[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 78 (Tuesday, May 17, 2016)]
[Senate]
[Page S2834]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          INTERNATIONAL DAY AGAINST HOMOPHOBIA AND TRANSPHOBIA

  Mr. REID. Mr. President, today is International Day Against 
Homophobia and Transphobia. This day of recognition is especially 
significant for America since the civil rights of transgender Americans 
are at the forefront of an important national debate. At its core, the 
debate comes down to a simple question: With whom do we stand? Do we 
stand with the bullies or do we stand against the bullies? Do we stand 
up for the bullies or against the bullies? Do we defend the persecutors 
or do we come to the defense of the persecuted?
  These are the questions posed to us, and they should be. These are 
the questions posed to us by what is happening in North Carolina and 
the law there that undermines the civil rights of transgender 
Americans.
  During a 1-day special session in March, the North Carolina 
legislature rammed through a controversial law that strikes down local 
antidiscrimination ordinances. The actions taken by North Carolina's 
legislature and Governor are nothing short of State-sponsored 
discrimination against transgender individuals. The law is clearly and 
completely illegal. It is in direct opposition to Federal civil rights 
statutes prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sex.
  The Federal courts have made it clear that sex discrimination under 
the Civil Rights Act covers transgender individuals. This goes back to 
1989, when the Supreme Court ruled in Price Waterhouse v. Hopkins that 
sex discrimination includes sex stereotyping under title VII of the 
Civil Rights Act of 1964. Relying on the Supreme Court's ruling in that 
case, appellate courts have concluded that discrimination against 
transgender people is prohibited when it is based on gender 
nonconformity.
  That is why last week the Department of Justice sued North Carolina, 
finding that its law constitutes a pattern or practice of 
discrimination under the Civil Rights Act, the Education Amendments Act 
of 1972, and the Violence Against Women Act, which we passed just last 
year.
  This kind of shocking discriminatory lawmaking has no place in the 
21st century. It certainly has no place in America. Attorney General 
Loretta Lynch said last week:

       This is not the first time we have seen discriminatory 
     responses to historic moments of progress for our nation. We 
     saw it in the Jim Crow laws that followed the Emancipation 
     Proclamation. We saw it in fierce and widespread resistance 
     to Brown v. Board of Education. And we saw it in the 
     proliferation of state bans on same-sex unions intended to 
     stifle any hope that gay and lesbian Americans might one day 
     be afforded the right to marry.

  This issue has been far-reaching. It has far-reaching consequences. 
This is about access to employment, education, and just about 
everything else in public life. This is about whether we are going to 
allow our fellow citizens to be bullied, intimidated, and harassed.
  The North Carolina law is not only wrong, but it runs counter to the 
progress we are seeing in States and cities across all of America. 
Right now, 18 States and approximately 200 cities have laws on the 
books to protect transgender individuals in being able to use the 
restroom that matches their gender identity.
  Take, for example, what happened in Reno, NV, just last year. Reno, 
NV, is in Washoe County. It is the second largest school district in 
Nevada. In February 2015, in response to concerns from parents and 
students, the Washoe County School District issued policies to help 
foster a healthy and inclusive environment for transgender students.
  The Washoe County School District developed thoughtful and 
commonsense policies that allow all students in Washoe County to have 
access to all school programs and activities. It was the first district 
in Nevada to do so. In the year since those regulations were adopted, 
schools across the district have reported few, if any, concerns about 
the new policies.
  North Carolina leaders need to learn from Washoe County. They need to 
learn a thing or two about tolerance, as exhibited by the students and, 
yes, the adults across Washoe County.
  North Carolina is already paying a severe price for its 
discriminatory law, and more is yet to come. Hundreds of America's 
biggest and most prestigious corporations and organizations have 
already come out in firm opposition to the law--companies such as 
Google, Bank of America, Starbucks, and Pfizer. You have major 
businesses that don't want to do business there. You have entertainers 
who won't perform there, such as Bruce Springsteen. But it is not just 
that. It is hundreds--hundreds--of other firms that are coming out in 
opposition to the law because what they are doing is illegal.
  But Republican leaders are standing by their bigotry at a tremendous 
cost to the State, and that is disappointing. I stand with the 
administration in opposing the North Carolina law. I stand with all 
Americans against this shameful bullying. Most of all, I stand with the 
transgender people of North Carolina and our country who are the 
targets of this State-sponsored discrimination. My heart goes out to 
them.
  This is not how a great nation should operate. We are better than 
this. So I look forward to the day, and it is coming soon, when this 
hateful law is struck down.

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