TODAY: Day Of Action To Pass Trans Rights In New York State Senate

The Gender Expression Non-Discrimination Act has passed in the New York Assembly SEVEN times, but shamefully it has never been allowed to come to a vote in the state Senate. Today openly gay Sen. Brad Hoylman (above right) and Sen. Daniel Squadron will attend a rally at the state capitol building. Via press release from the Empire State Pride Agenda:

“It is unconscionable that, in most of the state, an individual can lose his or her job or home or be denied the right eat at a restaurant based on gender identity or expression," said New York City Public Advocate Letitia James. "These are not hypothetical scenarios—one out of every three transgender New Yorkers have been homeless; two out of three experience discrimination at work; and one in five have been fired explicitly for being transgender. New York City is one of only 11 cities and counties in New York State that have passed local GENDA laws. Outside these communities, this despicable discrimination is perfectly legal. GENDA is a basic human rights law and it must be passed statewide and it must be passed this year to secure the most fundamental protections against discrimination."

Come on New York, this is embarrassing.

NEW YORK: State Senate Blocks Trans Rights And "Ex-Gay" Therapy Ban Bills

As expected, the GOP leadership of the New York state Senate has blocked the passage of both GENDA and a bill that would ban the "ex-gay" torture of minors. Openly gay state Sen. Brad Hoylman reacts via press release:

“It's bitterly disappointing that the State Senate bowed to partisan politics and failed to protect our kids in New York from so-called “conversion therapy," which considers homosexuality a sickness that needs to be cured. This bill had the votes to pass the Senate, virtually unanimous support from mental health professionals, and was modeled after legislation passed with bi-partisan support in California and New Jersey, where it was signed by Republican Governor Chris Christie. The bottom line is until we change the leadership of the State Senate, New Yorkers can continue to expect forward-thinking bills to stall. Add conversion therapy to the pile of failed progressive initiatives in the Senate, which includes a decent minimum wage, codifying a woman's right to choose, the DREAM Act, the Gender Expression Non-Discrimination Act, and others. I want to thank Governor Cuomo, my co-sponsors Assembly Member Deborah Glick and Senator Mike Gianaris, my supportive Senate colleagues from both parties, the Empire State Pride Agenda, and the scores of individuals who shared their deeply personal stories about their experiences with sexual orientation change efforts. I will continue to work with all of them to outlaw this practice.”

From the Empire State Pride Agenda:

The bill to protect LGBT youth from conversion efforts passed with strong bipartisan support in the Assembly. We had the votes lined up from both sides of the aisle in the Senate. We had widespread backing from every medical association and the general public. GENDA passed for the seventh time in the Assembly and has already been signed into law in 18 other states. Yet Senate leaders refused to bring both to the floor for a vote. Clearly something is broken in Albany. There is no good reason why two bills critically important to the lives of LGBT New Yorkers did not pass in the Senate this session. The Senate Leadership failed us today by not bringing these life-saving bills to the floor for a vote. Without GENDA New York remains behind more than one third of the country that already provides protections for transgender individuals. By not passing the bill to protect LGBT youth from conversion efforts, our youth remain vulnerable to harm at the hands of quack therapists. The failure of the Senate Leadership to bring these bills to the floor for a vote leaves thousands of transgender New Yorkers vulnerable to discrimination where we work and where we live. And children are left susceptible to dangerous and discredited conversion efforts in the offices of so-called therapists licensed by the State of New York. We will not give up. We will hold our elected officials accountable for their failure yet again to protect LGBT New Yorkers.

The New York state Senate has a slim GOP majority and pro-LGBT bills are regularly thwarted with the aid of Democratic anti-gay crackpot Sen. Ruben Diaz.

NY Assemblyman Daniel O'Donnell Delivers Epic Rant On Transgender Rights

On Tuesday the New York state Assembly approved GENDA, the transgender rights bill, for the sixth time. But not before openly gay Assemblyman Daniel O'Donnell delivered an epic rant against the idiots who characterized the item as a "bathroom bill."  O'Donnell: "Spare me your lectures about GOD DAMN bathrooms!"

