This is a big day in the fight for LGBTQ equality, friends.

Today the United States Supreme Court hears oral argument in three historic cases arguing that LGBTQ people should be protected from employment discrimination under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination based on sex. 

Nowhere in the country is the need for LGBTQ employment protections greater than in the South, where one-third of all LGBTQ Americans live. The fact is that even though a majority of Southerners – including a majority in every state – support LGBTQ protections, no Southern state has passed explicit, comprehensive protections. Instead, legislation continues to stall out in Southern state legislatures due to the political powerlessness that LGBTQ people experience in our region.

Federal protections are the most effective and efficient way to ensure employment protections for LGBTQ Americans who live in states without these protections, including the entire South. This is exactly why we require action from the U.S. Supreme Court. And it’s why we’re so grateful to these courageous plaintiffs and their legal teams for leading on this critical litigation.

We want the plaintiffs in these three historic cases – Aimee Stephens in Michigan, Don Zarda’s sister Melissa in Missouri and former partner Bill Moore in Texas, and Gerald Bostock in Georgia – to know that people all across the South have their back. Join us in standing with these brave plaintiffs and their incredible legal teams as they prepare to walk into the Supreme Court chambers this morning. 

Can you sign our card thanking these plaintiffs and their legal teams, including private counsel and the ACLU? Click here to add your name.

The cases being heard today couldn’t be more important. Unfortunately, the incidents that prompted the litigation speak to experiences familiar to too many LGBTQ Americans. Studies show that one-quarter of LGBTQ employees nationwide have experienced workplace discrimination in the past five years, and nearly one-half have not shared their LGBTQ identity with their coworkers or employers. Transgender people are unemployed at three times higher than the national average. 

In 2019, it pains me to read these statistics, and addressing those disparities is just one reason these cases are so crucial. A ruling affirming protections for LGBTQ people would be a long overdue step toward justice, fueling the work ahead to build a country and a South where LGBTQ people are equal in every area of life. 

Join us in standing with the plaintiffs and legal teams who are fighting on behalf of all of us at the Supreme Court today. Click here to sign our card saying thank you. 

Onward,
Jasmine Beach-Ferrara
Campaign for Southern Equality