A central Pennsylvania borough is poised to become the first municipality to repeal anti-discrimination safeguards that protect residents against discrimination based on their sexual orientation, ethnicity or gender identity. The plan by Chambersburg Borough Council to vote Monday to rescind the anti-discrimination ordinance comes only four months after the borough
90.5 WESA s The Confluence for Thursday, February 25, 2021
On today s program: The Pennsylvania State Education Association says it’s disappointed the U.S. Department of Education is not waiving annual assessments but appreciates flexibility from the state; PA Youth Congress, a youth LGBTQ advocacy organization, says there is an epidemic of violence against transgender people; and a researcher explains how HIV and COVID-19 have disproportionately affected people of color.
Schools continue to struggle with standardized testing delays amidst pandemic
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The U.S. Department of Education decided against waiving standardized tests despite many teachers calling upon the Biden Administration to cancel them amidst the pandemic.
President Biden gender identity order garners mixed reactions
Some people say it better protects LGBTQ people from discrimination based on their gender identity or sexual orientation. Opponents say the order is too broad. Author: Grace Griffaton (FOX43) Updated: 5:23 PM EST January 27, 2021
LANCASTER COUNTY, Pa. President Joe Biden signed an executive order prohibiting discrimination based on gender identity or sexual orientation.
Essentially, one of the things the order does is prohibit schools from denying LGBT people use of lockers, bathrooms, and the ability to be on sports teams.
“Children should be able to learn without worrying about whether they will be denied access to the restroom, the locker room, or school sports,” the executive order states. “Adults should be able to earn a living and pursue a vocation knowing that they will not be fired, demoted, or mistreated because of whom they go home to or because how they dress doe
Transgender community hails nomination of Dr. Rachel Levine to Biden administration
Updated Jan 19, 2021;
Dr. Rachel Levine is no stranger to derision due to her gender identity.
A transgender woman, Levine, Pennsylvania’s Health Secretary, in many ways has reflected back undercurrents of transphobic tendencies in this country.
The transgender community has historically fended off personal assails, attacks on its civil rights, and the troubling rates of homicide of transgender or gender non-conforming people. Levine, perhaps unwittingly at times, has served as a role model for the transgender community in Pennsylvania, negotiating hostile attacks even as she tended to the life and death issues of the coronavirus pandemic.