Equality Federation won’t stop until all LGBTQ+ people are fully empowered and represented in their communities, experiencing full equality in their lives.
At this critical moment for our movement, the South is playing a growing role in the fight for full equality. And the state-based movement, working with local and national partners, is key to success.
No student should feel too afraid to go to school. No student should face discrimination and harassment while trying to learn. No student should be denied the opportunity to succeed and thrive as who they are.
Our movement has secured historic victories in recent years because of the passion and commitment of activists and leaders who are creating incredible change in the communities they call home.
When Equality Federation Institute was looking for a city to host our annual Summer Meeting, we were looking for a place that embodies our commitment to working locally, to building a true grassroots movement, and to winning big, even when it’s hard.We found it all in Minneapolis, with member organization OutFront Minnesota as our host.
State-based organizations across the country are making changes 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.
When the legislative session began in Utah this year, Equality Utah (EQUT) felt prepared to pass a nondiscrimination bill -- they had spent years building relationships on both sides of the aisle, had worked closely with the LDS church, and were planning to run a robust legislative campaign to show lawmakers that the public supports a law allowing gay and transgender Utahns to live free from discrimination in housing and employment.
Equality California has filed a lawsuit challenging President Trump’s Aug. 25 directive prohibiting transgender people from joining the military and banning military healthcare plans from providing vital services to transgender servicemembers. Equality California is an organizational plaintiff in the lawsuit, together with seven transgender individuals impacted by the ban.
Right now, all across the country, there are dozens of outdated laws based on old stereotypes, not science, that treat people living with HIV differently. California is now leading the nation in changing course with the passage of SB 239. Federation member Equality California prioritized this legislation for 2017.
Attorney General Jeff Sessions just issued guidance granting an anti-LGBTQ “license to discriminate.” Federal government staff and contractors will now be able to claim a broad religious exemption from federal laws, rules and regulations meant to protect LGBTQ people from discrimination.
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (Sept 26, 2017) — After a public hearing and over five years of groundwork, the Birmingham City Council has passed a fully inclusive nondiscrimination ordinance, and Mayor William Bell has committed to signing the ordinance into law immediately.
Equality California’s #TakeIt:I’m PrEP’ed program is a statewide educational campaign to educate the LGBTQ community and healthcare providers on the availability and benefits of PrEP, the daily pill to prevent HIV, as well as other forms of HIV treatment and prevention. More broadly, this program falls under our broader efforts to end the HIV epidemic in California by “Getting to Zero” – zero new HIV transmissions, zero HIV-related deaths and zero HIV stigma.
Equality Federation applauds Transgender Law Center and Federation member Equality California for their leadership on this legislation and calls on Governor Brown to sign it into law.
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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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