A 60-member business initiative has formed to advocate for the passage of LGBT-inclusive federal nondiscrimination legislation. The Business Coalition for the Equality Act includes Out Leadership Member Companies MasterCard, Microsoft, and Moody’s.
The coalition launched in partnership with the Human Rights Campaign. Every signatory company has expressed support for the Equality Act, a bill that would amend the Civil Rights Act and the Fair Housing Act to include protections for people on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.
Democratic Senator Jeff Merkley of Oregon, who introduced the legislation in the Senate, told the Washington Blade, “No one should have to fear discrimination simply because of who they are or whom they love. It’s incomprehensibly wrong that in many states, a couple could marry in the morning and be evicted from their apartment or fired from their jobs in the afternoon. Full equality is the right thing to do, and it’s good for business too.”