Stop Discriminating Against Gay and Lesbian Public Servants!

Last April, Scott Bloch, appointed by President Bush after serving as associate director of the Office of Faith Based and Community Initiatives, ordered the removal of sexual orientation as a protected category on the office's website as well as its removal from all training materials from his office. He announced that he was initiating a review of the legal underpinnings of the long standing policy while calling on his staff to catch up on the large backlog of other discrimination complaints not yet investigated by his office. After intense pressure, the White House backed off and announced they would honor an Executive Order signed by President Clinton in 2000 that established a policy of protecting federal employees from discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.

Not even six months later, the administration continues to attempt to chip away at this policy, this time by attempting to replace the list of protected categories usually included in federal labor contracts with the phrase "any class protected by law," effectively removing gays and lesbians from protection.

Send a protest through Working Assets here.