Originally published in The Hill.
“Rep. Julia Brownley (D-Calif.) is kicking off the new Congress by introducing a bill that would rewrite federal laws with more gender neutral terms.
Under her legislation, known as the Amend the Code for Marriage Equality Act, the terms “husband” and “wife” in all federal laws would be replaced with the term “spouse.”
“While the landmark Supreme Court decision ending the ban on same-sex marriage was a historic step in the right direction, there is still more work to be done to ensure that the LGBTQ community is treated equally under the law in all respects,” Brownley said in a statement Thursday. “Our words reflect our values, and every gendered reference in our federal code undermines and de-legitimizes same-sex couples.”
The Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage nationwide in 2015, but LGBT rights advocates say discrimination against same-sex couples still persists.”…
Issues: 116th Congress, Civil Rights