Even as we have been waiting for the results of the presidential election, the U.S. Supreme Court heard a case yesterday that will determine whether taxpayer-funded foster care and adoption agencies—and possibly any provider of government-contracted services—can cite religious beliefs as a reason to discriminate against LGBTQ people and others. Here are some of the arguments made.
We are a week away from the 2020 elections. President Trump’s nominee Amy Coney Barrett has just been seated on the U.S. Supreme Court. A case that the court will be hearing the day after the elections has me as concerned as the elections themselves, for it goes to the heart of how our country treats its children and to LGBTQ people’s right to be treated equally as prospective parents.
Her loss is a loss for our country—yet even as we mourn, we must recommit to the cause of justice that she championed.
More than 1,000 experts and organizations filed nearly 50 briefs with the U.S. Supreme Court yesterday arguing that taxpayer-funded child welfare agencies should not be able to discriminate against LGBTQ people and others by citing religious beliefs. The implications of this case could go far beyond child welfare, however.
The only time I’ve ever been on birth control was when my spouse and I were trying to have a child. This just goes to show the variety of ways that birth control is used—and why the Supreme Court’s recent decision allowing more employers to refuse to cover it is very much a queer issue.
The U.S. Supreme Court surprised many today with a landmark 6-3 ruling, written by Trump appointee Neil Gorsuch, stating that people cannot be fired from their jobs because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Yet last Friday, the Trump administration finalized a rule that says health care anti-discrimination protections don’t cover discrimination based on LGBTQ identities.
The Trump Administration last week filed a brief with the U.S. Supreme Court stating that taxpayer-funded child welfare agencies should be allowed to discriminate against LGBTQ people and others if serving them conflicts with the agency’s religious beliefs. The administration’s position should come as a surprise to exactly no one.
Aimee Stephens, whose civil rights lawsuit was the first case involving transgender civil rights to be heard by the U.S. Supreme Court, died yesterday from kidney disease.
The U.S. Supreme Court today said that it will hear a case on whether taxpayer-funded foster care agencies may discriminate against same-sex couples, thus reducing the number of homes available to children in foster care.
Today, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear three cases that could either take away existing LGBTQ employment protections—or affirm that existing federal law does protect LGBTQ people. This could be the decision that has the most impact on LGBTQ people’s lives—and the lives of our children—in the years to come.
