Benham: Equal is Not Equal

LGBTQ+ Pennsylvanians denied discrimination protections

Rep. Jessica Benham    January 28, 2021 | 3:15 PM

HARRISBURG, Jan. 26- State Rep. Jessica Benham, D-Allegheny, calls today’s failure to adopt an amendment that would have provided discrimination protections for LGBTQ+ Pennsylvanians abhorrent.

“Hearing anyone speak in opposition to equal protection and civil liberties is challenging,” said Benham. “Hearing my colleagues speaking out in opposition to granting members of the LGBTQ+ community the same basic protections afforded to everyone else was devastating.

“Many people claim to support equal rights for the LGBTQ+ community, but my experience as a member of this community has sadly, often proven otherwise, and today was no different,” Benham said. “I ask my Republican colleagues who refused to rise in support of LGBTQ+ civil liberties because ‘the timing wasn’t right’ while professing to support equality for all— Is it safe to infer they’d rise to support standalone legislation on this vital issue? Or, is the hope people will stop asking ‘If not now, then when’?”

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