House Democrats are poised to pass the Equality Act again, claiming it will merely amend federal civil rights law to ensure sexual orientation and gender identity are included among protected classes — without protection for religious objections.
In 2019, the House passed the Equality Act, 236-173, with eight Republicans voting with Democrats, three of whom did not run for re-election in November, but whose seats are now occupied by new Republican House members.
The seat of Rep. Susan Brooks (IN) is now occupied by Rep. Victoria Spartz; Rep. Tony Gonzales (TX) won the seat of Rep. Will Hurd; and Rep. Cliff Bentz (OR) now holds the seat of Rep. Greg Walden.
The other Republicans who voted in favor of the Equality Act and are still members of Congress who will be voting on the legislation again are: Reps. Mario Diaz-Balart (FL); Brian Fitzpatrick (PA); John Katko (NY); Tom Reed (NY); and Elise Stefanik (NY).
The act is opposed by the Women’s Liberation Front. In a press release, the organization stated, “The bill’s authors made clear that gender identity is to take precedence over and replace sex as a protected category.”
This time the Equality Act could pass in the Senate as well, and, if so, President Joe Biden is expected to sign it into law. The legislation would end the federal recognition of male-female sex, in favor of gender identity, by rewriting civil rights law to include “sexual orientation and gender identity” as protected classes. If the bill becomes law, it would likely upend the national culture as Americans have known it, affecting women’s and girls’ sports and privacy in public facilities, and faith-based institutions.
On Monday, Catholic League president Bill Donohue denounced the equality act as “the most comprehensive assault on Christianity ever written into law.”