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The Supreme Court’s decision this past summer to extend marriage rights to LGBT Americans was another step in a long and broad civil rights struggle demonstrating that our nation can be made more perfect – that every citizen deserves dignity, respect and equality under the law.
All Americans can now marry the one they love and receive all the rights and responsibilities that come with marriage. And yet, in many states, their employers may still legally fire them once they hear about the wedding.
Marriage equality was an important achievement, but with no federal laws prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity in employment, housing or public accommodations, we cannot yet declare victory.
Indeed, we have not done enough.
We have not done enough when LGBT Americans are still hesitant to put pictures of their partners and spouses at the workplace because 10 to 28 percent of LGBT employees stated that they have been denied promotion or fired simply because of their sexual orientation.
Polling shows that a majority of Americans in every single congressional district would support a law to protect against employment discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.
It is no longer enough for leaders to simply support the Employment Non-Discrimination Act – we need it to be re-introduced over and over again until the holdouts in Congress are embarrassed into finally making law what seven out of 10 Americans already know is right.
We also have not done enough when LGBT renters and prospective home buyers are more likely to be denied housing, even after offering to pay the full asking price in cash, and 48 percent of LGBT couples face discrimination when applying for senior housing.
To remedy this, the Fair Housing Act must be amended to specifically include sexual orientation and gender identity as protected categories in housing transactions.
Similarly, we have not done nearly enough when a hotel can refuse a room to an LGBT couple, turning travelers away because they happen to be gay.
When confronted about this subject, one U.S. senator stated that he had not “given any thought to the issue” before hurrying into an elevator. That same senator also said that violent crimes against LGBT Americans are not hate crimes, and would ban adoptions by LGBT couples.
Laws protecting LGBT Americans from discrimination in employment, housing and public accommodations are long overdue, and we need trusted advocates – actually, warriors – in the Senate to move this fight forward.
In my 31-year career in the U.S. Navy, I served alongside many LGBT Americans who were all committed to defending our nation. I had the fortune to lead and serve under some of these fine men and women who simply wanted to get the job done. They would have died for me, and I for them.
I was disappointed when “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” (DADT) was passed. I was taken aback when an official Navy spokesman justified that policy by saying that “homosexuals are notoriously promiscuous,” and that if allowed to serve openly, heterosexuals showering with gay men would have an “uncomfortable feeling of someone watching.”
At the time, I was serving as a captain, and a two-star admiral asked me what I thought about DADT. It was certain to be declared unconstitutional, I told him, convinced that the Supreme Court would throw it out in a couple months.
Unfortunately, that did not happen. So when I got to Congress, I was proud to co-sponsor legislation to end DADT and prohibit the military from discriminating based on sexual orientation.
I have served my country as a naval leader and legislator. I take great pride in America’s fine tradition and ability to perfect itself – with committed citizens in every generation leading the way to right wrongs and pursue equality for all.
LGBT rights remain one of those key social issues of our time. Social progress is gradual, but the efforts through which we achieve it must be relentless.
Together, we can continue to build on the great progress that we have already made, and help our nation achieve a higher ground for all citizens, as our founders inspired us to do some two centuries ago, declaring that “We, the People” must always strive toward a more perfect union.