Equality Federation won’t stop until all LGBTQ+ people are fully empowered and represented in their communities, experiencing full equality in their lives.
Last year Federation member Freedom Oklahoma led the defeat of 27 anti-LGBTQ bills, and this year they are ready to continue their winning streak on behalf of every Oklahoman who values fairness and equality for all. Earlier this week, they hosted 150 people interested in advocating for equality.
On Wednesday last week, Colorado House Bill 1013, a religious exemption bill, died in committee for the third year in a row. The bill, the Colorado Freedom of Conscience Protection Act, was essentially a state RFRA.
438 civil and human rights organizations, including Equality Federation, have signed onto a letter from The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights to express our strong opposition to the confirmation of Senator Jefferson B. Sessions (R-AL) to be the 84th Attorney General of the United States.
Today Lt. Governor Dan Patrick introduced a bill cosponsored by Senator Lois Kolkhorst, that would discriminate against transgender people under the guise of protecting women’s and students’ privacy. The bill would ban transgender people from using the restroom that matches the gender they live as every day and ban cities and towns from passing nondiscrimination ordinances that protect transgender people from discrimination.
Equality Federation stands in solidarity with immigrants, refugees, and their families today as the Trump Administration launches an attack on millions of people’s freedoms and civil liberties.
When opponents of equality introduce false, fear-based attacks on nondiscrimination protections, people can often lose sight of their core values.
Our hearts are heavy at this time and we extend our love and condolences to the friends and family of those affected by the horrific tragedy in Orlando.
President Obama and his Administration have shown great leadership in the midst of national, often nasty and negative, attention and attacks on transgender people and their families. Recent public statements made by the president and the Department of Education send an especially inspiring message to our youth; that the most powerful leaders in our nation have their back.
“My answer is that we should deal with this issue the same way we’d want it dealt with if it was our child,” Obama said. “And that is to try to create an environment of some dignity and kindness for these kids. And that’s sort of the bottom line.” – President Obama
Equality Federation congratulates Massachusetts on the passage of a proactive, transgender-specific public accommodations bill. This bill updates Massachusetts state law to ensure explicit protections for transgender people from discrimination in public places, including restaurants, hospitals, parks, and public restrooms. We celebrate this powerful victory, which comes after over a decade of public education and dialogue in the state.
This week more than a dozen organizers working to secure non-discrimination protections for LGBT Americans nationwide came together in Atlanta, Georgia, launching a new project dedicated to developing conversations about the importance of comprehensive non-discrimination protections.
Officials in eleven states – Alabama, Arizona, Georgia, Louisiana, Maine, Oklahoma, Texas, Tennessee, Utah, West Virginia, and Wisconsin – have filed a lawsuit against the Obama administration over its directive to allow transgender students to use the bathroom that matches their gender identity.
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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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