On March 4, 2010, the recently elected Attorney General of Virginia, Kenneth Cuccinelli, sent a letter to Virginia’s Public Colleges and Universities writing that, “the law and public policy of Virginia prohibit a college or university from including “sexual orientation,” “gender identity,” “gender expression,” or like terms in its non-discrimination policy unless the General Assembly of Virginia specifically authorize doing so.  The letter was reprinted in The Washington Post here: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/metro/Cuccinelli.pdf

Reacting to this letter, more than 1,000 students gathered in the state capitol of Richmond, Virginia to protest the Attorney General’s prohibition on expanding anti-discrimination rights absent legislative authorization.  National news outlets published the story and Jon Stewart lampooned the policy on his television show.

Responding to this outcry against the Attorney General’s legal opinion, Governor Bob McDonnell (R-VA) issued a directive on March 10, 2010 to all 102,000 Virginia state employees that prohibits discrimination in the state workforce, including on the basis of sexual orientation.

Leeds Morelli & Brown, PC is a nationally recognized leader in the area of employment law.  We believe that discrimination based on a person’s sexual orientation, gender, race, religion, ethnicity age or disability has no place in a democratic society.  Our firm has had considerable success in matters of employment discrimination throughout Long Island and the New York City area.  We take great pride not only in providing quality legal service and representation, but also in being there for clients when they need it most.

For more information, contact Leeds, Morelli and Brown, PC at 1-800-585-4658 for a free consultation.