California law forces Meals on Wheels to ask elderly recipients if they’re gay or trans
Meals on Wheels programs around the world help feed elderly people and others physically incapable of obtaining or preparing their own meals, but California recipients have started receiving something less welcome with their service: grilling about their sexual attraction and “gender identity.” On Tuesday, the Sacramento Bee highlighted the experience of Carol Alexander, an 83-year-old recipient who was taken aback by a recent phone call from Sacramento County’s Meals on Wheels program, asking questions including “What is your sex,” “Do you still associate with your gender,” and “Are you heterosexual?” “I was in shock. I took offense to that,” said Alexander. “I’m ticked off. Why do they ask an 83-year-old this?” The questions were mandated by the state’s LGBT Disparities Reduction Act, signed by Democrat Gov. Jerry Brown, which took effect in July. The law requires meal-delivery services to present sexual and gender minorities (SGM) survey questions to recipients, in order to conduc