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Louisiana State Bar Association Takes a Stand for LGBTQ Equality
The Louisiana State Bar Association House of Delegates has passed a resolution affirming its support of LGBT equality and opposing anti-LGBT laws. The resolution was submitted at the association’s House of Delegates meeting on Thursday by Don Paul Landry, a House of Delegates member and chair of the Religion and Faith and Political committees of the HRC Louisiana Steering Committee.
“The resolution has two parts. The first section calls for the condemnation and repeal of anti-LGBT legal authority in this state. Whether or not these laws are enforceable is not the issue. Legal authority that makes one group of people second-class citizens and expresses moral disapproval of them is not an appropriate use of our laws or Constitution,” Landry said in his remarks to the bar.
“The second part of the resolution is support for laws that establish LGBT-equality in our state. Make no mistake, the laws of this state targeted LGBT people and made them second-class citizens. Only by correcting the law can we correct the problem caused by the law,” Landry said.
Landry also highlighted the detrimental psychological effect that such laws have on LGBT people – especially LGBT young people. He pointed out that even though marriage equality has brought great progress in some ways, it has sometimes led to more discrimination, as individuals who disclose their marital status on job applications and elsewhere can be singled out for negative consequences.
“We are lawyers, and what we do is to seek justice. This association has taken a stand that those on the margins must be treated fairly under the law and have equal access to the justice. In order for that to happen with the LGBT community, the laws themselves must be just,” Landry said.
HRC fights for LGBTQ equality in Louisiana alongside state and local groups and lawmakers. Find out more about what HRC is doing for LGBTQ equality in Louisiana and how you can get involved with the New Orleans community.
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