ACLU pursuing ban on transgender discrimination

By David Waite
Advertiser Courts Writer

The American Civil Liberties Union has filed a brief with the Hawai'i Supreme Court, asking it to take notice of decisions rendered in state and federal courts elsewhere that "gender identity" discrimination has been found to be illegal.

"Discriminating against someone for failing to conform to stereotypes about how a man or woman should look or act is sex discrimination under the law," said Ken Choe, a staff attorney with the ACLU's Lesbian and Gay Rights Project, which submitted a friend-of-the-court brief in a Hawai'i case yesterday.

The case involves a decision by the Hawai'i Civil Rights Commission that "transgender" people are covered by prohibitions against sex discrimination. Several complaints were filed against RGIS Inventory Specialist, a company that provides inventory services to retailers, the ACLU said.

RGIS challenged the commission's decision, claiming that transgender people aren't covered by sex discrimination laws. The commission lost, but is appealing the decision to the Hawai'i Supreme Court. RGIS officials could not be reached immediately to comment.

Brent White, legal director for the ACLU of Hawaii, said the transgender issue is an important one that needs to be settled.

"It's far too common for transgender people to lose their jobs, their homes, and even their lives," White said. "We hope this lawsuit will be a step forward in correcting the injustices that transgender people face every day."