LGBTQ elders get specific inclusion in passage of Equality Act

Last week, the U.S. House passed the Equality Act, the LGBTQ rights bill prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity in areas that include employment, housing, education, public accommodations and more. For many, it’s legislation that’s long overdue.

“The LGBTQ community has waited long enough,” Rep. David Cicilline, D-R.I., said on the House floor. “The time has come to extend the blessings of liberty and equality to all Americans, regardless of who they are or who they love.”

Earlier this month, President Joe Biden also repeated his support of the bill, saying that “full equality has been denied to LGBTQ+ Americans and their families for far too long. Despite the extraordinary progress the LGBTQ+ community has made to secure their basic civil rights, discrimination is still rampant in many areas of our society. The Equality Act provides long overdue federal civil rights protections on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity, locking in critical safeguards in our housing, education, public services, and lending systems — and codifying the courage and resilience of the LGBTQ+ movement into enduring law.”

The bill amends language in the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to include sexual orientation and gender identity, and has been introduced by Cicilline every year since 2015. It first passed the house in 2019 but failed to receive a hearing in the then Republican-controlled Senate. The bill also points to housing and poverty as areas of specific concern for elder members of the LGBTQ community that need to addressed through this kind of anti-discriminatory legislation.

Aaron Tax is the director of advocacy at SAGE, a national advocacy and services organization providing support and resources to LGBTQ elders since 1978. Tax focuses on making federal, state and local LGBTQ legislation aging-inclusive and aging legislation Lgbtq-inclusive. He took some time to share his perspective on the Equality Act and its impact for LGBTQ elders. (This email interview has been edited for length and clarity.)

Q:

The Equality Act — legislation that amends current civil rights law by including language that prohibits the discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity — was recently reintroduced and passed in the U.S. House of Representatives. What have been some of your initial thoughts and reactions to the reintroduction of this legislation?

A:

The reintroduction and (Thursday’s) vote brings us closer to a time when LGBT elders will be protected from discrimination in their everyday lives, wherever they live in the nation.

Q:

What are some of the reasons why it’s been so difficult to get a comprehensive, federal law passed that protects the LGBTQ community from discrimination?

A:

I think that Congress needs to catch up with the American people. The Equality Act has broad and deep support across lines of political party, demographics and geography. Public support is at an all-time high, with 72 percent of Americans saying they favor LGBTQ nondiscrimination protections, including 61 percent of Republicans and a majority in every state in the country.

Q:

Last year, in the Supreme Court case of “Bostock v. Clayton County,” the court ruled that employment discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity are considered forms of sex discrimination. Subsequently, President Biden signed an executive order instructing agencies to interpret that ruling to not only apply to employment but other areas of civil rights law that prohibit sexual discrimination, including education, housing, health care and more. In this case, can you talk a bit about why the Equality Act is still necessary, despite the Biden administration’s instructions?

A:

Despite the decision, critical gaps remain in federal nondiscrimination law. The LGBTQ community remains unprotected in credit, lending, public spaces and in health care settings. The Equality Act would codify the Supreme Court ruling by listing sexual orientation and gender identity as prohibited grounds of employment discrimination and would clarify that other federal laws barring sex discrimination, such as the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, also prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity.

Q:

I noticed a few sections in the Equality Act that seem to address LGBTQ elders specifically (i.e. housing and the poverty rate for older women in same-sex couples). Can you talk a little bit about what some of those issues are and why they’re unique to older members of the LGBTQ community? And, what kind of difference will the passing of this legislation make for LGBTQ elders specifically?

A:

In addition to needing access to housing, long-term care and health care, (LGBTQ) elders rely on federal resources and services for everyday needs, such as food and social interaction. They should be able to seek out and access these services without fear of discrimination. Enacting the Equality Act would make sure that every (LGBTQ) older person in every state in this country is protected from discrimination.

Q:

What’s your response to the arguments made by people like Sen. Mitt Romney, R-utah, who reportedly said through a spokesperson that he can’t support the Equality Act because it’s missing “strong religious liberty protections”?

A:

The Equality Act in no way impacts existing protections for people of faith. It’s important to note that (LGBTQ) older people themselves come from all faiths and people of all faiths support the Equality Act.