Adds the following new Article 23 to the Vermont Constitution:
That the people are guaranteed equal protection under the law. The State shall not deny equal treatment under the law on account of a person's race, ethnicity, sex, religion, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, or national origin. Nothing in this Article shall be interpreted or applied to prevent the adoption or implementation of measures intended to provide equality of treatment and opportunity for members of groups that have historically been subject to discrimination.
Vermont requires constitutional amendments to pass two consecutive legislative sessions before going to voters.
This amendment writes new categories — including gender identity and gender expression — into the Vermont Constitution as protected classes. Christians who hold the biblical anthropology that man is created male and female (Genesis 1:27) will read this with concern: a constitutional amendment is far harder to revise than a statute, and the inclusion of gender-identity language locks in a contested definition of personhood for the long term. The proposal's third sentence also constitutionally permits affirmative-action style measures for historically discriminated groups, which raises distinct questions about equal-protection coherence. Note the votes: passage was nearly unanimous in both Vermont sessions. Organized opposition has been minimal. Vermont voters who oppose elevating sexual-orientation and gender-identity language to constitutional status will need to organize, since the legislature is not the venue for reversal.
"And God created man to his own image: to the image of God he created him: male and female he created them."
— Genesis 1:27 (Douay-Rheims) — see also Matthew 19:4 (KJV)