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The Equality Act

Floor Speech

Date: July 23, 2015
Location: Washington, DC
Issues: Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity

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Mr. KENNEDY. Mr. Speaker, today, my colleague Congressman David Cicilline, an unparalleled champion for LGBT rights, introduced the Equality Act. I rise today as a proud cosponsor in support of this bill.

Recent gains, from public opinion to the Supreme Court, have undoubtedly accelerated our ongoing civil rights march, but real justice will be served in this country when the LGBT community is guaranteed--not just legal equality, but lived equality.

The ability to experience everyday life without fear of discrimination is something most of us take for granted. Walking into a gas station without worrying about being denied service because of your gender identity, heading into a movie theater without fear of being turned away because of the hand you held when you walked in, that threat of judgment, rejection, and prejudice is injustice in its purest form.

Today, through the Equality Act, we can help root out the dangerous intolerance that continues to define too many American lives. I urge all of my colleagues to join this fight, cosponsor this bill, and get it signed into law.

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