Policies and Youthful Members of the LGBT Community

LGBT Policies 3

Policies and Youthful Members of the LGBT Community

Arlene Schwenke

Northwest Nazarene University

Abstract

Inequality in America has been a political issue for decades. Federal statues on civil rights specifically address discrimination based on race, color, sex, religion, national origin, and individuals with disabilities however; they do not openly include sexual orientation or gender identity. Over the years, laws protecting members of the LGBT community from discrimination have been enacted, but primarily at the local level. Members of the LGBT community are consistently being denied basic rights, the same basic rights that other Americans are able to enjoy.

The lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transsexual (LGBT) rights movement developed prior to World War Two. The LGBT communities were seeking social acceptance and equality. However, most Americans would say that it developed after the Stonewall Riot in June of 1969 in New York City. The Stonewall Inn Riots marked the movement for the civil rights of the LGBT. Within two years of the riots in almost every major city across the United States, LGBT right groups had been formed. (The Leadership Conference, 2009)

Equality in America is valued and is articulated in our Constitution and the struggle for equal rights is a quandary that has helped shape our society into what it is today. With each passing year the damage discrimination inflicts has become more evident the. With an increasing number of Americans coming to realize that the need for equality is more apparent now than ever, we are narrowing the gap between equality and inequality and it is a given that equal rights will apply to all, regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity (Polis, 2013).

School across our nation should be a place of equal learning opportunities, social growth, and prepare all youth for the challenges of an ever-changing world (Polis, 2013). Nationally there are more than 55 million students in primary and secondary schools across America and they all are protected against discrimination or intimidation based on their race, color, sex, national origin, and level of ability (Hannah, 2011), yet there remains no laws or standardized anti-bullying or anti-harassment that protects LGBT students (Hannah, 2011). Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, and national origin in regards to federally funded programs and activities within schools; Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, prohibits discrimination based on sex in regards to any federally funded education program; Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, both prohibit discrimination based on ability regardless if they receive federal grant money. However, there has been little advancement to include protections for LGBT students. (Hannah, 2011) There are only ten states that have included in their own states constitution that have added protection against bullying and harassment based on sexual orientation or gender identify (California, Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Minnesota, New Jersey, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington; and The District of Columbia).

Federal statues on civil rights specifically address discrimination based on race, color, sex, religion, national origin, and individuals with disabilities; they do not openly include sexual orientation or gender identity. When students of the LGBT community are discriminated against, harassed, bullied, intimidated, or even physically attacked they have limited legal recourse to pursue any type of action to be taken and it deprives the student of equal educational opportunities. Jared Polis, a Congressman from Colorado recently introduced the “Student Non-Discrimination Act” (SNDA). The SNDA would institute a comprehensive Federal ban of discriminating against students of the LGBT community in public schools. It would also provide LGBT student the same protection as other students to ensure that all students would have access to a public education in a safe environment. The SNDA would also authorize federal departments and agencies to withdraw federal grant money in order to enforce the rules and regulation of the SNDA and would allow individuals and a family to pursue judicial proceeding for such discrimination is necessary.

Over the years, laws protecting members of the LGBT community from discrimination have been enacted, but primarily at the local level. By 1999 only 11 states had such laws (The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 2012). Conservative religious groups have often held a strong opposition to such laws and have been strong advocates against passing any laws that would violate their religious rights such as the LGBT community. According to a recent research conducted by Gallup Politics, Idaho has been identified as the seventh most conservative state. (Hickey, 2013) With the majority of the states government and policy makers being conservative, change, acceptance and equality for members of the LGBT community have been slow. Even the Idaho Human Rights Act, 67-5909 of the Idaho State Code offers no protection for members of the LGBT community and the conservative lawmakers have repeatedly resisted efforts to include them. (Turhune, 2014) (Statues, 1969)

Just recently an interview conducted by Travis Gettys from The Raw Story, Idaho Republican Lynn Luker stated that he cannot think of a time when anyone in Idaho was forced to render aid to a gay, lesbian or transgender person against their will if they felt it violated their own religious rights. According to the Idaho Free Exercise of Religion Act (73-402) a person could exercise their religious rights even if they clearly violated the constitutional rights of someone else. Just this year, Luker introduced House Bill 426 that would allow someone who holds a professional or occupational license, this would include public school teachers to be able to refuse services to anyone who offends their religious beliefs, such as members of the LGBT community and can do so without the fear of the state revoking their license. (Serwer, 2014) (Statues, 1969)

I believe that there are citizens across our country that are trying to use their religious beliefs and protection of these beliefs to hide behind so they can discriminate against anyone who does not share the same sexual orientation beliefs as they do, such as LGBT individuals. America is suppose to be the land of the free, a place where we as citizens have the freedom to make choices. One can always argue that by granting someone the freedom and the right to make their own choices could violate the right and freedom of someone else. There have been so many amendments to the Constitution of the United States, such as making slavery illegal, granting females the right to vote, granting the right for interracial marriages; and the right for a female to have an abortion. I don’t believe you can have it both ways. We should not grant freedom of choice to certain populations in our country and deny other populations the same basic rights.

It has been deemed unconstitutional to discriminate against anyone based on sex, age, religion, race, or national origin, so one has to ask why it would be constitutional to discriminate against someone based on their sexual orientation. Even though people are trying to justify discrimination with religious beliefs, millions of people across our nation are seeing that discrimination is simply wrong, plain and simple.

References

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