Equality Federation won’t stop until all LGBTQ+ people are fully empowered and represented in their communities, experiencing full equality in their lives.
On October 5, more than 80 cities across the country will host marches and rallies for the National Day of Dignity and Respect in support of immigration reform. Immigrant communities in America as well as faith, labor, and civil rights groups will join together to call on Congress to pass immigration reform in 2013.
The Obama Administration is continuing to implement the Supreme Court's landmark decision striking down Section 3 of the so-called Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). In the months since the June ruling, federal departments have issued guidance and policy updates further detailing the far-reaching impact of DOMA's demise.
Because transgender people so often experience discrimination at the hands of government institutions, many expect to encounter harassment and other challenges from our legal system. But a new study conducted by OutFront Minnesota and lawyer Ellen Krug found that many transgender Minnesotans report positive experiences with the courts.
Across the nation, our members are working to ensure that transgender people are treated fairly and equally at work. They're advocating for employment nondiscrimination laws, inclusive healthcare policies, and employment benefits, procedures, and practices that honor everyone's gender identity and expression.
State-based organizations across the country are making change in the communities we call home -- where the work is hard, but the impact is great. Nearly every week, we hear about another victory that provides LGBT people the protection, respect, and dignity they need and deserve. These wins build critical momentum in the fight for full and lasting equality -- but we don’t often hear about them. Far too often, they go unnoticed and uncelebrated by the broader LGBT movement.
Many Federation members across the country are committed to a broad social justice agenda, working in their communities to end all forms of oppression.Over the past few years, Basic Rights Education Fund, the 501(c)(3) arm of Basic Rights Oregon, has become a national leader for their racial justice work within LGBT movements. Knowing that for decades, the LGBT movement left out the voices, experiences, and hopes of LGBT people of color -- Basic Rights Education Fund understood the need for real change and put racial justice at the top of their agenda.
Each year, millions of students are removed from their classrooms for minor misconduct. This puts them at a significantly higher risk of falling behind academically, dropping out of school, and potentially being forced into the juvenile justice system.
Transgender and gender non-conforming children and youth are disproportionately represented in the foster care population and are particularly vulnerable to mistreatment due to widespread anti-transgender bias, prejudice, and transphobia. Young transgender individuals may face unnecessary barriers while under the care of Children’s Services, such as in foster care or juvenile detention.
Across the country, our members are working hard to ensure that young people feel safe and protected at school. In order to build safe environments for students, we need support from decision makers in the community. But it isn’t always easy to build community support for schools that openly affirm people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender.
In the past year since the Supreme Court struck down the so-called Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), we’ve witnessed 36 consecutive victories, and zero losses, for the freedom to marry. Twenty rulings have been issued in federal court, 13 in state court, and 3 by a federal appellate court.
Michael Nordman is the Director of Development at Equality Illinois. Since starting in 2012, he has helped the organization raise more than $2.8 million towards their fight for LGBT equality by mobilizing existing supporters and inspiring Illinoisans from all walks of life to join the movement.
Monica Meyer became the Executive Director of OutFront Minnesota in 2010, after serving as Public Policy Director since 2001. Under Monica's leadership, OutFront Minnesota and Project 515 co-founded Minnesotans United for All Families, the campaign which defeated the proposed constitutional amendment to limit the freedom to marry in 2012 and won marriage equality just seven months later.
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With your support, we'll be able to continue our work to build the leaders of today and tomorrow, strengthen state-based LGBTQ+ organizations, and make critical progress on the issues that matter most—like protecting transgender people, ending HIV criminalization and ensuring access to care, and banning conversion therapy across the country.
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