Equality Federation won’t stop until all LGBTQ+ people are fully empowered and represented in their communities, experiencing full equality in their lives.
The Georgia State Senate, by a vote of 35-19, advanced legislation that would allow taxpayer-funded adoption agencies to deny service to LGBTQ youth and families.
As part of our Raising the States resource development training program, Equality Federation is excited to team up with Network for Good to provide training opportunities open to all members!
Last week lawmakers in Georgia passed positive reforms to the state’s adoption and foster care code. HB 159 updates the state’s antiquated child welfare laws and does not include any discriminatory language.
Two additional bills targeting LGBTQ people have failed in the South Dakota Legislature. SB 160, which would have prohibited classroom instruction of gender expression or identity, and SB 202, which would have required all public restrooms to have a sign posted giving notice that a person of the “opposite sex” may be in the restroom, were both killed or voted down with bipartisan support.
The Education Department has said it will not investigate or take action on any complaints of discrimination filed by transgender students who are not permitted to use the facilities that match their gender identity.
Four bills that would have updated Virginia’s laws to include LGBTQ people in nondiscrimination protections were killed in a committee despite the broad support of fair-minded Virginians. Two of the bills had passed in the state’s Senate with 75% of the vote.
It’s been almost a year since the Supreme Court’s landmark ruling striking down the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in Windsor v. United States, and in that short time, we have seen a promising surge in impact litigation to secure marriage for same-sex couples. In fact, since the Supreme Court’s ruling last summer, not one federal judge has ruled against the freedom to marry.
Have your staff meetings started to feel like a waste of time? Do they drag on with each person reporting out in excruciating detail on what they’re doing?About a year ago, we realized our staff meetings at Equality Federation weren’t as productive as we wanted them to be and decided to try a different approach.
No student should feel too afraid to go to school. No student should face discrimination and harassment while trying to learn. No student should be denied the opportunity to succeed and thrive as who they are.
At this critical moment for our movement, the South is playing a growing role in the fight for full equality. And the state-based movement, working with local and national partners, is key to success.
State-based organizations across the country are making changes 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 with the protection, respect, and dignity they need and deserve, but far too often, these wins go unsung by the broader LGBT movement.
When Equality Federation Institute was looking for a city to host our annual Summer Meeting, we were looking for a place that embodies our commitment to working locally, to building a true grassroots movement, and to winning big, even when it’s hard.We found it all in Minneapolis, with member organization OutFront Minnesota as our host.
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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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