Transgenders Urge Congress To Fight Discrimination
June 12th, 2008 by Babe
Participants in a March 14 lobby day organized by the Washington-based National Center for Trans-gender Equality said they hoped to put aside the sharp disagreements that surfaced last year over a decision by House Democratic leaders to remove transgender protections from the Employment Non-Discrimination Act.
“Our lobbying will educate lawmakers about our lives, who we are and why we are working hard to end discrimination against all people but especially people who face from discrimination because of their gender identity,” said Mara Keisling, the Center’s executive director.
In addition to pushing for a trans-inclusive version of ENDA, the transgender activists said they called on the Senate to pass a hate crimes bill that also includes transgender protections. Both the House and Senate passed such a bill last year in different forms. It died when the House rejected the Senate’s version, which was attached to a defense authorization measure.
The trans activists said they also called on Congress to repeal or significantly amend the Real ID Act of 2005, a controversial anti-terrorism measure that requires states to turn driver’s licenses into a national form of identification. Information such as a person’s gender, date of birth and photograph would have to be stored by states in electronic database files that could not be changed under an early set of rules proposed by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
Civil liberties groups joined transgender activists in predicting the law and proposed rules would lead to legal liability and privacy violations for transgender persons who change their gender identities.
Technorati Tags: Congress, Trans-gender Equality, transgender
Posted in In The News, Making A Difference