GENDA Passes In NY Assembly AGAIN

Via press release from the Empire State Pride Agenda:

For the 6th time, the New York State Assembly has just passed the Gender Expression Non-Discrimination Act (GENDA), basic civil rights protections for transgender New Yorkers. Our pro-LGBT assemblymembers deserve our deep gratitude for continuing to make this bill a priority. Now, we need the State Senate to carry out the will of nearly four fifths of the population and ACT!

The bill has been stopped in the state Senate every time.

Syracuse Approves Trans Protections

Some great news today from central New York.

The New York Civil Liberties Union today applauded the Syracuse Common Council’s passage of legislation amending local civil rights law to protect transgender and gender non-conforming residents from discrimination in employment, housing and public accommodations, such as restaurants, hotels and stores. In an 7 to 1 vote, the Common Council approved a bill to amend the Syracuse Fair Practices Law to include gender identity and expression as protected categories. With the passage of this legislation, every large city in New York State has enacted basic civil rights protections for transgender and gender non-conforming residents and visitors. Buffalo, Rochester, Albany, Binghamton, Ithaca, New York City as well as Westchester, Suffolk, and Tompkins counties have similar local anti-discrimination laws.

The NYCLU notes that a statewide transgender rights bill has long been thwarted by the New York Senate. They believe that today's news from Syracuse may provide "additional momentum" for GENDA.

NEW YORK: Democrats Seek To Expel Renegade State Sen. Simcha Felder

As I noted yesterday, newly-elected Democratic state Sen. Simcha Felder has announced that he will caucus with the GOP, imperiling the chance of Democratic control of the chamber for the first time in many years, not to mention jeopardizing the long overdue Gender Non-Discrimination Act, which has languished for a decade. Now the Democrats say they are exploring how to expel Felder from the party.

George Arzt, a spokesman for the Kings County Democratic Leader, told me Democratic party officials are looking at "both the Kings County and state Democratic Party rules" to see if Felder could be ousted from the party. "If they do not have provisions, they will propose ways of expelling members for actions of this type," Arzt said. Already, Assemblyman Nick Perry, also of Brooklyn, wrote on Twitter that Felder "should be removed from [the] Dem[ocratic] Party. Let the GOP have him." In a statement this evening, the Brooklyn Democratic County Leader Frank Seddio, said, "Felder's entire campaign was a lie." "Every elected Democrat has an moral obligation to support the leadership of the party in the Legislature, but Felder has elected to betray that trust, not to mention the sacred trust of voters," Seddio said.

Felder was elected from Brooklyn's newly-drawn and heavily Orthodox Jewish district. His campaign was supported by Democratic state Assemblyman Dov Hikind, one of New York's nastiest opponents of LGBT rights. (During the 2011 marriage battle Hikind said that if New York were to approve same-sex marriage, "We take the Torah, God forbid, and throw it in the garbage.") Responding to the ouster threats, Felder said yesterday, "The Democratic party doesn’t sound very democratic today."

NEW YORK STATE: Defection Of Dem Senator May Give Control To GOP

Democratic New York state Senator-elect Simcha Felder, who last week won his seat in Brooklyn's newly drawn and heavily Orthodox Jewish district, has announced that he will caucus with the Republicans. Felder's decision may upend the Democrats' coming (for now) one-seat hold on the Senate majority.

