality Act, American citizens should continue to show their support by spreading awareness of the Equality Act’s importance through social media, conversations with friends, and even listening to members of the LGBTQ+ community tell their stories and what the Equality Act means to them.
While the fight for equality still has a long way to go, the official passing of the Equality Act by the U.S Senate would allow for a huge, overdue step to be taken in the direction of a truly equal America.