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Representative Barney Frank introduced the Employment Non-Discrimination Act or ENDA in Congress this week to end workplace discrimination against Gay, Lesbian, Bi-sexual, and Transgender persons. Currently federal discrimination laws do not cover LGBT Americans and it is legal in 37 states to fire someone based on their gender identity or sexual orientation. Congressman Frank had introduced the bill two years ago but was fiercely attacked by the LGBT community for excluding transgender people. Here is Barney Frank speaking at a press conference in October 2007 justifying the exclusion. The new “trans-clusive” version of ENDA, if passed, will protect against workplace discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. Meanwhile, the New York Times is reporting that White House lawyers are “quietly drafting first-of-their kind guidelines barring workplace discrimination against transgender federal employees.” And, the Senate voted yesterday on the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act which would include sexual orientation, gender identity, gender, and disability to existing categories protected under federal hate crimes laws.

GUEST: Mara Kiesling, Executive Director of the National Center for Transgender Equality, Chris Anders, Senior Legislative Counsel of the ACLU

For more information, visit www.nctequality.org