The LGBT community fought hard for marriage equality. It was a long hard fight, but they finally did it. However, there are other LGBT issues to focus on now that we have marriage equality. Read on to find out what some of those issues are.
1. Violence- The truth is that the LGBT community experience violence at higher rates than straight people, and LGBT people of color especially experience it at high rates. Violence against those who are lesbians, gay, bisexual or transgender should not have to worry about encountering violence due to their sexuality. There are many ways to curb violence against the LGBT community and one of the best ways is to increase awareness of violence against LGBT people and providing education to the general public.
2. Employment Discrimination- In 2013, a survey revealed that 21 percent of LGBT adults said they were treated unfairly by the people they work for due to their sexuality or because of the gender they identify with. Another survey revealed that around 50 percent of black LGBT have encountered discrimination in regards to employment. The rates are even higher for workers who are transgender, who have also reported to experiencing harassment while at work or being mistreated.
Numerous states have passed laws that make it illegal to discriminate against employees due to their sexual orientation. Even though states have passed laws, there is still not enough federal protection. Job discrimination is a huge issue within the LGBT community and it is an issue that needs to be focused on.
3. Poverty- Another major issue to focus on is poverty, which can lead to LGBT people becoming homeless, as well as be faced with poor health and food insecurity. In fact, some research has shown that workers who are LGBT are more likely to earn less per year when compared to the general population in the United States. The truth is that the LGBT community is vulnerable and they appear to be at a greater risk of experiencing poverty than the general population.
4. Healthcare- The LGBT community is also faced with a hard time accessing care, as well as getting health insurance, and this can lead to various issues such as mental illness, disease, drug use and obesity. Denial of coverage to LGBT people, especially transgenders may be a bigger issue than most people think. In fact, the Transgender Law Center discovered that gender identity discrimination in insurance prevents them from accessing essential services such as surgery, mental health services and hormone therapy. LGBT and accessing healthcare is a more issue that the community should focus on.
Healthcare, job discrimination, violence and poverty are issues that the LGBT community are faced with and those are issues that people should focus on. Remember, marriage equality was only one of the major issues the LGBT community faced. There are other issues they faced, but the four issues discussed above are some of the most major issues that people should focus and try to solve.