Supporters of same-sex marriage hold a rainbow flag and a rainbow umbrella outside Jefferson County Courthouse in Birmingham, Alabama February 9, 2015. The question is over the definition of the 'sex' part.
Title VII of the law states that discrimination 'on the basis of sex' by employers is illegal. Passed as the culmination of years of activism and organizing during the Civil Rights Movement, the 1964 Civil Rights Act federally mandated standards for employers, banning discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, and national origin. The arguments rely on different interpretations of the 1964 Civil Rights Act In order to understand what rights might be at stake for LGBTQ people and why the Trump administration's stance has been met with staunch backlash, here's a quick breakdown of the court cases being heard, the civil rights law in question, and what the possible outcomes could mean for LGBTQ people in the United States. One argues that transgender people are not covered under existing civil rights law, the other argues that sexuality-based discrimination is also not covered under the existing laws.
Earlier this year, the Trump Administration filed two amicus briefs to the Supreme Court. As with precedent-making cases before it, the White House has taken a particular interest in these cases.
