LGBTQ issues

The Supreme Court of the United States has ruled in favor of anti-discrimination protections for LGTBQ people in the workplace. Advocates in Ohio are celebrating the ruling but say there's still more work to be done.

A bi-partisan bill would ban Ohio children under 18 from participating in so-called conversion therapy, the practice of trying to convert someone from gay to straight. 

The leader of minority Democrats in the Ohio House says when the new human resources handbook came out last month, it was missing the clause that provided job protection for LGBTQ employees. She wanted to know why that clause, which was in previous handbooks, had been removed.

Late on Friday, Republican Attorney General Dave Yost announced he’d join a U. S. Supreme Court case on whether federal civil rights laws protect LGBTQ employees from workplace discrimination – and that Ohio would be siding with the states that think they do not.

Some events for teens involving drag queens at libraries in Ohio have been canceled after controversy. Republican Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder sent a strongly worded letter last week to the Ohio Library Council, telling it to stop libraries from holding these events in the future. But one community decided to hold their event anyway in a different location.

A conservative Christian organization and a Catholic school have dropped their lawsuit against an Ohio city for its law protecting against LGBTQ discrimination.

Several people identifying as LGBT went before a Senate committee to tell their stories of discrimination. They want lawmakers to approve a bill that would add sexual orientation and gender identity as protected classes under the state’s anti-discrimination law. 

The Lyceum, a Catholic college preparatory school, is suing the city of South Euclid for its anti-discrimination laws protecting LGBTQ people. The school's attorney says, making sexual orientation and gender identity protected classes, threatens The Lyceum's religious freedom.

A group of Ohio legislators are trying to add sexual orientation and gender identity or expression into the state’s anti-discrimination law. The bill known as the “Ohio Fairness Act” would make those additions a protected class in employment, housing and other public accommodations.

Gov. John Kasich has included a new category into state protections against discrimination in an executive order he signed Wednesday. But those protections might not last very long.

The controversy over conservative federal judge Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation to a lifetime position on the U.S. Supreme Court has left many people wondering how the perceived shift in that bench will affect them. LGBTQ Ohioans are concerned.

The Human Rights Campaign estimates there are 1.8 million LGBTQ Ohioans and their allies. And there’s an effort to get those voters to the polls next month, with key statewide races and Ohio’s Congressional delegation on the ballot.

A bill that two conservative Republican lawmakers say asserts a parent’s right to decide if their transgender child should undergo treatment is getting strong pushback from an LGBTQ rights group.

Two Republican lawmakers have introduced a bill that they say would protect the rights of parents who oppose efforts to help their transgender children transition.

Vice President Mike Pence is set to visit Columbus tomorrow to tout the new federal tax reform plan but there will be attention on something else outside the venue.

A proposed law that would seek to stop discrimination for LGBTQ people is seeing a new wave of support. Business groups say sexual orientation and gender identification should be considered protected classes in Ohio.

Business groups are calling on lawmakers to pass a bill that would add sexual orientation and gender identity as protected classes in discrimination laws. The coalition of companies sees added benefits going beyond civil rights.

The bill to protect LGBTQ people from housing and employment discrimination is expected to take a big step as a committee prepares to hear from a major supporter - the Ohio Chamber of Commerce. The bill also seems to be getting support from the top House leader.

A state lawmaker says if Ohio wants to become more appealing as a place to move a business or to move a family, it must create protections for LGBTQ people. There could be new momentum for a bill that has stalled several times in the last decade.

The ACLU of Ohio is standing up for a Columbus City School employee who posted hateful comments against LGBTQ people and the city’s Pride Festival. 

A bill that would ban discrimination in housing or employment based on sexual gender or identity has been introduced in the legislature. And it’s not the first time.

A bill on religious freedom that was introduced last year and went nowhere is back.  The so-called “Pastor Protection Act” got its first hearing Wednesday, the day after it was introduced.  And now Gov. John Kasich has weighed in on it.

There still may be questions of party unity for the Democrats coming out of their national convention, but on one issue, the party seems to be very united – LGBTQ rights.

While people are still reeling in the aftermath of the mass shooting in Orlando, leaders in Ohio say it’s time to add more protections for the LGBT community. 

A bill that’s meant to add safeguards for religious leaders has some lawmakers worried about the possible unintended consequences it could have on marriage equality.