Introduction
Even though the United States is considered a democratic nation, its citizens are still subject to different discrimination types. Minorities and special populations typically face prejudiced attitudes and suffer from adverse outcomes. For example, LGBTQ+ individuals, racial minorities, and people with disabilities are the most discriminated groups. In the US, noticeable and influential cases tend to occur, and they remind the nation of the existing problem and reduce the effect of discrimination. For instance, if a lesbian faces a prejudiced attitude at the workplace and this scandal is broadcast by federal mass media, the group considers this case an opportunity to claim their rights and oppose discrimination. The given presentation comments on real-life examples of such cases and describe how these situations have impacted the nation. In particular, Jacob Brashier, a gay man, was fired after revealing his sexual orientation, while Armando Gutierrez lost his job for being HIV-positive. These two cases are significant because they have resulted in specific outcomes.
Bushier’s Case Explained
The first case refers to Jacob Bashier, who was fired after revealing that he was gay. The man reported that he experienced ridicule and humiliation from his employer (Lang, 2020). Other employees also harassed Bashier based on his sexual orientation, which adversely affected his mental health and working abilities. That is why Jacob decided to file a lawsuit against his employer and demanded financial compensation. A significant characteristic feature of this case was that Bashier was fired four days after the important Supreme Court ruling. That decision indicated that under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, LBGTQ+ individuals were protected against discrimination based on their sexual orientation (Lang, 2020). Consequently, Bashir’s case demonstrates that not all employers started implementing the ruling in their practice. As a result, Jacob had moral rights and legal opportunities to file against his employer and expect that the court decision would satisfy his request.
Long-Term Outcome
Now, it is reasonable to comment on what outcomes Bushier’s complaint brought. Even though the case is still in process and there is no court decision, it is still possible to comment on this situation’s results. On the one hand, Bushier’s case indicated that the Supreme Court ruling was not considered obligatory by all employers. The man and his attorney revealed that some people still kept discriminating against others based on sexual orientation. This fact revealed that the government should have taken specific measures to ensure that all citizens were aware of the new legislation pieces. On the other hand, the selected case supported the belief that the Supreme Court ruling was justified. Since Bashier was fired four days after the court decision was announced, the community could establish a connection between these two events. This fact allowed society to understand that certain groups of individuals required protection and assistance to deal with prejudiced attitudes.
Potential Prejudice and Intervention
In addition to that, LGBTQ+ individuals are subject to discrimination in a behavioral health setting. Examples of prejudice include slurs, microaggressions, violence, harassment regarding bathroom use, and others (Casey et al., 2019). This statement demonstrates that therapists, healthcare professionals, or other patients can express biased attitudes toward people with nonstandard sexual orientations. That is why it is reasonable to comment on specific interventions that can help address the issue. According to Casey et al. (2019), both top-down and bottom-up strategies are effective in this case. Firstly, it is reasonable to implement national policies that can minimize the stigmatization of LGBTQ+ people. Secondly, the government can encourage citizens to form community organizations that would advocate for the rights of this population group. Finally, it can be effective to create specific programs that would protect LGBTQ+ people and provide them with equal opportunities in the spheres of health care, employment, legal systems, and others.
Gutierrez’s Case Explained
The second case refers to Armando Gutierrez, who was fired after revealing his HIV-positive status to his employer, The Big Biscuit. The man learned about his diagnosis in 2018, and he needed to disclose it to his boss for the latter to sign a document stating that Gutierrez did not receive workplace health insurance (Epstein, 2019). After that, the man suddenly found that he was transferred to another location, where he was expected to work on Sundays (Epstein, 2019). Gutierrez mentioned that he could not work on Sundays because he had family affairs on this weekday. The result was his dismissal, and the man was sure that this outcome occurred because of his health condition. That is why he filed a lawsuit against his employer for violating the Americans with Disabilities Act and sought financial compensation (Epstein, 2019). This information demonstrates that Armando Gutierrez faced discrimination at the workplace and adequately responded to it.
Long-Term Outcome
Even though the case is still in progress, it is possible to clarify what outcomes it brought. To begin with, one should highlight that Gutierrez’s complaint demonstrated that some employees could discriminate against HIV-positive people. This fact should be interpreted as nonsense because the Americans with Disabilities Act was specifically designed to eliminate such harmful practices. Then, the case demonstrated that if people with this diagnosis faced a prejudiced attitude, they could protect themselves with the help of legal means. Consequently, Gutierrez helped other HIV-positive individuals understand that it was not right to accept discrimination. Finally, the selected example was essential because it allowed for drawing public attention to the existing problem. Citizens identified that people with HIV can suffer from stigma and are forced to fight to live a normal life. That is why it is possible to suggest that Gutierrez’s case made significant efforts to protect HIV-positive people from discrimination.
Potential Prejudice and Intervention
When it comes to behavioral health settings, HIV-positive people can face prejudiced attitudes that are manifested in different types. In particular, such people can suffer from marginalization, verbal harassment, and others (Yuvaraj et al., 2020). In addition to that, excessive personal protective equipment, delaying the provision of care, and denying service are other examples of discrimination against people with this diagnosis (Yuvaraj et al., 2020). That is why it is reasonable to comment on what interventions can be effective in addressing the problem. On the one hand, a community-based response is to rely on social leaders and make them articulate the ideas that it is not appropriate to discriminate against HIV-positive individuals (Yuvaraj et al., 2020). On the other hand, individual-level interventions include promoting education and information-sharing to ensure that numerous people understand the disadvantages of HIV stigmatization (Yuvaraj et al., 2020). Consequently, these exist effective measures to address the existing problem.
Conclusion
The presentation has demonstrated that discrimination is still present in the United States. Specific population groups are at higher risk of experiencing such prejudiced attitudes. For example, LGBTQ+ and HIV-positive people face this bias, and the cases of Jacob Bashier and Armando Gutierrez prove this claim. Adverse situations occurred with these men and revealed the problems that existed in American society. In particular, these events highlighted that minorities were subject to discriminatory attitudes even though the Supreme Court ruling and the Americans with Disabilities Act were created to prohibit these adverse phenomena. Even though the cases were negative on their own, they implied some positive consequences in the long run. In particular, these situations drew public attention to the existing problems and highlighted the importance of an equal society. As a result, employers understood that their discriminatory practices could be contested in court, which resulted in the emergence of an appropriate and fair working environment.
References
Casey, L. S., Reisner, S. L., Findling, M. G., Blendon, R. J., Benson, J. M., Sayde, J. M., & Miller, C. (2019). Discrimination in the United States: Experiences of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer Americans. Health Services Research, 54(Suppl 2), 1454–1466.
Epstein, K. (2019). He revealed his HIV status to his employer. Then he was fired, a lawsuit alleges. The Washington Post.
Lang, N. (2020). He was fired for being gay four days after the Supreme Court ruling. Now he’s suing. Them.
Yuvaraj, A., Mahendra, V. S., Chakrapani, V., Yunihastuti, E., Santella, A. J., Ranauta, A., & Doughty, J. (2020). HIV and stigma in the healthcare setting. Oral Diseases, 26, 103-111.