When workers consider their rights, they know that they are not supposed to be discriminated against based on protected classes. These can include things like race, age, gender, sexual orientation or religion. That is certainly not an exhaustive list, but it gives you an idea of the types of things employers are not allowed to do.
That said, you could face discrimination based on assumptions about you that are inaccurate. You may not even technically be in the protected class that is being referenced, but it is still illegal for an employer to discriminate based on these assumptions.
How could this happen?
This can actually happen in a lot of ways. For instance, maybe your parents are traditionally part of a certain religion, and they give you clothing or jewelry that reflects this. You don’t actually follow the religion yourself, but you like to wear these types of items because of their family significance. If your employer then assumes that you are part of the religion and fires you because of it, then your rights have still been violated, even if you’re not religious at all.
This could also happen with something like sexual orientation or gender identity. An employer may meet you at an interview and make certain assumptions about what they think your orientation is, and they may decide not to hire you based on those assumptions. Once again, it doesn’t matter if they are wrong. If they still discriminate against you based on what they believe about you, then your rights have been violated as a worker in the United States.
If something like this happens to you, it is crucial that you understand all of your legal options.