Equality Federation won’t stop until all LGBTQ+ people are fully empowered and represented in their communities, experiencing full equality in their lives.
In Massachusetts, 1 in 4 lesbian or gay teens and 15% of bisexual teens are homeless. Because of high rates of discrimination against the transgender population, rates of homelessness among transgender youth are even higher. These rates, coupled with the fact that the Massachusetts shelter system is not organized adequately to serve these young people, spurred MassEquality into action. The organization made youth homelessness a top priority, knowing it warranted immediate and aggressive attention.
Our third FEDtalk given at the Summer Meeting 2013 is from Vinita Chaudhry, Intern at Empire State Pride Agenda.
Our second FEDtalk given at the Summer Meeting 2013 is from Ryan Wilson, Executive Director of South Carolina Equality.
Each year our Annual Summer Meeting brings LGBT leaders from across the nation together to share ideas and forge connections. But at this year’s Meeting, we introduced a new session that quickly became a breakout star of the conference: FEDtalks.
In much of the United States, it’s hot, humid, and sticky. Back-to-school ads are starting to show up on TV. And every time you send an email, you're greeted with an out-of-office reply about someone's last-ditch-effort summer vacation.
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 with the protection, respect, and dignity they need and deserve, but far too often, these wins go unsung by the broader LGBT movement.
On Monday, October 24, after nearly six hours of public testimony and dais debate, the Cheyenne City Council voted 7-3 to approve an anti-discrimination resolution that commits to equal protections for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender residents.
For nearly four years, the two of us have worked together to coordinate a grant from the State Equality Fund focused on developing campaign strategies that would advance nondiscrimination protections for the LGBTQ community. Our time at Equality Federation has been incredibly rewarding, but our project is now winding down, and we will be leaving the Federation at the end of December.
There is so much at stake for LGBT people in this year’s election, and Equality Pennsylvania is working to make sure that LGBT voices are being heard.
As part of their TransVisible project, Equality Texas launched their #TransTuesday campaign on Coming Out Day. Every Tuesday, via social media, they will share a personal story, a blog, or a video highlighting transgender Texans.
HRC Foundation in partnership with the Equality Federation Institute, announced that a record-setting 88 cities across the U.S. earned the highest possible score in the eighth annual Municipal Equality Index (MEI). The MEI is the only nationwide assessment of LGBTQ inclusion in municipal law, policy and services.
HUD announced that they have finalized their rule that ensures transgender people needing shelter will be provided housing in accordance to their gender identity.Equality Federation hails this as a vital clarification and we express our greatest thanks to all the advocates who worked on these policy changes.
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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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