COURT HOLDS THAT THE NEW YORK CITY HUMAN RIGHTS LAW PROTECTS TRANSGENDER PERSONS
A state Judge in Brooklyn has re-confirmed the broad goals of the New York City Human Rights Law. In Bumpus v. New York City Transit Authority, 18 Misc.3d 1131(A) (N.Y. Feb. 13, 2008), the plaintiff was a transgender woman, who had been born anatomically male, but lived her life with a female identity and lived each day as a woman. She complained that she had been discriminated against by a Transit Authority employee, who had harassed her and made “transgender-phobic epithets” to her for a period of approximately 10 minutes.
The court denied the Transit Authority’s motion to dismiss the case, reaffirming that “[t]he Human Rights Law affords protection to transgender people in New York City.” The Court noted that “[t]he New York City Human Rights Law was intended to be more protective than the state and federal counterpart,” and that “[t]he legislative history contemplates that the Law be independently construed with the aim of making it the most progressive in the nation.”
In its decision regarding the New York City Human Rights Law, the court relied on the case of Selmanovic v. NYSE Group, a case in which, we are proud to say, our office participated. We remain committed to fighting to ensure that the New York City Human Rights Law remains one of the most stringent and protective human rights laws in the country.
