Supreme Court Decision Marks Massive Civil Rights Victory

Some truly happy news for your Monday: In a landmark decision, the Supreme Court has ruled that the protection provided by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the federal statue that prohibits sex discrimination in employment, also applies to instances involving LGBTQ employees. This statutory interpretation now means that for the first time, firing someone for being LGBTQ is a violation of federal law.

The 6-3 majority opinion was authored by Justice Neil Gorsuch, one of President Trump’s higher court appointees, and passed with Chief Justice John Roberts and Gorsuch siding with justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Stephen Breyer.

“In Title VII, Congress adopted broad language making it illegal for an employer to rely on an employee’s sex when deciding to fire that employee,” wrote Gorsuch in the majority opinion. “We do not hesitate to recognize today a necessary consequence of that legislative choice: An employer who fires an individual merely for being gay or transgender defies the law.”

Read the full opinion here. Also: a reminder that pride was effectively created by black trans women, and any celebration of pride must inherently include protecting and supporting black trans livelihood. Visit this article by Vice for a list of organizations that support black trans people.