Historic win! Trans woman wins claim against employer using Civil Rights Act of 1964

miamacypinkessenceTHE GUERRILLA ANGEL REPORT — A trans woman who worked for the was in the process of being hired by the ATF is likely one of the first transgender workers to win a claim against an employer as a result of last year’s Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ruling that stated anti-trans discrimination is covered under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

According to BuzzFeed, the Department of Justice told Mia Macy, who worked for who was in the process of being hired by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, that she was indeed discriminated against because she was trans. This decision came after a Department of Justice investigation into the claim.

Macy in BuzzFeed: “I never thought in my life that it would be over, but to have it not only be over but to have them say, ‘Yes, unfortunately, your civil rights were violated. They did do this.’ To have that vindication, it’s surreal.”

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The importance of this victory cannot be understated. Employers everywhere will either have to comply with the Civil Rights Act of 1964 or face an investigation by the DOJ — something that many companies can ill afford to do public relations wise, never mind the cost.

More on last year’s EEOC decision and it’s impact on trans people: https://lexiecannes.wordpress.com/2012/04/24/whoa-eeoc-rules-on-job-gender-id-discrimination-violates-lbj-era-civil-rights-act/

More from BuzzFeed: Federal Government Decisions Mark A Changed Landscape For Transgender Workers.

miamacypinkessence

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SUPPORT TRANS ADVOCACY by getting a DVD of the award-winning trans-themed feature film Lexie Cannes: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0963781332   Or via PayPal: http://www.lexiecannes.com/id13.html

THE GUERRILLA ANGEL REPORT is associated with Wipe Out Transphobia: http://www.wipeouttransphobia.com/

Read Lexie Cannes in The Huffington Post: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/courtney-odonnell/



Categories: Discrimination, Equality, Civil Rights, Policy, Administrative, Transgender, Transsexual, Trans

Tags: , , , , , ,

12 replies

  1. How about you tell us about the actual ruling, what constituted as a violation of this individuals civil rights?

  2. @Angie: Forget facts, hype is what matters :p

    • What matters here was that someone succeed in using federal law to win a discrimination claim against an employer following the big EEOC decision of last year. This is the first time this has happened.

  3. http://www.buzzfeed.com/chrisgeidner/federal-goverment-decisions-mark-a-changed-landscape-for-tra tells the details. “The record established that the ATF intended and began taking steps to hire complainant for the position—until she disclosed that she was transitioning from a man to a woman. The ATF stopped complainant’s hiring process when it learned that complainant … would become Mia Macy. In light of the EEOC’s decision in this case to hold that actions based on transgender status are actions based on sex and therefore covered by Title VII, the ATF’s actions were discrimination based on sex and therefore prohibited by Title VII.”

  4. WOW! That is a big, big change on the government’s part ! I’m happy for her and all other trans working for the Gov. Also this effects others in the non-gov sector too.

  5. Well if the court has already ruled that the Civil Rights Act protects transgender individuals, why do we even need things like ENDA?

    • For one thing, this case could be appealed all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, questioning the validity of Title IV’s application to employment discrimination. ENDA would be a specific law prohibiting this sort of discrimination.

  6. More on last year’s EEOC decision and it’s impact on trans people: [UPDATE — this new ruling went into effect May 21st!] EEOC rules on-job gender ID discrimination violates LBJ-era Civil Rights Act

    This link is broken.

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  1. Trans worker gets $50,000; firing people on the basis of gender ID or expression may be history | THE GUERRILLA ANGEL REPORT by Lexie Cannes

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