Barbara Boxer: “I rise today to urge my colleagues to vote for ENDA, the Employment Non-Discrimination Act. This bill is about basic…”

“I rise today to urge my colleagues to vote for ENDA, the Employment Non-Discrimination Act. This bill is about basic fairness, and it is really about the Golden Rule--treating others as you would like to be treated. Every single American should have the right to earn a living and provide for his or her family without fearing discrimination in the workplace because of who they are and whom they love. Americans like Marty Edwards, an assistant vice president of First National Bank of Granbury, Texas, whose story was recently featured in The Advocate. Marty was passed over for promotions at work despite a very strong 11-year history at the bank. When he asked for an explanation from his vice president and human resources department, he was told that the workers who had received the promotion were ``a better fit for the image we are looking for.'' Marty Edwards was hired by the bank right out of college. He formed his professional identity there. He was moving up the ladder until he came out as a gay man. When Edwards asked whether his sexual orientation was the main reason he had been denied promotion, the bank's executive vice president demanded his resignation. Edwards refused, and then he was fired. Sadly, Marty Edwards' story is not unique. Between 15 and 43 percent of LGBT people have experienced discrimination in the workplace or harassment in the workplace as a result of their sexual orientation.…”