[Commentary] [USA] Election 2012: LGBT Equality Is an Economic Issue

[Stephanie Stevens]

Huffington Post, USA


Waymon Hudson

LGBT rights activist

Election 2012: LGBT Equality Is an Economic Issue

Posted: 09/14/2012 3:55 pm


When cutting through the rhetoric of campaigns and the presidential
election to get to the reality of the issues facing many Americans,
one thing becomes clear very quickly: It is impossible to separate the
need for LGBT equality from economic issues. While it may be an easy
talking point for some to say, "I'm not a single issue voter... LGBT
issues aren't all that matter," the actual truth about the
intersection of LGBT rights and economic justice is inescapable.

Jobs, Wages, Poverty, and Workplace Discrimination

While some may try to separate the need for a focus on jobs and
economic recovery from LGBT equality, the two are closely connected
for many in the LGBT community. While media portrayals of affluent,
white gays dominate the airwaves, the truth is that LGBT people face
higher rates of joblessness, lower wages, and higher rates of poverty
than their heterosexual counterparts, due in large part to the
compounded issues of workplace discrimination and a slow economic
recovery.

LGBT people, particularly LGBT people of color, face significant
discrimination in the workplace
<http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/lgbt/news/2011/06/02/9872/gay-and-transgender-people-face-high-rates-of-workplace-discrimination-and-harassment/>
due to their sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender
expression. Recent studies show that anywhere from 15 to 43 percent of
gay people experience some form of discrimination and harassment at
the workplace. For transgender Americans, the situation is even worse,
with a staggering 90 percent of transgender workers reporting some
form of harassment or mistreatment on the job.

To be clear, it is still perfectly legal to fire, or to refuse to
hire, someone for no other reason than the fact they are gay or
transgender, or even perceived as such, in the majority of states.
Only 21 states and the District of Columbia
<http://www.americanprogress.org/wp-content/uploads/issues/2012/03/pdf/lgbt_biz_discrimination_execsumm.pdf>
have laws barring employment discrimination based on sexual
orientation, while just 16 states and the District of Columbia
<http://www.americanprogress.org/wp-content/uploads/issues/2012/03/pdf/lgbt_biz_discrimination_execsumm.pdf>
have laws that ban employment discrimination on the basis of gender
identity or expression.

This pervasive discrimination against LGBT people leads to vast
socioeconomic inequalities. Discrimination directly causes job
instability and high turnover, resulting in greater unemployment and
poverty rates for LGBT people, which strikes doubly hard in tough
economic times.

The discrimination also leads to a wage gap between LGBT and straight
workers. Gay men earn 10- to 32-percent less
<http://www2.law.ucla.edu/williamsinstitute/publications/Bias%20in%20the%20Workplace.pdf>
than similarly qualified heterosexual males, while older gay and
lesbian adults experience higher poverty rates
<http://www.americanprogress.org/wp-content/uploads/issues/2010/09/pdf/lgbt_safetynet.pdf>
than their heterosexual counterparts. Findings also show that lesbian
women across the board are consistently poorer
<http://www.law.ucla.edu/williamsinstitute/pdf/LGBPovertyReport.pdf>
than their heterosexual counterparts. Transgender people are twice as
likely <http://transequality.org/Resources/NCTE_prelim_survey_econ.pdf>
to be unemployed and are four times as likely to live in poverty.
Nearly 20 percent have been or are currently homeless due to the
issues stemming from workplace discrimination.

The economic news for LGBT families is startling, as well. Being
denied the legal protections and economic safeguards provided to
married heterosexual couples and parents contributes to higher
economic insecurity for LGBT families
<http://williamsinstitute.law.ucla.edu/headlines/beyond-stereotypes-poverty-in-the-lgbt-community/>
. A 2009 Williams Institute report, "Tax Implications for Same-Sex
Couples <http://www.law.ucla.edu/williamsinstitute/pdf/Website_TaxPiece.pdf>
," finds that same-sex couples often pay more in taxes than
heterosexual couples because the federal government does not recognize
same-sex marriage. The report shows that the economic impact of
marriage discrimination is significant: Same-sex couples are not able
to file federal joint tax returns, cannot transfer property tax to
their partners freely, and are not eligible for Social Security
survival benefits.

And again, all these numbers multiply when factors like race and
gender are added to the mix for LGBT people and their families.

This job insecurity in the LGBT community often results in
insufficient income, sporadic health-care coverage, and inadequate or
unsafe housing. The issues that many Americans are facing are
compounded because of systemic discrimination on many fronts for the
LGBT community, from employment discrimination to lack of relationship
recognition.

It's the Economy, Stupid

So while many may criticize the LGBT community for focusing on basic
equality and protections from discrimination, it is clear that these
issues directly affect the economic stability of our lives and
families. To try to claim that calls of "jobs, jobs, jobs" is more
important than, or not even connected to, issues of equality is to
deny the complex and systemic history of bias and discrimination that
hurts LGBT people, women, and people of color.

That's why fully inclusive nondiscrimination laws that protect all
LGBT workers on the local, state, and federal levels are essential to
boosting the economic security of our community. It is also why having
equal access to civil marriage rights, health coverage, and
governmental services is vital to LGBT people's economic well-being.
Securing equal rights for all would ensure that bigotry and ignorance
do not perpetuate joblessness and economic hardship in the LGBT
community.

To pretend that there is no connection between LGBT rights and
economic security is to speak from a position of disconnect that is
steeped in dishonesty and affluent privilege. It is clear that you
have one political party seeking to strip rights from LGBT people, to
the point of writing those calls for continued discrimination into
their party platform
<http://www.huffingtonpost.com/waymon-hudson/election-2012-lgbt-equality_b_1819184.html>
and into their candidate's stump speeches
<http://www.huffingtonpost.com/waymon-hudson/republican-national-conve_b_1839027.html>
, which goes straight to the heart of economic insecurity for the LGBT
community. You also have another party seeking to expand access to
equality through both their platform and actions
<http://www.huffingtonpost.com/waymon-hudson/election-2012-rhetoric-th_b_1859141.html>
. The choice should be clear for LGBT Americans.

There is simply no denying that equality is an economic issue.


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