Please take a moment to thank Senators Barbara Mikulski and Ben Cardin for co-sponsoring the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), which would protect lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) employees from workplace discrimination by adding sexual orientation and gender identity to existing federal employment non-discrimination laws. The bill, introduced by Jeff Merkley (OR-D), Susan Collins (ME-R), Olympia Snowe (ME-R), and Edward M. Kennedy (MA-D), enjoys bipartisan support in Congress. Companion legislation in the House of Represenatitives is co-sponsored by Reps. Cummings, Van Hollen, Sarbanes and Edwards.

Dear [ Decision Maker ] ,

As a member of Equality Maryland, I want to thank you for your co-sponsorship of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA). As you know, ENDA would extend existing federal law to also prohibit employment discrimination to protect people on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.

Unlike many other U.S. states, Maryland had the good sense eight years ago to pass a law prohibiting discrimination on the basis of "sexual orientation". Althought Baltimore City and Montgomery County have extended "gender identity" anti-discrimination protections, and Gov. O'Malley has extended "gender identity" protections to state personnel, it is still legal to fire someone in the rest of the state just because of their gender identity. Sadly, despite the growing acceptance of LGBT people, we know that such discrimination still exists here in Maryland and across the United States. All Marylanders, and indeed all Americans, deserve to be protected from employment discrimination on the basis of both sexual orientation and gender identity.

ENDA would go a long way to rectifying this indignity.

Thank you for recognizing this and for your cosponsorship of this crucial measure.

Sincerely,

Campaign Launched:
August 06, 2009