On Tuesday, Oct. 8, arguments officially started in the Supreme Court about whether or not LGBTQ+ identities are protected under Title VII on the basis of sex in three different cases of wrongful termination. In as little as a month it could be legal to fire LGBTQ+ people based on their identities and/or orientations. It is also expected to most heavily affect trans and gender non-conforming people.
As a trans person, I find myself feeling a large amount of sadness and uncertainty. I doubt that the current Supreme Court will grant me the right to safety at my place of employment, and I also doubt that a law making LGBTQ protections explicit will pass through the Republican-controlled Senate. I would like for you, the reader, to sit with that for a moment. If you believe in the right to keep your job so long as you perform well, take this moment to acknowledge that, in no time at all, that could no longer be the case. Even if you believe that being trans is a choice or that being trans is wrong, do you also believe that I should have my income stripped from me if people find out? Is it not my right to have a job and be protected in that job?
If you do not already care about this issue, there is perhaps nothing that I can say to make you care. We are all just people, after all; we all have our own lives to live. But consider the slippery slope of these injustices. Who is to say the court will not remove your protections next? I would argue that you should care about this on the basis that I am a person and I deserve equal opportunity to make money and perform well at a job no matter how I identify or who I am.