According to San Francisco law, discrimination is prohibited on the basis of race, religion, creed, ethnicity, national origin, color, ancestry, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, domestic partner status, marital status, disability, AIDS/HIV, weight and height.
If you believe you have experienced discrimination within the LGBT community, it is vitally important that you take action. Unfortunately, LGBT people are guilty of many of the same prejudices as our straight counterparts, and problems like racism, sexism, transphobia, and ageism occur within LGBT communities far more frequently than we’d care to admit. It is only by taking action and drawing attention to discrimination that we can address these problems and, in so doing, strengthen our community.
If you feel like you have experienced discrimination, here’s what you can do:
- If the act of discrimination involved physical violence or abuse, call the police and file a police report.
- Contact the San Francisco Human Rights Commission (HRC) at 415-252-2500. The HRC is charged with protecting the civil rights of all San Franciscans and addressing issues of discrimination. It will investigate discrimination complaints filed by individuals or groups; bring parties together for mediation to resolve disputes where appropriate; make referrals to other government agencies; and provide technical assistance to individuals and groups related to human rights and social services.
- Tell other people about what happened. We encourage you to seek support, to share your experience with friends, family, colleagues. We also encourage you to report discrimination to the proper authorities, to management (where relevant), and to the media. Indeed, the only way to end discrimination is to raise awareness about it.