The Democrat, Simcha Felder, a former city councilman who is a deputy to the New York City comptroller, John C. Liu, defeated a Republican incumbent, David Storobin, last week. Mr. Felder had said he was open to aligning himself with the party that best served the needs of his district, and on Tuesday he announced his decision after meeting with the Senate majority leader, Dean G. Skelos, a Long Island Republican. “I have enormous respect for the senators from both parties, but I must choose to caucus with those senators who will best serve the communities I represent,” Mr. Felder said, citing economic development, education and taxation as among his concerns. Both Republicans and Democrats are predicting that they will control a 63-seat Senate in January. After Election Day, the Democrats had 31 seats in the Senate, compared with 30 for the Republicans, but two races remain too close to call and depend on absentee ballots. Democrats hold narrow leads in the two undecided races, which would give them a one-vote majority after Mr. Felder’s defection.

As noted above, Felder won his seat against NOM's hero David Storobin, who spent his few weeks in the state Senate by pursuing a repeal of same-sex marriage before his district vanished into the new one.

In one hilarious irony to this mess, of all people, anti-gay asshat Sen. Ruben Diaz (D) is denouncing Felder and alleging that GOP Senate Leader Dean Skelos has promised Felder "committees and bonuses and fabulous prizes" for his defection.  Diaz, you may recall, staged his own Senate coup in 2009 in what, for the time, was a successful bid to thwart the passage of same-sex marriage. Diaz now claims he was just trying to get Hispanics into the Senate leadership:

You should know that in 2009 when the Four Amigos – Senators Hiram Monserrate, Pedro Espada, Carl Kruger, and I – staged a coup and asked for a Hispanic to be named Secretary of the State Senate, and asked for positions of power for Hispanics so we could better serve our communities as was never possible before in the New York State Senate, we were called traitors, bandidos, extortionists, crooks, thugs and every bad name out there. All the Four Amigos wanted was for Senate Committees to enjoy the same opportunities as other ethnicities and have the chance for Committees to be led by Hispanics in the State Senate.

"You should know" that three of the "Four Amigos" have since been convicted of felonies for corruption, bribery, and tax fraud. 

RELATED: The most important aspect of this latest nonsense in the careening clown car called the New York Senate is that Felder's defection may further delay passage of the Gender Non-Discrimination Act (GENDA), which has been stalled in the Senate for a decade due to GOP opposition. Some New York municipalities provide local protections for transgender citizens, but shamefully, New York state itself does not.

NY Senate Considers GENDA (Again)

The New York state Assembly has approved the Gender Expression and Non-Discrimination Act (GENDA) five times. And four times the bill has died in the state Senate. Will attempt number five be the one?

"I believe the votes are there. The challenge is getting a vote in the Senate. Folks are going to support expanded equal rights if they're forced to be on the record," said Sen. Daniel Squadron, a Manhattan Democrat and chief Senate sponsor. "It seems to be a core civil rights issue." New York was the sixth state to legalize same-sex marriage but Squadron said the state is falling behind here, where 16 states, New York City and several upstate cities and three counties have passed versions of GENDA. They include Albany, Rochester, Binghamton, Buffalo and Ithaca, as well as Westchester, Suffolk and Tompkins counties.

Asked about GENDA's chances, Senate Republican spokesman Mark Hansen said: "Our focus for the remainder of the session is to reduce taxes on businesses and create private sector new jobs." The Senate's Republican majority has historically backed bills to assure civil rights, including tougher penalties for those accused of assaulting people because they are gay. With gay and transgender advocates a power politically, Senate passage could also remove an election year issue for Senate Democrats trying to retake the Senate majority. Cuomo has expressed his support.

Hundreds of activists will be swarming Albany today as part of the Empire State Agenda's annual lobbying day. Let's hope this final embarrassment to New York gets put behind us.

HomoQuotable - Ed Koch

"I was truly shocked to read in the New York Times of April 12 that 'President Obama disappointed and vexed gay supporters on Wednesday with his decision, conveyed to activists by a senior adviser, not to sign an executive order banning discrimination by employers with federal contracts.' When I was elected mayor of New York City in 1977, taking office January 1, 1978, I issued such an executive order prohibiting such discrimination within the first 30 days of my administration. [snip]

"The public is ahead of the legislators they elected to Congress who will not enact such protections. According to a Gallup poll, 53 percent of Americans support same-sex marriage. Surely, an even larger number support ending discrimination in employment based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Mr. President, you have led the way on so many social needs. Please rethink your position on this one. The LGBT community has suffered discrimination too long to be asked to wait even longer." - Former NYC Mayor Ed Koch, writing for Newsmax.

