Legislative Activity
On May 14, 1974, the fifth anniversary of the Stonewall Rebellion, Reps. Bella Abzug (D-NY) and Ed Koch (D-NY) introduced H.R. 14752, the "Gay Rights Bill", which would have added sexual orientation to the protected classes specified in the Civil Rights Act of 1964, prohibited discrimination in employment and access to public accommodations and facilities.
In the early 1990s, supporters of the legislation decided to focus on employment. Rep. Gerry Studds introduced the Employment Non-Discrimination Act on June 23, 1994. The legislation failed in 1994 and 1995. In 1996, the bill failed on a 49-50 vote in the Senate and was not voted on in the House. Its level of support in the Senate may have represented an attempt by some to compensate for their recent support of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which prohibited the federal government from recognizing same-sex marriages. These early versions of ENDA did not include provisions to protect transgender people from discrimination and ENDA was not introduced in the 109th Congress.
Read more about this topic: Employment Non-Discrimination Act
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