Lesbians, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in the US state of Pennsylvania face some legal and discriminatory challenges that non-LGBT residents do not. Sexual sexual activity is legal in Pennsylvania. Couples and same-sex families headed by same-sex couples qualify for all the protections available to different types of married couples. Pennsylvania is the last Mid-Atlantic country without same-sex marriage, does not have the form of law of the same-sex recognition until its legal prohibition is canceled on May 20, 2014.
Discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity is not prohibited throughout the state, although some towns and districts prohibit such discrimination, including Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Allentown, Erie and Reading (the five most populous cities in the state). Four of these cities also prohibit conversion therapy in minors.
Both Philadelphia and Pittsburgh have dynamic LGBT communities, with a pride parade being held since the 1970s and attracting over 100,000 attendees by 2017.
Video LGBT rights in Pennsylvania
Legality of same-sex sexual activity
Pennsylvania has repealed the sodomy law gradually. In 1972, the law legalized consensual sodomy for heterosexual married couples. In 1980, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled at Commonwealth v. Bonadio finds Pennsylvania's sodomy law unconstitutional for violating the same protection guarantees from both state and federal constitutions. Pennsylvania revoked the remaining sodomy laws in 1995.
Maps LGBT rights in Pennsylvania
Recognition of same-sex relations
Same-sex marriage was legalized in Pennsylvania on May 20, 2014, when US District Court Judge John E. Jones III resolved at Whitewood v. Wolf that the prohibition of state law on such marriages is unconstitutional. After the ACLU filed a lawsuit in federal court on July 9, 2013, Attorney General Kathleen Kane said she would refuse to defend the law.
Earlier, Pennsylvania did not recognize same-sex marriages, civil unions, or domestic partnerships. Efforts have been made in recent years to allow such unions. There are also attempts to change the State Constitution to ban same-sex marriage.
Local domestic partnerships
While domestic partnerships have never been offered across the state, the city of Philadelphia offers a 'life partnership' in case of "long-term commitment relationships between two unmarried people of the same sex who are city dwellers, or one of whom works in the city, owns property manifest in the city, own and operate a business in the city, or a recipient or have a personal interest in the employee benefits of City of Philadelphia. "The city of Pittsburgh also provides a domestic partnership. County employees in Luzerne County are required to identify whether they are in a domestic partnership, which is explicitly defined as between people of the same gender.
Adoption and parenting
Pennsylvania allows one person to adopt without respecting sexual orientation.
Until 2002, Pennsylvania did not allow adoption of stepchildren by people of the same sex as the first parents. The 6-0 decision by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court establishes the right of same-sex couples to adopt stepchildren. There is no law prohibiting same-sex couples from adopting children together.
Hates crime laws
Pennsylvania passed a law of hate crime in 2002 covering LGBT people, but the Pennsylvania High Court asserted it in 2008 on technical issues: legislators included the language into an unrelated bill on agricultural terrorism, changing the purpose of the bill during the legislative process, which violates the Pennsylvania Constitution. Legislation was introduced in several sessions to restore the law, but never came out of the committee.
Protection of discrimination
There are executive orders throughout the state that protect LGBT individuals from discrimination at work. In 1975, Pennsylvania became the first US state in which an executive order was issued to provide discriminatory protection on the basis of sexual orientation in state employment. In 2003, gender identity was added to this executive order and orders have been reissued by every governor ever since. On April 7, 2016, Governor Tom Wolf signed two executive orders, the first order prohibiting discrimination against state employees based on their sexual orientation, gender identity, HIV status and other factors and a second mandate that prohibits state contractors from discriminating against their LGBT employees.
For more than ten years, laws that will protect LGBT people across the state from discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity have been awaiting action at the Pennsylvania General Assembly. On December 17, 2013, Governor Tom Corbett announced his support for the law in regard to sexual orientation after learning that federal law has not provided the kind of protection he had previously thought. He said he anticipates bipartisan support for legislation.
Many municipalities and counties of Pennsylvania, including the five most populous cities, have enacted regulations that apply such discriminatory protection.
Gender identity and expression
Sex reassignment operations are legal in the state.
In August 2016, the Pennsylvania Department of Health changed the requirements for transgender people to change their gender on their birth certificates. Gender replacement surgery is no longer a requirement. Conversely, transgender people only need to present notes from doctors who claim they already have the right clinical care for gender transition. In addition, children under the age of 18 who wish to change their gender on their birth certificate will require their parents to make a request.
Conversion therapy
The bill to ban the use of conversion therapy in minors under LGBT in Pennsylvania was introduced at the General Assembly in April 2015. The bill has 20 sponsors, all of whom are Democrats. The bill, however, died without any legislative action.
On December 14, 2016, Pittsburgh became the first city in Pennsylvania to pass a bill banning conversion therapy in minors. The ban was passed 9-0 and came into force on 1 January 2017. Philadelphia and Allentown followed suit in July 2017. Reading and Doylestown imposed a ban on conversion therapy in December 2017. State College did it in February 2018.
Summary table
See also
- Law of Pennsylvania
- Pennsylvania Equality
- LGBT Rights in the United States
References
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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