Equality Federation won’t stop until all LGBTQ+ people are fully empowered and represented in their communities, experiencing full equality in their lives.
This weekend, families across the country celebrated Father's Day. My partner Brad and I got to spend the evening with my parents, relaxing on their screened porch here in Raleigh.
This Pride season, we have so much to celebrate in our community. I’m proud of the marriage victories and non-discrimination wins that Federation members have had a part in this year. I’m also extremely proud of the stand that the LGBT community, including many Federation members, has taken on immigration reform.
In November 2012, three states -- Maine, Maryland, and Washington -- extended the freedom to marry to same-sex couples. And in the past few months, three additional states -- Rhode Island, Delaware, and Minnesota -- have followed suit, reaching 12 states in the nation that allow all loving couples to share in the joys and responsibilities of marriage.
In just a few weeks, leaders from across the country will gather together to learn from each other and to build the skills and relationships that are so critical to growing a strong state-based movement for equality.
Over the last 30 years, the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community has seen great strides in the movement for full equality. Much of this success is the result of a concerted movement, which was galvanized in response to the AIDS epidemic in the 1980s.
Equality Federation is pleased to announce the hiring of Jace Woodrum as our first-ever Director of Communications.Jace brings to the Federation more than eight years of experience in communications and three years working with LGBT organizations, including one of our member groups: One Colorado.
According to the National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs (NCAVP), people who identify as transgender are 28% more likely to experience physical violence than those who are not trans-identified. And each year, a tragic number of transgender individuals lose their lives due to acts of anti-transgender violence.
All of us at Equality Federation are proud to welcome Mark Snyder to our team as Director of Communications. He will begin working at the Federation next month, and is looking forward to connecting with many of you very soon.
After seven years with the Federation, our wonderful colleague Renée Perry is stepping down from her position as Director of Operations. During her time with us, Renée has kept our completely distributed organization running smoothly across four time zones.
Since 2006, the State of the States report by Equality Federation has documented the strength and sustainability of state-based advocacy organizations that advance equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in the communities they call home. Over the past eight years, State of the States has faithfully documented our movement’s triumphs and trials as reflected in the capacity of our state-based organizations.
Over the past several months, we have seen great changes in the state-based LGBT movement. Marriage wins continue in states across the country, and national attention is shifting to work in places where LGBT people aren’t protected from discrimination.
Resources are often scarce for many lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender individuals. For transgender individuals, there is often an increased barrier to accessing resources when attempting to find adequate healthcare, attain name change documents, or simply find a safe space to discuss trans-related issues.
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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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