Statement by Rea Carey, Executive Director of the National LGBTQ Task Force
(December 6, 2019, Washington, DC) – On the introduction of the Fairness for All Act, National LGBTQ Task Force Executive Director Rea Carey gave this statement:
“The introduction of the Fairness for All Act is an important acknowledgement from religious and conservative leaders that LGBTQ people in America face severe and unfair discrimination, however, it falls dramatically short of the equal protections needed. Given our long history of work to ensure full equality for LGBTQ people and their families in all areas of their lives and under the law, we oppose the Fairness for All Act.
“The National LGBTQ Task Force has been supporting the welcoming church movement for nearly half a century, organizing Christian denominations and institutions that once closed their doors to LGBTQ people to now open their hearts and become advocates for equal protection under the law. Mainline Protestants began this shift in the 1970s and we are glad to see Christian conservatives, Mormons, and others move on their journey to support cultural and legal changes that better protect LGBTQ people.
“The Fairness for All Act, as it is written, does not put LGBTQ people and their families on equal legal footing when it comes to being protected from discrimination. The Fairness for All Act purports to create protections for people in the LGBTQ community, but the exemptions from non-discrimination protections it includes would leave behind the most marginalized people. It creates exemptions that apply to employment, housing, child welfare, and other areas. Additionally, it challenges the scope of existing civil rights protections for women and people of minority faiths. As such, the Task Force will continue to support the more comprehensive protections for LGBTQ people and other marginalized people that are provided by the Equality Act – which was passed by the US House of Representatives earlier this year with bi-partisan support. The Equality Act has the support of over 700 civil rights, social justice, women’s, religious, and other organizations and companies.
“The Task Force remains focused and committed to our on-going work with LGBTQ, Civil Rights, women’s and other organizations to pursue and attain full equality and liberation for LGBTQ people and their families. The Task Force is working to ensure that housing discrimination protections apply to everyone, including women, people from minority faith traditions, people living in poverty, and LGBTQ people. We are working to ensure that the religious exemptions that already exist in civil rights laws are not expanded further. We are working to ensure that every parent who wants to adopt or foster a child doesn’t face barriers to do so. We are working to ensure that all people – especially people living in poverty – can access abortion. We are working to ensure that every public accommodation is open to everyone. We are working to ensure that each of us gets to live free from discrimination of all areas in our lives.”
###end###
The National LGBTQ Task Force advances full freedom, justice and equality for LGBTQ people. We are building a future where everyone can be free to be their entire selves in every aspect of their lives. Today, despite all the progress we’ve made to end discrimination, millions of LGBTQ people face barriers in every aspect of their lives: in housing, employment, healthcare, retirement, and basic human rights. These barriers must go. That’s why the Task Force is training and mobilizing millions of activists across our nation to deliver a world where you can be you. Join us!
Contact: Sarah Massey
Communications Director, National LGBTQ Task Force
202 639-6308