As Pride month begins, U.S. Sen. Bob Casey Jr. decided to sign on as a cosponsor of the Equality Act, which would include LGBT people in federal protections from discrimination in employment, public accommodation and housing.
When the bill was introduced last summer, Casey, a Democrat, said he was taking time to evaluate it. He pointed to an increased sense of urgency around the Equality Act after anti-LGBT state laws passed in North Carolina and Mississippi.
“Much of the discussion about these laws has centered on public restrooms,” Casey said in a June 2 statement. “These laws are about much more than that: they are a license to discriminate in all aspects of our society like the workplace and in housing. These laws are contrary to the values of our nation and make clear the need for the Equality Act.”
“At its core, this bill will ensure LGBT Americans are treated fairly,” he said.
Ted Martin, executive director of Equality Pennsylvania, commended Casey.
“Having a U.S. Senator from Pennsylvania, a very large and diverse state, join in support of these protections is very significant,” Martin said.
He added Pennsylvania’s other senator, Republican Pat Toomey, has met with LGBT Pennsylvanians throughout his time in office and heard their concerns. Martin said he could see Toomey eventually supporting the Equality Act.
“I don’t think it’s a hard lift,” Martin said.
Toomey is still evaluating whether he will support the Equality Act, according to his press secretary, Melissa Ferdinand.
“Sen. Toomey believes every person should be judged on his or her own merits as individuals,” Ferdinand wrote in a June 2 email to PGN. “He has long opposed discrimination based on sexual orientation. Twenty years ago, in 1996, he voted for an ordinance banning Allentown government from discriminating based on sexual orientation.”
Ferdinand said Toomey also called for an end to the military policy of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” which had prevented gay people from serving openly until it was repealed in 2010. He voted for the federal Employment Non-Discrimination Act, called ENDA, in 2013.
“With that long record in mind,” Ferdinand said Toomey would review the Equality Act.
The bill currently has 40 cosponsors in the Senate with Sen. Mark Kirk of Illinois as the only Republican. There are 174 cosponsors in the House with Rep. Robert J. Dold of Illinois as the only Republican.