A Community Deprived–Why the LGBTQ+ Community Deserves Protection Under the Law

Two pride flags via Vox


The LGBTQ+ community consists of many gender identities and sexualities. In recent years the community has made much progress toward obtaining equal rights under the law. However, there are currently no federal laws preventing the discrimination of LGBTQ+ members in areas necessary for daily life such as public restrooms, public schools, their employment, and many other areas.

This lack of protection can lead to many problems affecting members of the LGBTQ+ community, and the lack of protection stems from many reasons, most of which involve hatred and fear. It is vital that this lack of protection changes. Members of the LGBTQ+ community should be protected under the law.

The United States likes to pride itself as being a nation of liberty. However, there remain groups of people that are being oppressed by the fanaticism deeply rooted in many American’s hearts. Radical religion plants a seed of hate in the hearts of many people because the people follow their outdated text over what is truly human. This forces the LGBTQ+ community into a battle for rights that they often lose simply because the opposition confuses their religious freedoms with true law.

What many of the religious populations do not realize is that their religious freedom will not be hindered because all LGBTQ+ non-discrimination laws that have been proposed have a religious worker exemption that allows religious institutions to not hire a person if the religious institution finds that hiring the person is against their religious beliefs.

Another point that is used against the LGBTQ+ community by religious populations that is problematic is the idea that being LGBTQ+ is a choice. This idea is completely discredited by mainstream science. In fact, according to Live Science, genetics plays a huge role in determining the sexuality of a person. This means that the belief that being LGBTQ+ is a choice is both disturbing and false.

In reality religion created this fear of the community without any real basis, even though religion should not play a factor in governmental affairs in the first place. The first amendment clearly states that we have the freedom of religion. Thus the LGBTQ+ community should not be discriminated against solely because a person’s religion finds it problematic.

The implications of not having laws protecting the LGBTQ+ community from discrimination are worrisome and numerous. Many members of the community can be fired for being who they are, and they can also be rejected from using the bathroom of the correct gender they identify as.

It is perfectly legal for a child to be discriminated against because the child is a member of the LGBTQ+ community because there are no laws ensuring that people who identify as LGBTQ+ are not discriminated against.

Due to the fact there are no federal laws protecting the community, many members face persecution in their daily lives because they are not accepted. If there were federal laws in place the people who identify as LGBTQ+ would face less persecution due and their entire community would be more accepted by people if federal law reflected that they were an equal class.

According to an article by Luke Malone entitled “Transgender Suicide Attempt Rates Are Staggering,” forty-one percent of people who identify as transgender attempt suicide. These numbers exemplify a problem deeply rooted in our society. These problems can be solved through the enactment of laws protecting the LGBTQ+ community. The laws to protect those identifying as LGBTQ+ can be passed once humans realize that all people,no matter what they identify as, deserve the basic right to life that can only be obtained by lowering the suicide rates of the LGBTQ+ community.

 

Image via Give A Damn Campaign
Image via Give A Damn Campaign

 

Many people who stand against the LGBTQ+ non-discrimination laws do so because they believe passing the laws would be an attack on state and local rights. However, the rights of individuals should not be left in the hands of just a few people to decide. Rights are for everyone; they are not supposed to be handed out as certain people please. If a government is allowed to hand out rights as it pleases this creates an environment in which the government can abuse its power, and the idea of an oppressive government is exactly what many who do not want anti-discrimination fear most.


In order for these people to help ensure that an oppressive government is never in power they must make giving people basic rights they are entitled to an utmost priority. As we can see through the Civil Rights Act, federal laws can be successful in giving people rights they should have. Though as we saw from the push-back to the Civil Rights Act, we can be sure that there will be a great amount of push-back from people who do not want to see people have the same rights as they do. This push-back would be quite problematic for many members of the LGBTQ+ community. If the humans who have a decent heart and follow the reality that empathy is the most valuable emotion stand against the push-back, they will defeat the oppressors who seek to ensure they stand at the top of the social food chain.

Federal laws protecting the LGBTQ+ community would help ensure that all people who identify as LGBTQ+ would have basic access to public accommodations, a guarantee they can’t be fired for being who they are, and removed from a school for being who they are. Humans will come to the conclusion that these laws are necessary. They need to realize the great problem caused by inequality that the suicide rates of the LGBTQ+ community point out. It is quite obvious that religion is not intended to be involved with governmental affairs, and when it is involved religion is quite problematic. One can assess that laws protecting the rights of the LGBTQ+ community are necessary.

Featured Image via North Star

Brett Banks is a native Texan majoring in Political Science. His interest in politics started when he was very young and has no end in sight. Brett is a fire breathing Progressive. As an advocate and member of the LGBTQ+ community he has aspirations to one day see equality for all. Follow him @brettbanks81 on twitter or find him on other social media.