NOTE: Longtime readers will recall that I've occasionally been quite critical of Koch over the years. So not only is the above message a welcome one, I'm pleased to point out that in the above-linked editorial, Koch even mentioned New York's long-lingering GENDA bill.

Thank You, Governor Paterson

As his final day in office winds to a close for Governor David Paterson, LGBT New Yorkers should offer him our thanks for being the most relentlessly and loudly pro-gay governor in state and arguably, national history. Our state movement's two most important pieces of legislation, GENDA and marriage equality, remain unattained, but that, of course, is due to our clown car of a state Senate and is no fault of the governor's.

Paterson, to his everlasting credit and over the loud protests of bigots, issued an executive order protecting state employees in New York from discrimination based on gender identity and expression. In May 2008, he directed state agencies to recognize out of state same-sex marriages, a move countered by numerous (and unsuccessful) lawsuits. And if there was a marriage equality rally or an angry protest, we usually showed up to find Governor Paterson at the podium or on a bullhorn. Probably my most memorable moment of Paterson's tenure was watching him stand in a pouring rain in Washington Square to deliver an impassioned speech against the bullying and abuse of LGBT youth.

And let's not forget Gov. Paterson's unexpected selection of an obscure upstate legislator with wobbly bona fides to fill the formidable shoes of then Sen. Hillary Clinton. Many questioned that move at the time (myself included), but Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand has surprised us all and turned into a powerful and effective advocate for LGBT New Yorkers. Sen. Gillibrand may turn out to be Paterson's most enduring legacy for the good of our movement.

We've had the occasional disagreement with Gov. Paterson, in particular the continuing exclusion of indigent HIV patients from the state's rent relief program for the seriously ill. But even that bad decision grew out of the state's financial morass and not from animus. Today, let's thank Governor David Paterson for his support of the LGBT community and hope that one day soon, we'll again see thousands of New Yorkers happily marching in the NYC Pride Parade wearing stickers proclaiming "We Luv Our Guv!"

Did A National Gym Owners Association Help Kill Trans Rights In New York?

Yesterday New York state's long-pending transgender rights bill, GENDA, died in the state Senate Judiciary Committee, one vote shy of passage. Many are blaming GENDA's failure on the bill's lone dissenting Democrat, the notorious Bronx homophobe Sen. Ruben Diaz.

But today we learned that the International Health, Racquet, and Sportsclub Association (IHRSA), a national gym owners consortium with hundreds of affiliate health clubs in New York, had lobbied against the bill, citing the worn-out complaints about men dressed as women in their locker rooms. IHRSA's objections were airing during the Senate hearing. Via Duncan Osbourne's Herd & Scene:

The association represents over 9,000 health clubs and 650 suppliers nationally with 285 member clubs in New York. It submitted testimony saying “while IHRSA unquestionably supports any legislation that guarantees equal protection for all citizens...we cannot support this legislation in its present form. We request that any legislation intending to protect the liberties of individuals, regardless of their gender identity or expression, be constructed in such a way that it does not encroach on the privacy rights of other citizens.” The issue? Bathrooms and locker rooms. The legislation would “prohibit a health club from preventing a health club user access to any locker room as long as their ‘expressed’ or ‘perceived’ gender identity is consistent with the sex to which the locker room is assigned,” the association asserted. The association wanted “the bathrooms or locker rooms of a health club, or a place of exercise established for the exclusive use of individuals of the same sex” exempted from the bill’s provision.

