Chellie Pingree: “I thank the chair for yielding the time, and I want to thank my friend, colleague, and fellow New Englander, Mr.…”

“I thank the chair for yielding the time, and I want to thank my friend, colleague, and fellow New Englander, Mr. Cicilline, for his courage, his perseverance, and, frankly, his political talents at moving this bill forward and bringing us here today. And I am not going to cry in my minute. I am proud that my home State of Maine is among the 21 States that has already enacted these protections. For almost 15 years, Mainers have stood against bigotry to provide equal access to housing, employment, and public establishments for our LGBTQ community. And, guess what. The sky did not fall when we passed protections, and, in fact, our State is a better, more inclusive place because of it. Having guaranteed civil rights for our LGBTQ neighbors means we value the health, safety, and dignity of every Mainer. But LGBTQ Mainers should have the same rights they enjoy in our State when they are outside of our State. This Congress must stand together in recognizing the humanity and the civil rights of all LGBTQ people, wherever they may live or travel. The Equality Act will ensure LGBTQ citizens have equal access to employment, education, housing, credit, and all public services--public services which their tax dollars fund, by the way. It is time to extend these civil rights to everyone, no matter who they love or how they identify. I urge my colleagues in the House to recognize that we must equally protect all members of our community under the law.…”