Currently, federal law explicitly protects students from discrimination in school based on race, color, national origin, sex and disability. However, no federal law explicitly protects students from discrimination based on their actual or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity or their association with lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people.
Anti-LGBT discrimination in education takes many forms, including harassment, bullying, intimidation and violence, and often times, LGBT students are denied equal educational opportunities. Numerous studies have shown that anti-LGBT discrimination at schools has contributed to high rates of absenteeism, dropout, and academic underachievement among LGBT youth. A recent study found that 55.5% of LGBT students felt unsafe at school because of their sexual orientation, and 37.8% because of their gender expression. The Student Non-Discrimination Act (SNDA) would address this issue by explicitly prohibiting public schools from discriminating against any student on the basis of their actual or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity, or their association with LGBT people.
This week, the Senate began debating the Every Child Achieves Act, which would reauthorize the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), the most expansive education legislation ever passed by Congress. Senator Al Franken (D-MN) submitted SNDA as an amendment (S.Amdt.2093) to the Every Child Achieves Act on July 7 and the Senate is likely to vote on the SNDA amendment in the coming week. Urge your Senators to vote for the SNDA amendment now and protect LGBT students from discrimination!
Judaism teaches that all human beings are created b'tzelem Elohim, in the Divine image (Genesis 1:27). This belief that the stamp of the Divine is present in all humans is fundamental to Reform Judaism; we cannot tolerate discrimination against or bullying of any person for any reason. That is why the Reform Movement has long been an advocate for the Student Non-Discrimination Act and recently coordinated a letter of thirty-six faith-based organizations and religious denominations in support of the Student Non-Discrimination Act amendment. Urge your Senators now to vote for the SNDA amendment!
To learn more about the Jewish values that inspire our work for LGBT rights, visit the RAC’s LGBT rights webpage.
Related Posts
Beyond Marriage Equality
On Wednesday night at the ESPY Awards, Caitlyn Jenner accepted the Arthur Ashe Courage Award, named after the African American tennis star who died of AIDS in 1993. In her moving speech, Caitlyn described the struggles trans people face, including bullying, suicide and even murder, and the importance of education and accepting trans people and their identities. Caitlyn’s speech highlighted several of the many issues that the LGBT community and their allies now have to address following the Supreme Court’s marriage equality decision.
At the Consultation: LGBT Equality From Marriage Equality to Trans Rights
On April 26-28, hundreds of Reform Jews will gather in Washington, D.C. for the RAC’s Consultation on Conscience, the Reform Movement’s flagship social justice event. On Monday, April 27 at 2:00 PM, Evan Wolfson, Founder and President of Freedom to Marry, will join Rabbi Denise Eger, President of the Central Conference of American Rabbis, Jen Kaufman, Chair of the Commission on Social Action of Reform Judaism, and Rabbi Judith Schindler, Senior Rabbi at Temple Beth El, for a discussion on LGBT equality. A live stream will be available on the RAC homepage if you are unable to join us in person at the Consultation. In the meantime, you can brush up on some of the latest developments in the fight for LGBT equality!
Banning Conversion Therapy is an Important Step Forward
At the end of last year, Leelah Alcorn, a trans teen from Ohio, committed suicide. In her suicide note, she cited her parents’ rejection of her gender identity, their refusal to let her transition and her feelings that things will not get better as some of the reasons for her decision. The final words in Leelah’s goodbye post were “Fix society. Please.” and people listened. A petition on We The People asking the administration to “ enact Leelah’s Law to ban all LGBTQ+ conversion therapy” gained over 120,000 signatures and the administration and President Obama responded last Wednesday in opposition to conversion therapy.