The problem with such an exemption is that it forever bans transgender people from these places which appears to violate the spirit if not the letter of non-discrimination laws. At first blush, the association’s stance would seem to be irrelevant as Republicans were probably going to oppose this bill in any case. What the association’s testimony did do was give opponents cover at the June 8 committee meeting. “One of the main arguments against this bill seems to be the issue of access, unfettered access to bathrooms, locker rooms,” said Senator George Winner, a Republican who represents four western New York counties, as he brandished the association’s testimony. “Is that a valid objection or valid point?”

Osbourne points out that IHRSA has lobbied similarly in Massachusetts, which is also considering adding transgender protections. IHRSA says they don't approve of discrimination in any form, but they want their locker rooms and "any place created for the exclusive use of individuals of the same sex" exempted from any trans rights bill.

Read Duncan Osbourne's full report.

GENDA Dies In NY Senate Committee Thanks To Arch Homophobe Ruben Diaz

Today the Gender Expression Non-Discrimination Act failed to move out of the New York Senate Judiciary Committee by ONE vote. And who was the lone dissenting Democratic vote that killed the bill? Our old nemesis, the evil Sen. Ruben Diaz. Via press release from the Empire State Pride Agenda:

Today the Senate Judiciary Committee took up the Gender Expression Non-Discrimination Act (GENDA) and failed to move it forward by a vote of 11-12. All the Republican Senators on the Committee voted against it, as did Senator Ruben Diaz as the lone Democrat vote in dissent. Some senators raised concerns about the use of bathrooms and other gender-segregated facilities, and a number of senators who voted against the bill expressed a willingness to support it if this issue could be sufficiently addressed. Committee Chair John Sampson promised to take these concerns back to the prime sponsor of the bill, Senator Tom Duane, for discussion.

Diaz, an evangelical pastor representing the Bronx, has a decades-long record of opposing virtually all LGBT rights bills. In 2008 he orchestrated the largest anti-gay rally in the history of New York when he led 10,000 Hispanic evangelicals in a gay marriage protest outside the Manhattan office of Gov. David Paterson. Diaz claims he is a not a homophobe because he has TWO gay brothers whom he "loves very much." Diaz showed his brothers that love in 1994 when he tried to block NYC from hosting the Gay Games because the event would "bring AIDS to New York."

TOMORROW: New York Senate Judiciary Committee Votes On Genda

Tomorrow the New York state Senate Judiciary Committee votes on the Gender Expression Non-Discrimination Act (GENDA) after having been twice passed by the state Assembly. It appears that there are enough votes in the full Senate for GENDA to pass, should it get out of committee. Via Dr. Jillian Weiss at Bilerico, here's a rundown of the vote and contact information for the uncommitted state Senators:

There are 23 members on the committee, so 12 yes votes would be needed to send the bill to the floor for a full Senate vote. Advocates for the bill say there are 11 yes votes, and 6 unconfirmed. In the full New York Senate, with 62 members, there are 32 yes votes and 15 unconfirmed. If the Judiciary vote proceeds tomorrow and is positive, and the bill is scheduled for a Senate floor vote, New York State could see a gender identity protection bill pass into law this year.

UNCONFIRMED VOTES

DeFrancisco -- Onandaga County (518-455-3511 Email - Facebook)

Saland -- Columbia, Dutchess Counties (518-455-2411 Email - Facebook)

LaValle -- Suffolk County (518-455-3121 Email - Facebook)

Winner -- Chemung, Schuyler, Steuben, Tompkins, Yates Counties (518-455-2091Email - Facebook)

Lanza -- Richmond (518-455-3215 Email - Facebook)

Leibell -- Dutchess, Putnam, Westchester Counties (518-455-3111 Email)

New York Senate May Have Votes To Finally Pass Transgender Protections

In 2002 the New York Senate rejected an amendment to include transgender protections in the Sexual Orientation Non-Discrimination Act (SONDA), which became law that year. Eight years later and after being approved by the state Assembly twice, it appears that we finally have the Senate votes to pass a stand-alone transgender protections bill, the Gender Expression Non-Discrimination Act (GENDA).

