US House Rep Susan Davis' office issued the following:
Rep. Susan Davis Joins in Introducing the Equality Act
Bill includes Davis Provision on Jury Service
Washington, March 14, 2019
U.S. Rep. Susan Davis (CA-53) joined nearly 240 House
members in proudly introducing the Equality Act (H.R. 5). This historic
legislation says, unequivocally, that LGBTQ Americans deserve the full
protections guaranteed by the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964. The
Equality Act extends anti-discrimination protections to LGBTQ Americans
with regard to employment, education, access to credit, jury service,
federal funding, housing, and public accommodations. The bill also
includes Davis’s legislation, the Juror Non-Discrimination Act.
"Equal treatment under the law is a hallmark of our nation
and no American should ever feel the humiliation of discrimination,"
said Rep. Davis, a member of the Congressional LGBT Equality Caucus.
"The Equality Act will guarantee that LGBTQ Americans cannot be
discriminated against because of who they are or whom they love."
Despite having the right to marry, fifty percent of the
national LGBTQ population lives in states that still have no explicit
non-discrimination protections in other areas of daily life. In most
states, a same-sex couple can get married one day and be legally denied
service at a restaurant, fired from their jobs, or evicted from their
apartment the next.
In some areas, federal law prohibiting sex discrimination
has already been properly interpreted by federal courts and
administrative agencies to include discrimination on the basis of sexual
orientation or gender identity. The Equality Act affirms these
interpretations of existing law and makes the prohibition against
discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity
explicit, in order to provide greater clarity to members of the public,
employers, schools, businesses, and others. In areas where sex
discrimination is not already prohibited, the bill amends existing law
to bar discrimination on the basis of sex, as well as sexual orientation
and gender identity.
The Equality Act has the bipartisan support of Members of Congress, the strong support of the business community, and the overwhelming support of the American people – with more than 7 in 10 supporting the Equality Act.
