Equality Federation won’t stop until all LGBTQ+ people are fully empowered and represented in their communities, experiencing full equality in their lives.
Executive Director Betsy Smith has been leading EqualityMaine for fourteen years. After securing many incredible wins for LGBT Mainers, she has announced that she will soon step down from her position. Before Betsy officially leaves the Federation family (though we'll always count her as one of our own), we wanted to learn everything we could from her work and experience. So we caught up with her to talk about her successful tenure at EqualityMaine.
Every day, the momentum for full marriage equality across this country builds. And our members are right in the thick of this critical work, achieving some major victories. Just look at what’s been happening these past ten months.
For years, our members have requested assistance and guidance in the area of communications. And although we have always been able to connect state groups with resources and provide some useful advice, we simply weren’t equipped to offer comprehensive communications support.
Our final FEDtalk given at the Summer Meeting 2013 is from John Smallwood, Advocacy & Organizing Director at Fair Wisconsin.
Our ninth FEDtalk given at the Summer Meeting 2013 is from Shannon McCann, Intern at Equality Utah.
The State Equality Fund (SEF) has announced its new guidelines for 2014 and issued an invitation for letters of inquiry (LOI).For the past eight years, Federation members have used support from SEF to make huge policy advances that improve the lives of LGBT people in their state. And at the Federation, we're eager to help even more of our state groups take advantage of this critical funding stream.
In every state across the country, LGBT people are celebrating historic Supreme Court victories. And while our work continues, this Pride month has been one for the history books!
Today, the Supreme Court struck down a central part of the Voting Rights Act, invalidating crucial protections passed by Congress in 1965 and renewed four times in the decades since. The sharply divided decision will significantly reduce the federal government’s role in overseeing voting laws in areas with a history of discrimination against African-Americans.
With July right around the corner, we're really looking forward to seeing all of our members and partners in Salt Lake City at the 16th Annual Summer Meeting, hosted by Equality Utah.
For years, we've been sending our members Fed Head News, a somewhat monthly email newsletter with announcements, news, and tips all focused on building a strong movement for equality. Today, we bid farewell to this old friend. It has served us well, but it's time to move on.
Recently, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) issued a proposed rule regarding their use of nude body scanners in airports. The proposed rule is in response to a 2011 D.C. Circuit Court ruling that TSA violated the law by introducing the scanners in 2008 without rulemaking. The proposed rule consists of just two sentences, stating that TSA has authority to implement "screening technology used to detect concealed anomalies without requiring physical contact."
Good news for Federation members from the Arcus Foundation! They have announced the Arcus LGBT Leadership Initiative, an array of resources to support leaders of the LGBT movement in the United States. This initiative is a chance for movement leaders to enhance their skills and collaborate with one another, strengthening the movement!
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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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