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Transgender Discrimination Claim Supported by Court
Some joy across the acres of swine flu, ATM robbery, financial crisis and bikie gang wars items on the pages of most news media comes this obscure story. In Washington DC, a federal judge has awarded a former Army Special Forces commander nearly $500,000 because she was rejected from a job at the Library of Congress while undergoing a gender change from man to woman.
http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1894600,00.html
and
http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1840754,00.html
And it is encouraging that a conservative publisher like Time would write this up in such supportive terms!
Let us all celebrate this little step in the long journey.
(WASHINGTON) — A federal judge has awarded a former Army Special Forces commander nearly $500,000 because she was rejected from a job at the Library of Congress while undergoing a gender change from man to woman.Diane Schroer of Alexandria, Va., applied for the terrorism analyst job while still a man named David Schroer. He was offered the job, but the offer was pulled after he told a library official that he was having surgery to change his gender.
U.S. District Judge James Robinson ruled Tuesday that Schroer was entitled to $491,190 in back pay and damages because of sex discrimination.
Schroer said she was happy with the judgment but more importantly that the judge recognized her treatment as job discrimination. She said it’s a problem many transgendered people face.
“They are hugely underemployed, at best,” Schroer said. “If they are fortunate enough to get something, it’s well below their capabilities. It’s not just about money, it’s about knowing you are a valuable person.”
Schroer said she feels more fortunate than many transsexuals who face job discrimination because her friends have helped her get work as a national security and counterterrorism consultant.
The Library of Congress and the Justice Department argued unsuccessfully that discrimination because of transsexuality was not illegal sex discrimination under the Civil Rights Act. A Justice Department spokesman said the department had not yet determined whether to appeal.
The American Civil Liberties Union had argued the case on Schroer’s behalf. Paul Cates with the ACLU’s Lesbian and Gay Rights Project said the ruling was significant because a federal judge said that discriminating against someone for changing genders is sex discrimination under federal law.
Schroer is a former U.S. Army colonel who directed a classified group that tracked and targeted terrorists. Schroer retired in 2004 and worked briefly in the private sector before applying for the Congressional Research Service job at the Library of Congress.
After being offered the job, Schroer had lunch with a Library of Congress official and explained the upcoming surgery. Schroer testified the official called the next day and said the position would not be a “good fit.”
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5 Replies
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Hey V
Thanks for posting this, an interesting read.
I don’t know what your or anybody else’s thoughts are after reading this but I personally didn’t realise how backwards the U.S is when it comes to Transgender laws
The fact the Justice Department was on side with the “Library of Congress†just blows my mind away.
Thank goodness we have much smarter people down here. I feel very fortunate living in AustraliaThanks V
Amy
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Maybe an understanding of local cultural and legislative requirements is required.
What we have in AUS is not universal and whilst we should be extremely happy on that front we cannot ignore what others have, after all a 20M population is a close knit community by todays standard.
At least justice appears to have been done in this instance. What about other nations that do not have any freedom of expression, let alone freedom of gender expression.
It is all perspective.Wendy
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so tell me, what the heck is going on here?
washington court supports a case of discrimination on the basis of transgendered employee.
new hampshire senate votes 24-0 (not one senator supported the bill) not to make transgendered people as a recognised group that can benefit from anit-discrimination laws:
Concord – The New Hampshire Senate today unanimously rejected a bill that would have extended anti-discrimination laws to transgendered people.
House Bill 415 would have protected those with sexual identity issues in areas of housing and employment, much the way the state’s laws protects others from discrimination on the basis of color, race, religion or sexual orientation.
Those who fought the bill said it would open women’s bathrooms, changing rooms and locker rooms to sexual predators who could raise a defense in court that they were sexually confused.
The 24-0 vote to kill it came after Democrats blasted opponents of the bill for dubbing the measure the “bathroom bill,†a move they said created misunderstanding and fear among the general population.
They also criticized the press and media for picking up on the nickname, saying they became an unwitting partner in the effort to continue denying a part of the population its civil rights.
“Shame on you,†said Sen. Jacalyn Cilley, D-Barrington, as she accused opponents of “political posturing and gamesmanship.â€
Bill supporters said discrimination of any kind is wrong, and that state law should protect all citizens equally. They said there have been no bathroom incidents in the 13 states that have similar laws on the books.
so here we see another example of head in the sand politics and outright ignorance. one small step forward, two steps backwards!
by the way, the new hampshire state motto is “live free or die”. looks like they are choosing to die. and it seems they have a very close knit community – the new hampshire population is only about 1.3 million.
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As a current serving member of the Australian Defence Force, i can only say that im very curious as to the whole gender issue and how that effects the persons capability to work, i myself have come our to my bosses and although surprised are generally very supportive of my wish to change gender. However it should be noted that there has not been one single successful post gender change defence member actively reengaged after completion of SRS and HURT. So i ask the question are we so much better or is it swept under the carpet?
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a heart rendering finish to this tale … more enlightenment in america. let’s hope this inspires the pollies and government officials in oz!
Obama Won’t Fight Transgender Lawsuit
By On Top Magazine Staff
Published: July 01, 2009The Obama administration has allowed the deadline to appeal a transgender ruling to pass, signaling it will not fight the lawsuit, the AP reported.
Tuesday was the last day the Department of Justice could file an appeal in the half-million dollar judgment for Diane Schroer, a transgender woman who sued the Library of Congress after it rescinded a job offer.
“I applied for a job at the Library of Congress as an international terrorism analyst to advise them on our nation’s counter terrorism operations. I was selected as the top pick for the job,” Schroer says in a video. “When I told them I would begin work as Diane, the offer was immediately rescinded. The Library of Congress wanted David for the job, not Diane.”
Schroer spent twenty-five years in the Army Special Forces as a man, retiring in 2004 a colonel. Once retired, she began her transition to a woman, and told the Library of Congress she would begin work as Diane. The next day the offer was canceled, and she filed her lawsuit in 2005. A federal judge awarded her $491,190 in back pay and damages because of sex discrimination two months ago.
Bush administration officials had argued that transgender discrimination was not covered under the Civil Rights Act.
Schroer told the AP that the decision to drop the appeal “gives me hope and restores some of my shaken faith in what our country stands for.”
Last year, Schroer testified before Congress in its first serious look at the varied issues involved in transgender job discrimination. Openly gay Massachusetts Representative Barney Frank is sponsoring an employment protections bill that includes both sexual orientation and gender identity.
Schroer said Tuesday that transgender discrimination in the workplace was “rampant” and urged Congress to pass the bill.
Link: http://ontopmag.com/article.aspx?id=4114&MediaType=1&Category=26
