Protection for Transgendered People Removed from ENDA

Rarely does my e-mail in box contain potential story ideas for Associated Content or anywhere else. In fact, I probably would have remained ignorant of the Employment Non-Discrimination act. But I must have been on an e-mail list somewhere and found an mp3 file from a blog called tranywreck.com.

Now the Employment Non-Discrimination act has noble goals that were to prevent discrimination in hiring practices based on anyone one's gender, sexual orientation or being transgendered. Unfortunately, the provisions for protecting the rights of transgendered individuals have been removed from the act in an attempt to get it passed.

Meridian Magazine, an unofficial publication of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, complained about how the religious exemption was used in ENDA and thought it should be broader. Meridian Magazine is socially conservative and the stance it has taken is not unexpected. The democratic senators, however, have removed protections from transgendered individuals in order to get ENDA passed, but is this really a good form of incrementalism?

While dropping protections from transgendered people from ENDA may cause the bill to pass and only annoy a small group of democratic constituents will be alienated by the decision, I would have more respect for the democrats and the few Republicans who support the ENDA legislation who stood up on principle and said the rights of everyone should be protected, not just those who have a large enough voting block to effect the rights of politicians.

Dropping transgendered protections from Enda just because they are the least numerous group in the GLBT community shows that the democrats responsible for this action do not care what one small minority in this umbrella group actually thinks. For the most part, we know republicans do not because the vast majority are social conservatives or have a large socially conservative base back home they need to keep happy.

The e-mail I received wanted me to write my congressman, I do not believe this sort of action is appropriate and is extremely tacky when radio talk show hosts do it, but ENDA must be returned to its original form or scrapped in order to make a moral stand unless there is some promise from the democratic party that the full rights for all people needed, including a broader (but not too broad) exemption for religious organizations which is the one criticism the Meridian got right, should be added to it.