FILE - In this Oct. 8, 2019, file photo, supporters of LGBTQ rights hold placards in front of the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington. The Supreme Court has ruled that a landmark civil rights law protects gay, lesbian and transgender people from discrimination in employment. It's a resounding victory for LGBT rights from a conservative court.

HARRISBURG — A U.S. Supreme Court ruling Monday will extend legal protection to gay, lesbian and transgender people from discrimination at certain workplaces across all of Pennsylvania, but advocates for LGBT rights say a years-long fight for civil rights in the state legislature is not over.

To be sure, LGBT rights advocates in Pennsylvania hailed the high court's ruling as a historic victory.

But the court's ruling does not cover people who work for smaller employers, and it does not extend legal protection against discrimination to housing or public services, LGBT rights advocates in Pennsylvania said.

“We need to update state law not only to include what the Supreme Court has ruled but to provide complete protection as we do with other classes of people,” said Jason Landau Goodman, executive director of the Pennsylvania Youth Congress.

Long-standing opposition by Republicans who control both chambers of the legislature has spurred advocates to work at the municipal level. That has resulted in LGBT rights protections in 58 municipalities covering roughly one-third of Pennsylvania's population, according to the group.

This is an excerpt from a larger article that will appear in Wednesday's Butler Eagle. Subscribe online or in print to read the full article.