“Somebody had to stand up for workplace discrimination, and right now, at this time, I’m the one. I didn’t ask for this, but I’m willing to do it so that no one has the fear of going to work and being fired for who they are or who they love.” - Gerald Bostock

On June 15, 2020, the United States Supreme Court ruled that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 protects LGBTQ workers from discrimination. This landmark decision came out of three cases: Bostock v. Clayton County, Georgia; Altitude Express, Inc., et al v. Zarda et al., as Co-Independent Executors of the Estate of Zarda; and R.G. and G.R. Harris Funeral Homes, Inc. v. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission et al. These three cases revolved around the termination of three LGBTQ employees because of their sexual and/or gender identity. Altitude Express out of Long Island, New York, fired the late Donald Zarda for discussing his sexuality with a customer; R.G. and G.R. Harris Funeral Homes fired the late funeral director Aimee Stephens after her gender transition; and Clayton County, Georgia, fired Gerald Bostock after his sexual orientation became public knowledge. The Second and Sixth Circuit courts allowed Zarda’s and Stephen’s cases to proceed, but the Eleventh Circuit court held that sexual orientation is not protected under Title VII.

Bostock’s Supreme Court case played out in the national spotlight between June 2019 and June 2020, but the legal battle began about seven years before the case reached Capitol Hill. Gerald Bostock worked as a child welfare services coordinator for ten years in Clayton County, Georgia. Bostock frequently won awards for his work with Clayton County, and he took the Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) program to “unprecedented levels of success” during his tenure. When the county learned about Bostock’s sexuality and his encouragement of friends in the Hotlanta Softball League to volunteer for CASA, the county fired him for what they claimed was “conduct unbecoming” of a county employee. Bostock, who came out as gay in 1994, always gravitated to sports like softball for the camaraderie and the social support. His Hotlanta team members, whom Bostock describes as akin to “brothers and sisters,” provided a crucial support network to help him through the Supreme Court trial.

Buckley Beal attorneys Brian J. Sutherland and Thomas “Tom” J. Mew, IV, took Gerald Bostock’s case to the Eleventh Circuit court and eventually, with the assistance of the American Civil Liberties Union of Georgia, to the United States Supreme Court. Lawsuits involving discrimination in the workplace occur often in Georgia due to its status as an “employment at-will” state. Additionally, Georgia is one of three states without a “broad, state-level civil rights law protecting employees from discrimination based on factors like sex, race, religion or national origin,” and, as of June 2020, has passed only one piece of legislation protecting LGBTQ individuals in Georgia.

The June 15, 2020, decision of the United States Supreme Court came on a 6 to 3 ruling. Justice Gorsuch delivered the Opinion of the Court, along with Justices Roberts, Ginsburg, Breyer, Sotomayor, and Kagan. Justices Alito and Thomas filed a dissenting opinion, and Justice Kavanaugh filed a separate dissent. In the majority opinion, Justice Gorsuch argued:

“An employer who fires an individual for being homosexual or transgender fires that person for traits or actions it would not have questioned in members of a different sex. Sex plays a necessary and undisguisable role in the decision, exactly what Title VII forbids.”

A major argument in favor of Bostock relies on the terminology in Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The Justices in the Opinion of the Court described the “but-for test” which “directs us to change one thing at a time and see if the outcome changes,” in determining if one aspect of the outcome caused the outcome itself. According to the Justices, as long as the plaintiff’s sex plays a role in the cause of the decision, it is enough to “trigger the law” in determining whether it is a case of discrimination. Bostock’s case not only has had long term effects on the entire United States with the federal, uniform protection of LGBTQ workers, but also has changed the legal landscape of employee discrimination in Georgia as an “at-will” state.

The collection illustrates how important baseball, band, softball, and other communities have been to Bostock throughout his life. From his Pee Wee Champs trophies, to his Valdosta High School band photo, and his Pi Kappa Phi memorabilia, these materials reveal the ways that Southerners, and particularly queer Southerners, find community and foster relationships. Additionally, the items provide insight into the importance of sports for young Southern boys and men and builds a richer picture of the lives and experiences of gay youth.

(Created in June 2021 by Annie Shirley, a student in Dr. Stephanie Chalifoux’s HIST 4485/5485 (Archiving in the Queer South) and HIST 6687 (History of Sexuality) classes, and Sarah I. Rodriguez, History Program Graduate Research Assistant.)