LANSING, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed expanded protections for members of the LGBTQ community into law on Thursday that includes explicit protections for sexual orientation and gender identity.

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The state legislature’s new Democratic majority passed the legislation earlier this month to update the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act (ELCRA). It will prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender identity or expression. It protects Michiganders from housing, employment, education and public accommodations discrimination since the 1970s.