Mich. LGBTQ Rights Leaders Prepare For Next Steps After SCOTUS Ruling

By Allison Donahue, Michigan Advance

Following the U.S. Supreme Court ruling Monday that established that individuals can’t legally be fired based on their gender identity or sexual orientation, Fair and Equal Michigan, an LGBTQ rights group, is considering its next steps.

“This ruling is great news for the LGBTQ+ community across the country,” Fair and Equal Michigan Campaign Co-Chair Trevor Thomas said in a statement. “Our legal counsel is analyzing the decision now and will be advising us on how it will impact people in the state of Michigan and our campaign moving forward.”

Monday’s decision amends the federal law, but state law in Michigan still does not explicitly protect LGBTQ employees.

The group started a ballot initiative to amend the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act — a 1976 state civil rights law prohibiting discriminatory practices in Michigan — to include more protections for the LGBTQ community, including banning discrimination based on gender identity and sexual orientation. Several attempts to add LGBTQ protections have failed to gain traction in the GOP-controlled Legislature

Last week, a state judge granted Fair and Equal 69 extra days to collect signatures because of the impact COVID-19 had on canvassing during the state’s stay-home order.

If the group is able to get the required 340,042 signatures in time, the question could end up on the November 2022 ballot. Near the end of May, Fair and Equal reported they had about 180,000 signatures.

Spokesperson Josh Hovey said the campaign has been consulting with key stakeholders since the SCOTUS ruling and has yet to make a final decision on how and when it moves forward.

“As you can imagine, there are a lot of political and financial calculations being made on how to best achieve full LGBTQ equality in Michigan,” Hovey said.

Attorney General Dana Nessel said Monday’s decision does not amend the protections afforded by the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act, meaning there are not equal protections under both state and federal law.

Nessel celebrated the federal decision, but said, “This is not the end of the story.”

“It is just the beginning of the progress yet to be made on the important issue of equal protection,” she said. “The Supreme Court’s decision, although groundbreaking, is relatively narrow. It involves only a federal law — Title VII — not state law.”

Because the decision only applies to employment, Nessel said it leaves room for discriminatory practices in housing, education and public accommodations.

“What this means is that we must continue to work together for equal protection under the law for all Michiganders,” Nessel said.

As a private attorney, Nessel represented a lesbian couple in a case that led to the 2015 U.S. Supreme Court decision legalizing same-sex marriage, the last major LGBTQ rights case before the court.