By Peter J. Smith
WASHINGTON, D.C., August 26, 2009 (LifeSiteNews.com) - In a case that is the
first of its kind, a federal court has ruled that laws prohibiting
discrimination based on sexual orientation in the
The Superior
Court of the
"We are gratified that the ex-gay community in
PFOX had filed a discrimination complaint to the OHR after the
national teachers union had refused to give the group a booth at the NEA's EXPO
2002 convention in Dallas,
Although the DC Human Rights Act prohibits discrimination
based on "sexual preference," "sexual orientation,"
"gender identity," and "gender expression," the OHR
maintained that only homosexuals, bisexuals, "transgenders", and
cross-dressers qualified for protection under the Act. Ex-homosexuals did not
qualify, because the OHR said sexual orientation was "immutable."
P-FOX then appealed the OHR decision to the Superior Court,
which has the final say over agency decisions in the nation's capital.
The Superior Court rejected that argument as
"erroneous" and said the OHR had ignored the "plain language and
explicitly stated intent" of the HRA, which protects plenty of
circumstances subject to change such as "religion, personal appearance,
familial status, and source of income."
The court said that the language protected individuals on
both their sexual "preference or practice," meaning that the law also
protected those who changed their sexual practices from homosexual to
heterosexual.
"By failing to protect former homosexuals, the sexual
orientation laws gave more rights to homosexuals than heterosexuals who were
once gay," said Griggs, who added that PFOX was happy with the result
"that ex-gays are a protected class under 'sexual orientation.'"
The Superior Court did rule that the NEA was within its
rights to reject PFOX's application to its annual conference on the grounds
that it could prohibit the attendance of those groups, which it deemed contrary
to its policies or could prove disruptive. For those reasons, the court let the
OHR decision against PFOX stand.
"All sexual orientation laws and programs nationwide
should now provide true diversity and equality by including former
homosexuals," said Greg Quinlan, a director of PFOX. "I have
experienced more personal assaults as a former homosexual than I ever did as a
gay man."
PFOX called on the NEA to stop "denying equality to
former homosexuals" and to include an ex-gay caucus member to the NEA
Sexual Orientation Committee.