Oh no! Run in Circles! Cover yourself in Ashes!

On the first day of his presidency, Joe Biden commenced the most sweeping expansion of LGBTQ rights in American history. In a historic executive order, Biden ordered every federal agency to clarify that civil rights laws prohibiting sex discrimination also prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. This move will extend nondiscrimination protections to millions of LGBTQ people with regard to housing, education, immigration, credit, health care, military service, Peace Corps service, family and medical leave, welfare, criminal justice, law enforcement, transportation, federal grants, and so much more.

While some of Biden’s executive orders may be vulnerable to court challenges, this one is essentially bulletproof. It merely implements the Supreme Court’s decision in Bostock v. Clayton County, something the Trump administration refused to do. In Bostock, the Supreme Court held that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 bars employment discrimination against LGBTQ people. Title VII does not explicitly mention sexual orientation or gender identity; rather, it bars workplace discrimination “because of sex.” But the court held that it is impossible to discriminate against LGBTQ workers without taking their sex into account.