Utah Pride Center Reacts To SCOTUS Ruling

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – A historic ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court said federal law forbids workplaces from discriminating against members of the LGBTQ community based on their gender identity or sexual orientation.

“It is relieving to hear they ruled this way, because for a moment, people were concerned it might go the other way,” Utah Pride Center’s executive director Rob Moolman said.

Moolman is a member of the LGBTQ community and spoke to his personal experience watching as people are still being discriminated based on sexual orientation.

He adds that it was shocking to hear three US Supreme Court Justices believe it is legal to discriminate against someone in the workplace for any reason.

LGBTQ icons painted on Salt Lake City walls. What would they think of the SCOTUS ruling? @utahpridecenter thinks they’d be celebrating! pic.twitter.com/5NL7wtmMDA

— Morgan Wolfe KSL (@MorganWolfeKSL) June 16, 2020

The Beehive State is already two decades ahead of the US Supreme Court decision. The Utah Supreme Court took up the case involving a Utah County teacher, Wendy Weaver, who was told not to talk about her homosexuality at work or she would lose her job.

The courts sided with Weaver in 2003 after a five-year battle in appellate courts. Final determination was that the Nebo School District did not have authority to fire her based on her sexual orientation or gender identity.

“Progressive thinking in some spaces, and conservative in others,” Moolman said when describing Utah.

He believes Salt Lake City is one of the more forward-thinking cities in America.  Still, the Utah Pride Center sees hundreds of LGBTQ discrimination cases a year from areas outside of Salt Lake City.

If you or someone you know is feeling discriminated against based on their gender, or sexual orientation, contact the Utah Pride Center for help.