News & Resources

Equality Federation won’t stop until all LGBTQ+ people are fully empowered and represented in their communities, experiencing full equality in their lives.

The Latest

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Why Updating Birth Certificates Is Important for Transgender People & How Laws Are Changing

Now is the time for transgender equality, and more states are doing the right thing. They are no longer forcing transgender people to have surgery or obtain court orders in order to change the gender marker on their birth certificates.

March 2, 2016
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Historic: Federal Agency Sues Over Anti-Gay Workplace Discrimination

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, a federal agency that ensures the enforcement of federal laws that make it illegal to discriminate on specified grounds against a job applicant or an employee has announced two lawsuits alleging anti-gay discrimination.

March 2, 2016
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Watch: West Virginia Senate Majority Leader Gives Tearful Testimony for Nondiscrimination

Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch Carmichael delivered a tearful floor speech in support of a “civil rights amendment” to an anti-LGBTQ religious exemption bill, #HB4012, to prevent the bill from being used to discriminate. The amendment passed, and on Wednesday, March 2nd, the entire bill was killed in a 27-7 vote.

March 2, 2016
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400 Businesses. 75k Emails. Clergy. Massive Groundswell of Opposition Forms in Rejection of Anti-LGBTQ Law in Georgia [videos]

Over 400 companies including major corporations like Delta, Coca Cola, Home Depot, SalesForce, and Hyatt, along with small businesses throughout Georgia and the Georgia Visitors and Convention Bureau, have come together to say no to discrimination and stand in opposition to the antii-LGBTQ religious exemption bills making their way through the legislature.

March 2, 2016
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VICTORY! South Dakota Gov. Vetoes Anti-Transgender Bill

Governor Daugaard of South Dakota has vetoed discriminatory legislation that would have prevented transgender students from using the facilities that match the gender they live every day.

March 1, 2016
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Victory! Another Anti-LGBTQ Bill Dead in Oklahoma

On February 22nd, after mounting pressure, SB1289 was pulled from consideration by its sponsor Senator Breechen before being heard by Senate General Govt. Committee. The bill would have prevented the people of a local community from passing their own laws.

February 24, 2016

Press Releases

VICTORY! Mass. House Passes Transgender Nondiscrimination Bill

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.

June 1, 2016
The Summer of Action Kicks Off for LGBT Non-Discrimination Work in Atlanta

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.

May 27, 2016
Eleven States Join Anti-Transgender Lawsuit Against Obama Admin

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.

May 25, 2016
Confirmed: LGBT People Protected from Discrimination in Health Insurance and Care

Equality Federation joined the chorus of LGBTQ advocates and health care professionals in praising the Obama Administration for finalizing a rule in the Affordable Care Act that bans discrimination in health insurance and health care.

May 13, 2016
New Ad Targeting Anti-LGBTQ Law in NC Features Transgender Man

Equality Federation member Equality North Carolina has launched a groundbreaking commercial featuring a transgender North Carolinian and others speaking out against ant-LGBTQ law, HB 2, with support from our friends and partners at American Unity Fund, Freedom for All Americans.

May 4, 2016
Even Donald Trump Slams Anti-LGBTQ Law HB2

Watch GOP presidential frontrunner Donald Trump come out against North Carolina’s anti-LGBTQ law, HB2, at a recent town hall.

May 4, 2016
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