Gerald Lynn Bostock

Gerald Bostock was one of the petitioners in the landmark Supreme Court case Bostock v. Clayton County. After working for the Georgia county for a period of ten years, Bostock joined a gay baseball team and was fired soon after for “conduct ‘unbecoming a county employee.” Bostock subsequently sued for violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which protects against discrimination on the basis of sex in employment. The Supreme Court sided with Bostock, ruling that discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity was prohibited by Title VII.

On October 8, 2019, Gerald Bostock spoke before the Supreme Court, and in less than a year, Bostock v. Clayton County would defend individuals fired for being LGBTQ+.

Involvement with Bostock v. Clayton County

From 2003 to 2013, Bostock worked as a child welfare services coordinator for Clayton County’s Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) program. He taught and allocated volunteers for children who were mistreated in court proceedings. In early 2013, Gerald Bostock joined a gay softball team, and he received “disparaging comments” for his participation in the Hotlanta Softball League and his sexuality. In June of 2013, Bostock arrived at work but could not enter the building, since his key card would not function. Bostock’s employers told him that he was fired for “conduct ‘unbecoming’ a county employee.” Clayton County argued that his termination related to the mismanagement of funds determined in an audit.

A few months later, Gerald Bostock filed a discrimination charge with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). In 2016, he sued the county for violating Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The district court dismissed his suit, since it opposed the recent decision of Evans v. Georgia Regional Hospital, 850 F.3d 1248 (11th Circuit 2017), which affirmed a 1979 decision that interpreted the Civil Rights Act of 1964 as not preventing discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity in the workplace. Gerald Bostock appealed to the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in July of 2018, only to receive the same ruling and notes on procedural issues in Bostock’s appeal.

When Gerald Bostock appealed to the Supreme Court as a petitioner, his case was combined with that of Donald Zarda (Altitude Express Inc. v. Zarda) and Aimee Stephens (R.G. & G.R. Harris Funeral Homes Inc. v. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission) under his name. In an interview with NBC News, Bostock expressed that he walked away “even more optimistic” for their victory after speaking before the Court. He also predicted the decision would be written by Neil Gorsuch in a “6-3 verdict.”

On June 15, 2020, the Supreme Court determined that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act “protects gay, lesbian, and transgender people from discrimination in employment.” Brain Sutherland, Bostock’s attorney, argued that Price Waterhouse v. Hopkins at Thirty, a case defending a woman denied partnership for her femininity, protected individuals from discrimination based upon sex stereotyping, which applied “broadly” to include “same-sex sexual harassment.” When the Supreme Court published the decision, Gerald Bostock had to quickly get off a work call. The Supreme Court case page crashed, and when he finally got access to the first page, Bostock knew that they had won.

After Gerald Bostock won his case at the Supreme Court level, his suit went down to the lower courts. In November of 2022, the Clayton County Board of Commissioners approved an $825,000 settlement for Bostock.

Professional life

Starting in 2003, Gerald Bostock served Clayton County as a child welfare services coordinator. He managed the training of volunteers to defend “at-risk children in the Clayton County juvenile system.” Attorney Sutherland noted that Bostock was an “incredibly effective employee,” winning “awards” for his work. Bostock would later comment that they served “100 percent of children in care.” In 2013, Gerald Bostock began recruiting members of the Hotlanta Softball League to become Court Appointed Special Advocates. In May of 2013, at least one coworker made negative comments about his sexuality and participation in a gay softball team during a meeting with an advisory board. One day in June of 2013, he arrived to work and could not enter due to his key swipe being disabled. After his leave, the CASA program was “no longer supplying a CASA volunteer for every child in the courts,” according to Gerald Bostock.

Gerald Bostock attempted to find another job in child welfare services, but he could not get another interview in the field. Bostock later became a mental health counselor at Georgia Regional Hospital. In an interview with the Daily Beast, he said, “I’m still making a difference but with adults, not children. I’ve always been a person who wanted to give back and make a positive difference in the community around me, but my passion was working with children, and that was the job I was good at. The program I ran had great success, and had national and statewide accolades—and having that passion taken away from you for doing nothing wrong is just hurtful.”

Personal life

When Bostock was fired from Clayton County’s Court Appointed Special Advocates program, he lost his medical insurace while he was in the process of recovering from prostate cancer, and the “stress” from the Court case “alone prolonged” his “recovery.” Gerald Bostock commented, “without the support of my partner as well as my family and circle of friends, I don’t know if I would have had the strength and ability to do what I’ve done.”