Opponents of the Indiana Religious Freedom Restoration Act march outside Lucas Oil Stadium, site of the NCAA Final Four, in Indianapolis on April 4, 2015. SOURCE: AP/Doug McSchooler
Washington, D.C. — Despite historic progress on marriage equality over the past decade, lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender, or LGBT, individuals still lack basic, enumerated protections from discrimination in several areas of life, from the workplace to the public marketplace. However, new Generation Progress polling, conducted by Hart Research and released today in a Center for American Progress column reveals widespread support among Millennials for federal, comprehensive LGBT nondiscrimination legislation.
According to the poll, 65 percent of Millennials support comprehensive nondiscrimination protections. Furthermore, 50 percent of Millennials strongly support such legislation, answering between 8 and 10 on a 0-to-10 scale, with 5 as neutral or undecided. Majority support extends to every region of the country, as well as to rural, urban, and suburban areas. Among voters who supported President Barack Obama in 2012, comprehensive LGBT nondiscrimination protections maintain the highest level of strong support of all issues polled.
“While the events surrounding Indiana’s religious liberty law were a stark reminder that LGBT Americans can be legally discriminated against, it is far from the only state in the nation where that is possible,” said Laura E. Durso, Director of CAP’s LGBT Research and Communication Project. “Even with the purported fixes to the Indiana law signed late last week, it is still legal to deny housing, employment, and services to LGBT Americans based solely on their sexual orientation and gender identity in roughly 30 states—Indiana included. This poll shows that a huge majority of the next generation of leaders and voters believe that nondiscrimination protections for LGBT Americans should be the law of the land throughout the country.”
Recent events in states such as Indiana demonstrate the need for immediate federal action to combat confusion and to provide clear and uniform nationwide protections. In 2014, Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR) announced his intention to introduce legislation that would provide comprehensive nondiscrimination protections for LGBT people and their families, and the Center for American Progress released a report calling for comprehensive nondiscrimination protections at the state and federal levels.
Click here to read the column.
Related resources:
Indiana’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act Is Bad for Business by Sarah McBride and Laura E. Durso
Infographic: Legally Married and Legally Fired by Sarah McBride
Fact Sheets: Comprehensive Nondiscrimination Protections by Sarah McBride, Laura E. Durso, Sharita Gruberg, and Hannah Hussey
We the People: Why Congress and U.S. States Must Pass Comprehensive LGBT Nondiscrimination Protections by Sarah McBride, Laura E. Durso, Hannah Hussey, Sharita Gruberg, and Bishop Gene Robinson
Source: www.americanprogress.org
