Equality Interrupted
EHEA bill still stalled in Ohio legislature
By Erin Norris |
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The past few years have brought significant progress to Ohio's GLBT equality movement. Colleges such as The Ohio State University began offering domestic partnership benefits, a growing number of public and private businesses - including Columbus City Schools - have updated their anti-discrimination charters, and advocacy groups are steadily gaining public support. Columbus has continued to flourish as one of the nation's largest and most influential GLBT communities and, as a cultural hub of the Midwest, the city has fostered an understanding and acceptance of diversity.
Still, there exists no actual legal protection for citizens of the GLBT community from employment-based discrimination.
September 15, 2009 marked an inspiring victory for Ohio's GLBT advocates when House Bill 176, more commonly known as the Equal Housing and Employment Act (EHEA), passed in the state House of Representatives. The legislation, which would ban employment and housing-based discrimination toward gay, lesbian, and transgender citizens, was approved in a 56-39 vote. Nearly eight months later, it has yet to see the floor of the Senate, but the advocacy groups and political leaders that support the bill refuse to give up.
While the EHEA is just the latest of several pieces of legislation that have been introduced, it is the first to have passed through either side of the bicameral system. The bill was co-sponsored by 27 state representatives: most notably Representatives Dan Stewart and Ross McGreggor, long-time equality advocates who succeeded in garnering bipartisan support. Setting the precedent in the House was difficult, but the biggest struggle has been drawing the attention of the Senate, where it has yet to be put up for a vote in the second committee.
Senate Democrats are urging president Bill Harris to schedule hearings for the bill, and advocacy groups have encouraged citizens to write his office. This has been ineffective so far, but many remain optimistic. Harris spokeswoman Maggie Ostrowski said that while it is not unusual for the bill to not have a hearing yet, "it is fair to say that Senator Harris does have some concerns with House Bill 176."
She asserts that some employers see the bill as it stands as adequate, considering many have chosen to include a sexual orientation specification in their own discrimination policies to protect themselves from potential lawsuits.
"Employers may be fearful that the EHEA could increase the chances of liability in frivolous litigation," she said.
"In their view, certain vexatious litigants, who may have been fired legitimately for poor job performance, could take advantage of being defined as a 'protected class,' and build a frivolous case, which would increase costs for employers to defend against, regardless of the eventual outcome of the case," Ostrowski continued.
"Senator Harris tends to believe that employers should be able to assess their own risk for litigation and make their own choices as they do under current law."
Sue Doerfer, the executive director of Equality Ohio, remains optimistic that the bill will resurface, but stresses the importance of bipartisan support, stating, "I think the main reason it passed in the House was due to the efforts of [Representative] Dan Stewart. He did a lot of work educating other house members on the issues."
Already, 21 states and 140 counties, including 16 Ohio counties, have enacted similar legislation, but there remains no legal protection from housing or employment-based discrimination on a statewide or nationwide basis.
What has proven to be the most controversial aspect of the bill is the inclusion of "gender identity" alongside sexual orientation. Opponents have argued that this alters the definition of federally established anti-discrimination characteristics, which are meant to protect "unchangeable" identifications such as race or gender. This was, ironically, a major fighting point for Christian opposition groups, which are protected under the absolutely changeable "religious affiliation" clause in current civil rights law.
Opponents have also argued that anti-discrimination laws of this caliber are unnecessary, stating that most private businesses have already banned discrimination based on sexual orientation and identity.
Chris Long, of the Ohio Christian Alliance, began his House testimony with this statement:
"This bill seeks to provide a solution to a problem that doesn't exist. There is no evidence of endemic discrimination against individuals seeking employment in Ohio on the basis of sexual orientation," adding that the legislation would, "designate those living homosexual, bisexual, or cross-dressing lifestyles as a protected class."
Karla Rothan, executive director of Stonewall Columbus, the North High Street center that serves the Central Ohio GLBT community, argues otherwise.
"Every week the center receives calls from community members who feel that they have been fired from their jobs or denied housing for being GLBT," she said. "If they are in the city of Columbus we can send them to the Community Relations Commission of the city and often times, that entity can act as a mediator in these cases. Unfortunately, within many other counties and cities in the state of Ohio there is no help for those individuals who feel they have lost their job or apartment because of their sexual orientation or gender identity."
Stressing the importance of education on the matter, Rothan cited a recent poll that indicated a majority of Ohioans did not know it was legal to fire someone based on sexual orientation.
The general consensus among proponents of the bill has been that it is ultimately irrelevant whether or not specific cases of discrimination continue to arise, and that the purpose of the bill is simply to establish a legal precedent that protects all citizens.
"This is not 'special rights' or 'special privileges,'" Representative Stewart stated in his testimony. "It's about equitable treatment based on the same rights afforded all citizens in Ohio."
Originally Published: June 1, 2010
