Add another victory for PFLAG.  The Howard County Council is moving to make gender identity a protected status under county law, prohibiting discrimination based on gender identity in housing and employment.

Howard County is a suburban county between Baltimore and Washington, and it will be the third jurisdiction in Maryland to add gender identity as a protected class after Montgomery County and the City of Baltimore.  Howard County neighbors Baltimore County, which was the site of a recent brutal beating of a transgendered woman that went viral on the internet.  That assault was prosecuted under Baltimore County Hate Crime Laws.

County Council member Courtney Watson credited PFLAG (Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays) with introducing the idea for the legislation and working to get it passed.  Well done.