Holder Announces Historic Step Toward Ending LGBTQ Discrimination

WASHINGTON, DC, December 18, 2014 ―Today, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder announced a new Justice Department policy that clarifies that existing federal workplace discrimination law includes protections for transgender people.

“The interpretation of sex-based discrimination in many contexts hinges on the way that DOJ and other federal agencies interpret sex discrimination under Title VII.  Building on the groundwork laid by the EEOC’s landmark Macy decision, this historic action is another step toward ensuring that all LGBTQ people have legal protections from discrimination in the workplace. We applaud the Attorney General for clarifying that workplace discrimination law includes protection on the basis of gender identity,” said Rea Carey, National LGBTQ Task Force Executive Director.

For decades, the National LGBTQ Task Force has been advocating for strong LGBTQ protections. The organization was instrumental in the introduction of the first comprehensive nondiscrimination bill in Congress by the legendary Bella Abzug; continued to push hard for more protections in the states, through the courts, and through important agency rulings such as the EEOC’s Macy ruling; advocated for executive actions to provide more protections for both federal employees and the employees of federal contractors, and will continue to push for federal employment non-discrimination legislation. 

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