Do you live in one of the 29 states where your friends could be fired just for being gay?
Posted: August 22nd, 2011 | Author: Dinah | 4 Comments »Ten bucks says you caught this question today (and every other Monday ever): “What’d you do this weekend?” Innocent enough, right? If you’re like me, all you’ve got to talk about are naps, flea markets, maybe catching a show if my friends and I were feeling adventurous. Plus I’d probably mention spending time with my boo.
And therein lies the problem. My boo is a lady, too.
In 30 states, your friends could be fired on the spot, just for being gay. While employment laws protect workers from discrimination on the basis of common biases like race, gender, and religion, the law is dangerously silent on the matter of sexual orientation and gender identity. That means my boss could fire me for answering a simple question about my personal life honestly. Your friend could get canned for having a photo of their spouse on their desk if a manager happens to not like gay people. You could be passed over for a job in the first instance, just because the recruiter thought you were gay.
There’s no Federal law in place to protect gay and trans workers, so here’s what the legal landscape looks like at a glance on the state-wide level:
The Freedom Index: Freedom to Work
More info and the breakdown of states where your friends can be fired for being gay after the jump.
If you can’t make out the little letters in that screencap, here are the states where your friends are safe: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, DC, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin.
(Unless you have a trans friend, in which case DE, MD, MA, NH, NY, and WI are danger zones too.)
Employment is an incredibly touchy issue these days all around, and those of us lucky to have a job that pays the bills know exactly how important it is to keep a steady paycheck. Can you imagine having to hide who you are to ensure you can make ends meet? Does being fired for loving who you love sound fair to you?
Unfortunately (and shockingly, to many), you live in a world where even in America, your friends are at risk of losing their jobs for being gay. It’s time to spread the word and start making things better.
Take Action: Click through to the Freedom Index Map to find out what employment protections are like in your state, and share the page so all your friends can be in the know too. The more people understand how important it is to fix this injustice, the faster we can achieve full legal freedoms.
(Legal Source: Movement Advancement Project)
ETA: We had some counting trouble on account of DC not being a state; the correct number is 29 states without employment protections. Not really any less unacceptable in our book.
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Why aren’t you up to date? Missouri and Kansas have laws against firing for being gay. St. L and KC have laws in place against it in the absence of state law.