Under the banner of the Leadership Conference, five LGBT+ and human rights advocacy organizations (the Human Rights Campaign, the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, the National Center for Transgender Equality, the National Partnership for Women and Families, and the National Women’s Law Center) have expressed their concern over Sharon Gustafson’s nomination to become General Counsel for the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Gustafson evaded questions regarding the rights of LGBT+ workers,and appeared to have limited knowledge of EEOC’s landmark cases and ongoing litigation during her hearing before the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions.
The EEOC enforces the US’s nondiscrimination laws, including Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. A number of recent US appellate court decisions have expanded interpretations of Title VII, which has in turn increased protections for LGBT+ workers.
The Leadership Conference’s letter calls for the Senate to “ensure that the general counsel of the EEOC will faithfully and robustly enforce civil rights laws to ensure that no one is subject to unlawful discrimination, as interpreted by federal courts and the Commission.”
Read more at the Leadership Conference