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Loading ...NY Senate urged to pass trans rights bill
04.22.2009 1:52pm EDT
(Albany, New York) The New York Assembly has voted to amend the state’s human rights law to include anti-discrimination protections based upon gender identity and expression.
The bill, known as the Gender Expression Non-Discrimination Act or GENDA, bans discrimination against transgender people in housing, employment, credit, public accommodations, and other areas of everyday life.According to a March 2008 Global Strategy poll, 78 percent of registered New York voters support civil rights for transgendered New Yorkers.
The measure encountered little difficulty in the Assembly on Tuesday, but it now moves on the the Senate where its future is less certain.
The same bill was approved by the Assembly last year but never came to a vote in the Senate.
“Now it is time for the State Senate to do what 78 percent of New York voters know is right: end discrimination against transgender New Yorkers once and for all by passing GENDA in the Senate and making it law in New York State,” said Empire State Pride Agenda Executive Director Alan Van Capelle in a statement.
“We currently lag behind the 13 states and over 96 localities across the U.S. that already prohibit discrimination based on gender identity and expression. The time is now for us to join this growing list. Transgender New Yorkers can’t—and shouldn’t have to—wait any longer.”
NY Gov. David Paterson (D) has said he will sign the bill if the Senate passes it.
In New York State, Albany, Buffalo, Ithaca, New York City, Rochester, Rhinebeck and Suffolk and Tompkins Counties have ordinances protecting trans citizens.
In the private sector, 153 Fortune 500 companies, including 26 based in New York, have policies in place that protect their transgender employees.
just another one
The Genda bill has been floating around for years and been voted on way before last years marriage bill was voted on. The assembly has passed it before but the Senate held it up. ESPA knows exactly what they are doing Genda has more support than any of the the LGBT bills up in albany.
Westchester county in NY also has a gender protection in place. As of two weeks ago.
Well said, Casey.
I’ve read the comments on various stories and opinion pieces on this site over several months and have noticed that a number of gay people discriminate against trans people. This type of legislation is absolutely necessary for the health and well-being of the WHOLE nation, not just small parts of it. Would any of you be railing against this same type of legislation if the group in question were Jews, blacks, or just run-of-the-mill gays and lesbians? These comments highlight a particular kind of hypocrisy that is really the biggest problem within the gay/queer community: infighting. As long as we continue to choose to segregate ourselves by our “type” of queerness, we as a community will never make progressive steps in society, and none of us will ultimately be treated with any semblance of equality.
You may deserve the right to marry, but what about my right to be employed, use public bathrooms, or to simply say, “Yeah. This is who and what I am”? Or do I not deserve those rights because I’m not a “real” gay?
oh my god. i can’t believe some of you people. yeah, it sucks that same sex marriage isn’t legal in most places… BUT…. this actually affects trans peoples’ ability to make a living and live without being held back in every aspect of their lives because of their gender identity. acting like same sex marriage is something we need to focus on first when topics like this one can literally be the difference between life or death in some cases is absurd. if anything, giving trans people basic human rights should be wayyy ahead of marriage rights on any lgbt priority list. but you all won’t agree with me here, because whether or not YOU can get a legally recognized marriage is more important to you than whether or not a transwoman is forced to resort to prostitution just because there are no laws keeping employers from discrmination against her.. or whether or not yet another transgender kid commits suicide because they can’t see anything bright in their future. yeah. just keep thinking about your own little issues while some of your other queer brothers and sisters barely have the right to exist in the world. so much for unity.
Is this a win or a loss?
This is a stupid waste of time. The reason gays don’t progress quickly is they do not understand what political capital is. Why in the world would you push the Senate to pass a trans bill when the Governor just introduced legislation for marriage? This makes me think that the Empire State Pride Agenda really has no idea what they are doing.
I agree with RM – damn sure about time.
Its about time!