They say the Equality Act could be life changing. But they're discouraged by cases of LGBTQ couples being turned away from adoption and foster care agencies. Now, the question is whether enough Republicans would support the legislation so that the Equality Act could withstand a filibuster by those opposed to LGBTQ rights.Ĭlark and her wife of 11 years, Katie Killham, would like to have children. 25.Īdvocates have higher hopes this time around now that Democrats control the Senate and President Biden has indicated he would sign the bill into law. House in 2019 but died in the Republican-controlled Senate. It would make discrimination in housing, employment and public accommodations illegal. The Equality Act amends the 1964 Civil Rights Act to include LGBTQ people. She's hopeful the Equality Act will become law and make life easier for others. 'That came from my tough skin of being a black, gay female living the South,' Clark says. She never dreamed she could be her own boss. So, she started her own business teaching tourists a coastal tradition: how to catch blue crabs. 'I don't want to be in this fight and for me, I fought my whole life,' says Clark.

The 41-year-old fled a decades long career in the food and beverage industry, in part she says, because of discrimination by customers. Charleston native Tia Clark has learned to endure discrimination in conservative South Carolina, one of roughly two dozen states with few or no laws protecting LGBTQ people.

If I See You First by Tia Clark