LGBT Bar NY Opposes the Confirmation of Trump Judge Pick Who Attacked the Integrity of Gay Federal Judge in Prop 8 Case

The Trump administration continues to tap some of the most extremely anti-LGBT ideologues to serve lifetime appointments on the federal bench. The fight for equality has been waged in the courts, and federal judges are charged with upholding the rights of everyone.

At LeGaL, we are committed to ensuring that our judiciary is fair and impartial and staffed with qualified judges who reflect the diversity of New York and of the nation.

That is why we proudly stand with our civil rights partners in strong opposition to the confirmation of Howard Nielsen to the District Court in Utah.

From our letter to the Senate:

There are over 70,000 LGBT people who live in the state of Utah. Salt Lake City has the seventh highest percentage of adult LGBT people in the country — even larger than New York City. It is critical that this vulnerable minority, like everyone else, have access to equal justice under the law when they enter the courtroom.

Unfortunately, Mr. Nielson’s long record of working to undermine LGBT protections demonstrates that he will not be able to be able to impartially administer equal justice to them. Like nearly one-third of the judicial nominees that have been put forward by this administration, Mr. Nielson has a long history of working to strip LGBT people of their legal protections.

Specifically, it was Mr. Nielsen who launched a despicable attack on openly gay Judge Vaughn Walker after his ruling, which struck down California’s discriminatory Prop 8 as unconstitutional. Mr. Nielson had the audacity to suggest that a gay judge could not be fair and impartial in a marriage discrimination case.

Read the letter we sent to the Senate, and take action by calling your Senators and urging them to oppose the confirmation of Howard Nielsen to the District Court of Utah!