American Civil Liberties Union

On Thursday, the ACLU, as well as partner organizations, will speak at a congressional briefing hosted by Rep. Frank Pallone (D-N.J.) on the subject of sexual orientation and gender identity discrimination in the workplace and the steps that can be taken to prevent such discrimination.

The ACLU has long fought for passage in Congress of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, legislation that would prohibit employment discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in most American workplaces. ENDA will allow all American workers who stand side-by-side at the workplace and contribute with equal measure in their jobs to also stand on equal footing under the law. However, the current political reality is that ENDA cannot pass this Congress. This does not, however, close off all avenues for addressing the underlying problem of workplace discrimination against LGBT Americans.

In Tuesday’s Washington Post, the newspaper editorializes in support of a proposed executive order that President Obama could sign to ensure that federal contractors receiving federal tax dollars do not discriminate against applicants and employees based on their sexual orientation or gender identity.