The chances of the Gender Expression Nondiscrimination Act (GENDA) becoming state law got a boost this week when one more New York State Senator publicly committed to voting in favor of the legislation. The total number of committed senators is now 32 — enough to pass the bill in the 62-member body. GENDA would add the category of “gender identity and expression” to existing New York State human rights laws that protect residents against discrimination in the areas of employment, housing, public accommodations, education and credit. It would make New York the 14th U.S. state to afford such protections. Senator William Stachowski is the newest senator to commit to voting “yes” on GENDA. The Democrat’s district includes Buffalo, a city that added gender identity to its non-discrimination laws in 2002.

It has taken eight years in New York state, of all places, to squeeze out the few votes needed to pass GENDA, should it happen. Keep that in mind during the current battle to retain the transgender provisions in the pending federal ENDA bill. That whole "we'll come back for YOU later" thing just doesn't work. Gov. Paterson has pledged to sign GENDA should it reach his desk.

NY Sen. Ruben Diaz Blocking Trans Rights

As expected, this week the New York Assembly passed GENDA, a comprehensive transgender rights bill, for the third time. The bill is now mired in a state Senate committee staffed by the state's most notorious homophobe, Rev. Ruben Diaz.

GENDA currently awaits action in the Investigations and Government Operations Committee chaired by Nassau County Democrat Craig Johnson. Though Johnson is a strong supporter of the measure, he has been unable to overcome opposition by fellow Democrat Ruben Diaz, Sr., a Bronx Pentecostal minister and fierce LGBT rights foe, in forging a majority in the committee where Democrats hold a 5-3 edge. For the moment, at least, the bill cannot move to the floor without the committee’s approval. Some advocates have pressed Duane to bring the measure before a more amenable committee, but that route would require a tweaking of its language, since other committees have oversight over different sections of the state code. The fact that the Assembly has chosen to move forward with passage in its current form suggests that solution is off the table.

It's unclear whether GENDA, if it ever gets past Diaz in committee, has the necessary votes for passage before the full Senate. That's where YOU come in. Please consider helping the Empire State Pride Agenda with its GENDA phonebanking effort to take place TONIGHT and next week (after office hours) at the ESPA headquarters in NYC.

Action Alert: GENDA Phonebanking In NYC

The Empire State Pride Agenda is looking for volunteers for a phone-banking push to get the Gender Expression Non-Discrimination Act (GENDA) passed in the New York Senate.

The phone banking schedule is as follows:

Tuesday, March 2nd
Thursday, March 4th

Tuesday, March 9th
Thursday, March 11th

Phone banks take place at our NYC office at 16 West 22nd St. 2nd floor, between 5th and 6th Aves. from 5:30pm-8:30 pm. Volunteers are free to come at any time between these hours.

Thirteen states and Washington DC have comprehensive transgender protections in place, but not New York state. Please consider dropping by the ESPA offices after work on the above dates and helping out.

NY State Assembly Approves GENDA

Via the Empire State Pride Agenda:

Today the New York State Assembly voted 102-33 to amend the state’s human rights law to include anti-discrimination protections based upon gender identity and expression. The bill (A.6584a), known as the Gender Expression Non-Discrimination Act (GENDA) bans discrimination against transgender people in housing, employment, credit, public accommodations, and other areas of everyday life.

“The Assembly has solidly demonstrated once again that it is the leader on civil rights and providing equality for our community where it didn’t exist before in New York,” said Empire State Pride Agenda Executive Director Alan Van Capelle. “We thank Assemblymember Richard Gottfried for his sponsorship and steadfast support of this bill. We also thank Speaker Silver and the Assembly Majority, the 74 cosponsors and the 102 Assemblymembers who passed this bill and understand the importance of providing an umbrella of anti-discrimination protection for all New Yorkers.”

As with all things decent in the New York legislature, the bill faces a difficult future in the Republican-led Senate.