House Passes Equality Act Expanding LGBTQ Rights Amid GOP Concerns, Including Effects on Girls’ Sport

The House voted on Thursday to pass the Equality Act, a Democrat-backed bill intended to ban discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity.

The bill was passed by a party vote of 224 to 206 votes. Three Republicans joined Democrats in voting for the legislation.

“The LGBT community has waited long enough,” said Representative David Cicilline, DR.I., who is gay and co-sponsored the bill, before the vote. “The time has come to extend the blessings of freedom and equality to all Americans, regardless of who they are and what their love.”

The Equality Act updates existing civil rights and labor laws to strengthen protections for the LGBTQ community. The protections would apply to a wide range of categories ranging from education and housing to credit and other areas.

The House approved the same measure in 2019, but failed to pass the GOP-controlled Senate. Republicans and religious groups widely opposed the bill, arguing that the changes could violate the religious beliefs of some citizens.

Opponents also raised concerns about the potential impact of the bill on women’s sport. Critics of the GOP argue that allowing transgender youth to participate in women’s sports would hurt competition.

The very slim vote indicates that the bill will struggle to pass the Senate, even if the Democrats hold an effective majority. At least 60 senators are expected to vote in favor of the legislative burden circumvention measure.

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The House vote marked a victory for President Biden, who took executive action on his first day in office to prevent discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity in government-funded institutions federal. As early as June 2019, Biden identified passing the equality law as one of his top priorities if he were elected president.

“The Equality Act provides long-awaited federal civil rights protections on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity, enclosing essential safeguards in our systems of housing, education, services. public and loan – and codifying the courage and resilience of the LGBTQ + movement into law, ”Biden said in a statement last week.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.