JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) – The Missouri Supreme Court has extended legal
protections against discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender
identity in two separate cases dealing with the rights of workers and students.
In one case involving a gay man, the court affirmed Tuesday that Missouri law
prohibits employment discrimination on the basis of a worker’s failure to
conform to sex-based stereotypes. The court ruled he had a legal basis to sue
after claiming he was harassed while working at the Missouri Department of
Social Services.
The court also sided with a transgender student in the Blue Springs School
District who had been denied access to the boys’ restrooms and locker rooms.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Missouri said in a statement that
members of the LGBTQ community should enjoy the same protections against
sex-based discrimination as everyone else. It hailed the two decisions as a step
toward improving the clarity of Missouri’s anti-discrimination stance.
The ACLU had filed friend-of-the-court briefs in both cases.
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