On Monday, Judge Christopher Murray ruled that Michigan’s Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act (ELCRA) provides protection for individuals based on their gender identity — but not based on their sexual orientation .
Signed into law in 1977, ELCRA prohibits discrimination on the basis of “religion, race, color, national origin, age, sex, height, weight, familial status, or marital status” in employment, housing, education, and access to public accommodations.
In 2018, the Michigan Department of Civil Rights (MDCR) interpreted that “sex” as defined by ELCRA included protections based on sexual orientation — which allowed the department to begin processing complaints of discrimination against two businesses: Rouch World, an events venue and Uprooted Electrolysis, a hair removal business.
Rouch World declined to host a same-sex wedding in 2019, and Uprooted Electrolysis denied service to a trans woman.
