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People of faith calling for LGBTQ civil rights legislation

By Rev. Gusti Newquist - Guest Columnist | Dec 17, 2021

As a faith leader in Shepherdstown, I hope our U.S. senators, Joe Manchin and Shelley Moore Capito, will come together to find common ground, ensuring fairness and equality for all Americans. With both political parties now offering proposals to add LGBTQ nondiscrimination protections to the law, I look to Manchin and Capito to help hammer out the details of this crucial legislation.

As an alumna of Marshall University, I was excited to return to West Virginia two years ago to become pastor of Shepherdstown Presbyterian Church. Shepherdstown Presbyterian is a More Light congregation that welcomes the full participation of LGBTQ members in our family of faith and advocates for their equality in the broader society. For many years, LGBTQ congregants and their families have been part of our church leadership, and as home to Shepherd University, the town has long embraced our LGBTQ neighbors.

I also know, however, that many LGBTQ West Virginians — young people, in particular — continue to struggle to find acceptance, from their families as well as in their communities. I have witnessed first-hand the hurdles they face. This is why our congregation supports the Eastern Panhandle Youth Alliance, which provides support to LGBTQ young people.

Beyond Shepherdstown, other municipalities in the state, such as Charleston, Huntington and Morgantown, have stepped up to enact LGBTQ nondiscrimination ordinances. But West Virginia still offers no statewide protections, nor does it protect school students from bullying and harassment.

What I’ve witnessed in West Virginia is not unique. Discrimination has profoundly damaging consequences for LGBTQ Americans nationwide. One in three, according to a 2020 survey, experienced discrimination — in public spaces, on the job, in schools and in their own neighborhoods — in just the previous year.

That number rises to 60 percent among transgender people, who experience exceptionally high levels of unemployment, poverty and homelessness. They are also stalked by violence, with a record 44 hate-motivated murders nationwide last year.

Black and Latino LGBTQ folks face greater poverty rates, generally, than other people of color. Less than half of the states protect children from bullying in school. Elders must often re-closet themselves, with nearly half of same-sex couples reporting discrimination in seeking senior housing.

Thankfully, there is now hope Congress will act. For the first time in history, both Democrats and Republicans have put forward measures that add LGBTQ protections to our nation’s civil rights laws. The major disagreement between the two parties involves balancing the urgent need to protect LGBTQ people with the religious freedoms we cherish as Americans.

Finding a path to getting that job done is what legislators do when committed to solving problems. Manchin and Capito can look to the 21 states — including our neighbors Virginia and Maryland — with laws that prohibit anti-LGBTQ discrimination without compromising religious freedoms.

Washington can follow suit, with senators reaching across the aisle to end the divisive pattern that pits religious liberties against LGBTQ rights. In truth, this is a false divide.

Senators Manchin and Capito, tens of thousands of LGBTQ West Virginians and their families and friends are counting on you.

Rev. Gusti Linnea Newquist is the pastor of Shepherdstown Presbyterian Church. She may be reached gusti@sheperdstownpresbyterian.org.