Moscow ordinance needed

I was pleased to come across the short Dec. 30 article concerning Moscow city officials’ consideration of an ordinance prohibiting discrimination in housing and employment due to sexual orientation or gender identity.

I have recently written a paper focusing on the systemic and institutionalized discrimination trans-persons face. A portion of the paper relies upon data available in the National Transgender Discrimination Survey. Among the alarming statistics, 19 percent of survey respondents report being denied equal opportunity in securing housing and 11 percent report experiencing an eviction due to their gender non-conformance.

Trans-persons even have difficulty finding charity housing as over one-half the participants report that they experienced harassment while staying in shelters.

The data surrounding employment is similarly concerning. For example, trans-persons experience twice the rate of unemployment as the general population and encounter trouble finding and retaining employment. Further, for those who successfully obtain employment, 90 percent experience on-the-job harassment and 15 percent take home less than $10,000 per year, which is four times the rate seen in the general population.

I sincerely hope that Moscow has the decency to pass the ordinance and provide some guiding light to the rest of Idaho.

Adrien Fox

Moscow