LGBT Community Split on ENDA Strategy

What once appeared as if it could be a major victory for the LGBT community is instead becoming a major wedge issue. The exclusion of transgender people from the version of the bill that will likely be voted on later this week has caused LGBT activist groups to chose sides and perhaps burn some bridges. From 365gay.com.

The move to remove gender identity from the bill infuriated a large number of rights groups and several committee Democrats, including presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich refused to support the measure without the inclusion of protections for trans people.

Following the vote Rep. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) proposed an amendment that would reinstate gender identity and secured the support of House leadership to introduce it when ENDA reaches the floor. (story)

Tuesday, however, it appeared there are not the votes to pass an all inclusive version of ENDA and in an open letter to members of Congress, HRC, the NAACP, the National Education Association, the National Employment Lawyers Association, the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, the American Federation of State, County, Municipal Employees and a number of other groups said they would support ENDA without gender identity.

The letter says that it is "beyond dispute that transgender employees are particularly in need of those protections. They face far more pervasive and severe bias in the workplace and society as a whole."

But it goes on to say: "As civil rights organizations, however, we are no strangers to painful compromise in the quest for equal protection of the law for all Americans. From the Civil Rights Act of 1957 through the almost-passed District of Columbia House Voting Rights Act of 2007, legislative progress in the area of civil and human rights has almost always been incremental in nature. With each significant step toward progress, the civil rights community has also faced difficult and sometimes even agonizing tradeoffs. We have always recognized, however, that each legislative breakthrough has paved the way for additional progress in the future.

"With respect to ENDA, we take the same view.

I am on record here as agreeing with the above position, a belief I have not changed.

I have seen the opinion offered that, since there appears to be no chance that President Bush would sign this bill with or without the transgender provision, they might as well include it to make a statment of solidarity.

While I understand that logic, I have a hard time accepting what to me would be an exercise if futility. If there is a chance of getting something passed, do it. If not, work harder and lobby longer until there is enough support to pass it.

That's what I've heard as the reasoning for withdrawing the transgender provision from ENDA.

If congressional and LGBT activist leadership have done this for no legal benefit, I believe they not only won't have moved LGBT equality forward, the division caused within the community will have set it back.