考研英语阅读篇章: 奥巴马签署同性恋保护法令

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    考研英语阅读篇章：奥巴马签署同性恋保护法令
   
    President Barack Obama has signed an order banning federal government
contractors from discriminating against gay and transgender workers.
    美国总统奥巴马签署一项法令，该法令将禁止联邦政府合同商歧视同性恋、变性员工。
    The executive order follows years of pressure from gay rights groups.
    Mr Obama cannot extend the protection to all American workers, however.
    The order comes after far broader anti-discrimination legislation stalled
in the Republican-led House of Representatives. But it still applies to nearly a
quarter of US workers.
    The order also extends anti-discrimination protection to transgender
workers in the federal government itself. Gay federal workers are already
protected against discrimination.
    "It doesn't make much sense, but today in America, millions of our fellow
citizens wake up and go to work with the awareness that they could lose their
job, not because of anything they do or fail to do, but because of who they are
- lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender," Mr Obama said at the White House.
    "And that's wrong. We're here to do what we can to make it right - to bend
that arc of justice just a little bit in a better direction."
    Eighteen states have already banned workplace discrimination based on
sexual orientation and gender identity, as have more than 200 cities and other
local governments.
    The executive order did not include an exemption(免除，豁免) for religious
organisations that contract with the federal government.
    "The president missed an opportunity to lead the nation toward greater
tolerance and social harmony by respecting diverse viewpoints on divisive
issues," Leith Anderson, president of the National Association of Evangelicals,
a Christian group, said in a statement. "Religious groups that have longstanding
and principled positions should be allowed to compete for federal contracts on
an equal basis."
    The group said religious organisations work for the government on overseas
humanitarian relief missions, in prisons and other roles.
    Mr Obama also called on Congress to pass a far-reaching bill called the
Employment Non-Discrimination Act (Enda), which passed the Democratic-controlled
US Senate last year but has since languished in the Republican-led House of
Representatives.
    That legislation would bar employers with 15 or more workers from making
employment decisions - hiring, firing or compensation - based on sexual
orientation or gender identity.
    But Republican House Speaker John Boehner opposes the bill, arguing it
could lead to lawsuits and hinder(阻碍) job creation.