Discrimination

From the Office of the Governor: "'Senate Bill 188 would undermine key provisions of the Missouri Human Rights Act, rolling back decades of progress in protecting civil rights,' Gov. Nixon said. 'The bill would make it harder to prove discrimination in the workplace, and would throw new hurdles in the path of those whose rights have been violated. That is unacceptable, and it stops here.'"

GOP opponent Peter Kindersupported the pro-discrimination bill at part of the corporate lobby's "Fix the Six" platform, along with their proposal to gut the state's voter-approved minimum wage law. 

Gov. Jay Nixon released a statement this afternoon outlining strong opposition to the recently-passed SB 188, which would make it easier to discriminate in Missouri.  From the statement:

"Missouri is a state that welcomes all people, and believes that everyone should be treated with respect and dignity," Gov. Nixon said. "That means eliminating discrimination and removing the barriers of prejudice wherever they exist. Whether it be in the workplace, in housing or in public accommodations, discrimination is wrong. It will not be tolerated here in Missouri."

Governor Nixon said that Senate Bill 188 would undermine key provisions of the Missouri Human Rights Act, rolling back decades of progress in protecting civil rights, encouraging fair treatment and fostering mutual understanding and respect among all citizens.

"This bill would make it harder to prove discrimination in the workplace, and would throw new hurdles in the path of those whose rights have been violated," Gov. Nixon said. "That is unacceptable."

h/t @JRosenbaum and @TonyMess

Today in the Post-Dispatch:

The bill [SB188], sponsored by Sen. Brad Lager, R-Savannah, is this year’s version of the anti-whistleblower, anti-worker, pro-discrimination act pushed by Mr. Lager and various business interests last year. It is the top item on the Missouri Chamber of Commerce’s poorly named “Fix the Six” agenda.

This bill would fix nothing. It is intended to not protect whistleblowers and other workers, and it would make it easier to fire them...

[T]hose companies that have been on the other side — those that have fired employees because they’re black, or gay, or disabled, or because they blew the whistle on unethical or illegal conduct — would be shielded from justice if Mr. Nixon signs SB 188.

The Missouri Employee and Human Rights Coalition released an online video today as part of their effort to fight HB205 and SB188, sponsored by Rep. Kevin Elmer (R-Nixa) and Sen. Brad Lager (R-Savannah), respectively. "Our laws against workplace discrimination at work are more than 50 years old, and they have worked for all Missourians," the group writes in an email blast to supporters. "But big businesses want bigger advantages over small businesses, and they want to make employees and families even more vulnerable." 

For more on the proposal to make discrimination more acceptable in Missouri, check out this great op-ed from Rep. Stephen Webber (D-Columbia) published in the Post-Dispatch a few weeks ago.  HB205 has made it through the House committee process, and SB188 is scheduled for a Senate committee hearing tomorrow.

In Missouri, you can lose your job because you're gay and your employer finds that just a little too icky.  Or you can be evicted from your apartment because you're gay.

Crazy, right?

Fortunately, Rep. Stephen Webber (D-Columbia) and Sen. Jolie Justus (D-Kansas City) are once again trying to right this wrong in Missouri law.  Their bills (HB477 and SB239, respectively) would prohibit discrimination based upon a person's sexual orientation.    

This isn't the first time they've tried to set things right, leaving one to wonder why conservative leaders in both chambers are so intent on protecting Missourians' right to discriminate against people because of who they are or who they love.    The good news is that last year's bill went farther than previous efforts, and HB477 is co-sponsored by 48 fellow Representatives.

A statement from Webber released last week about his bill is pasted below the jump. 

The U.S. House of Representatives voted 270-175 this afternoon to repeal the federal "don't ask, don't tell" policy barring openly gay and lesbian soldiers from the military.  Representatives Russ Carnahan, Lacy Clay and Emanuel Cleaver all voted for repeal.  Representatives Todd Akin, Roy Blunt, Jo Ann Emerson, Sam Graves, Blaine Luetkemeyer, and Ike Skelton voted against repeal.  The full roll call vote is here.

Nearly 80% of Americans support repeal. It's time. 

Lt. Governor Peter Kinder and Speaker Ron Richard are accusing Gov. Jay Nixon of violating the law (or constitution) with an executive order signed this summer saying the State of Missouri should not discriminate against employees based on their sexual orientation. You can read Executive Order 10-24 here.

In a new article published yesterday on the Missouri Baptist Convention Pathway website, Kinder's spokesman says the executive order is "nothing more than a political statement" (pause for a moment to enjoy the irony of this criticism), but one Kinder believes "goes beyond the extent of the law."  Richard, also a esteemed legal scholar, says Nixon has "clearly overstepped his authority again."   Yet as Missouri Lawyers Media reported in July, "other governors - including Republican Govs. John Ashcroft and Matt Blunt - used executive orders to craft discrimination policies for the executive branch."

Curiously, Kinder appears to have only mustered the courage to express his outrage to the conservative MBC Pathway, but had no comment for the Associated Press, Post-Dispatch, Beacon or Star when they reported on the order in July.  Since that time, of course, he has tweeted about numerous other manufactured (and almost entirely federal) controversies.  But why is he not tweeting up a storm demanding that Nixon allow the state to discriminate against employees because of who they are?  

Servicemembers Legal Defense Network (SLDN) launched a new “Stories from the Frontlines" project yesterday as part of their larger effort to pressure the White House and Congress to end the federal 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' (DADT) policy.  The campaign is intended to ramp up pressure before President Obama issues his defense budget recommendations this year, and before the Defense Authorization bill is debated in Congress. 

Every day this week, the organization will release an open letter at www.sldn.org/letters from a person impacted by the existing discriminatory policy. 

Today's letter is from Captain Joan Darrah, USN (Ret.), yesterday's was from Former Air Force Major Mike Almy.  Darrah writes:

Dear Mr. President,

My name is Joan Darrah and I served in silence under “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” (DADT) for almost two decades.  I share my personal story with you as we’re at a critical point in the fight to repeal this discriminatory law.

As Rep. Stacey Newman notes today in the Post-Dispatch, April 20 is "Equal Pay Day," which symbolizes "how far into 2010 women must work to earn what men earned in 2009."

The most recent Bureau of Labor Statistics data shows that women who were full-time wage and salary workers in Missouri earned just 75% of the median income of their male counterparts.  The national average is about 80%.  The following chart compares the women’s earnings as a percentage of men’s.  

In anticipation of hearings in Rep. Ike Skelton's House Armed Services Committee, a number of pro-equality groups are stepping up their efforts to demand the repeal of the nation's misguided "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" (DADT) policy.

Passed by Congress in 1993, DADT is a law mandating the discharge of openly gay, lesbian, or bisexual service members. Under the law, at least one individual per day on average is fired because they are gay or lesbian. Incredibly, almost 13,000 service members have been discharged since 1994. Since President Obama was sworn into office, almost 300 have been discharged.

Earlier this year in the House, committee chairs promised hearings on both the Missouri Nondiscrimination Act (HB 701), sponsored by Rep. Mike Talboy (D-Kansas City), and Safe Schools legislation (HB 518), sponsored by Rep. Sara Lampe (D-Springfield).

Speaker Ron Richard is still refusing to release the bills to committee so they can receive a hearing.

The Missouri Nondiscrimination Act would extend the existing Missouri Human Rights Statute to prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

Lampe's Safe Schools legislation would clarify existing law to list specific categories of students (e.g. by race, sexual orientation, disability, etc.) against whom bullying is prohibited, and would require school districts to train teachers and administrators on how to handle bullying.