JEFF SESSIONS/JUSTICE DEPARTMENT/LGBTQ: “Attorney General Jeff Sessions reversed an Obama-era reading of the Civil Rights Act in a memo this week, saying the Justice Department no longer considers workplace discrimination against transgender individuals to be covered by federal law.
In a document dated Oct. 4, Mr. Sessions directed Justice Department lawyers to take the position in court that the law, which prohibits employers from discriminating on the basis of ‘sex,’ doesn’t cover discrimination based on gender identity, including transgender status…
Last month the Justice Department argued in a federal appeals court that the law also didn’t prohibit employment discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, putting the department at odds with the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
The latest move is one of several position reversals adopted by the Obama administration regarding transgender people. In July, President Donald Trump barred transgender individuals from serving in the U.S. military. Earlier this year, the administration withdrew Obama-era guidance that allowed transgender individuals to use sex-segregated facilities, including bathrooms, of their choice.”
-Aruna Viswanatha, “DOJ Says Civil Rights Law Doesn’t Cover Transgender Discrimination in the Workplace,” The Wall Street Journal online, Oct. 5, 2017 07:07pm