Friday State Sweep

Equality North Carolina's executive director, Ian Palmquist, was invited to the White House for a reception honoring Pride Month.


The Tennessee Equality Project's Grand Divisions blog discusses two types of incremental progress for LGBT equality, what we gain and what we lose.

Equality Florida and the ACLU will give a joint town hall and training on adoption, June 18 and 19.

Election Day revealed support for LGBT and pro-equality candidates in California, reports Equality California. Nearly all of their endorsed candidates won their primary fights.

TransOhio lists some of the presenters for their upcoming 3rd Annual TransOhio Transgender & Ally Symposium, August 13 - 15, 2010.

And


Empire State Pride Agenda emphasizes the importance of straight allies in the workplace through their Pride in My Workplace program.

A reading of the Prop. 8 trial transcripts will be performed June 18 and 19 at the Brody Theater in Portland. 25% of the proceeds will go to benefit Basic Rights Oregon. read on

It's May - Whip Around the States

Students for a Fair Wisconsin reached out to faith leaders.

Small towns are leading the education effort for marriage equality, writes Basic Rights Oregon.

Indiana Equality has many good events coming up.

Equality California notes that the closing arguments for the Prop. 8 trial are set for June 16, 2010.

TransOhio's May newsletter is available online.

A candidate for Tennessee's 8th congressional district who wants to keep "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" and laughed about "taking care of" homosexuals in the military, complains that he's being attacked by liberals.

Equality North Carolina reminds you that we need to push and lobby for ENDA. read on

Week-End Roundup

TransOhio asks us all to help the Massachusetts Transgender Political Coalition pass the Transgender Rights Bill in the MA state legislature.

Equality North Carolina is collecting stories to make healthcare fair for LGBT people.

Fair Wisconsin holds a faith panel next week.

Inland Empire PFLAG president on Equality California's Marriage Equality Roundtable.

Basic Rights Oregon does the right thing on racial justice, invites everyone to the table.

The Tennessee Equality Project fights for sane sexual health education.

Empire state Pride Agenda sweeps the internet and finds some interesting LGBT content.

The Miami Beach Commission supports the Uniting American Families Act, according to Equality Florida, a bill that helps same-sex families stay together in the USA.
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Mid-Week Roundup

"You can't support equality and gay bait." Equality Texas calls out homophobic behavior by Democratic incumbent in primary race.

Equality Maryland introduces a new field director.

The Tennessee Equality Project looks at gubernatorial hopefuls positions on adoption.

There's more to celebrate in Florida than close (35 votes!) win in Gainesville mayoral election. Equality Florida tells us that an equality champion has won a seat in Congress in yesterday's runoff election.

Fair Wisconsin announces four-day intensive training by ally Gay and Lesbian Leadership Institute coming to Minneapolis in June.

Empire State Pride Agenda follows up on teenager's suit against school district for bullying in their weekly sweep.

And there's more,

LGBT community marches in the San Jose Tet parade, reports Equality California.

Indiana Equality let us know that Judy Shepard will be giving a free and public talk in Indianapolis.

The Philippine Supreme Court has ruled to accredit a gay political party challenging a national election (from Equality South Dakota).

Basic Rights Oregon co-hosts an Elton John tribute night. It's a benefit, so break out your rhinestone glasses for equality.

Equality North Carolina congratulates Iowa on its first year of marriage equality.
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Friday Wrapup

Tennessee's Grand Division blog thinks about activism.

Want to phone bank for ENDA? TransOhio tells you how.

Equality North Carolina discusses Lambda Legal's latest report on health care for LGBT people. (Spoiler: it's not good.)

Empire State Pride Agenda gives an update on GENDA campaign.

Equality California posts the thoughts of a volunteer field worker.

Equality Florida covers the weird "family-friendly" film bill out of Tallahassee.

Indiana Equality has some upcoming media trainings. read on

Midweek Roundup

Equality Maryland celebrates marriage equality in nearby DC.

Empire State Pride Agenda's news sweep catches Harold Ford's decision to drop out of senate race.

TransOhio puts out a call for scholars to develop research on LGBTQI issues in education.

Basic Rights Oregon takes a stand against racism and police violence.

Equality North Carolina looks at changes in public attitudes towards lesbians and gay men in the military.

In Michigan Michigan Equality and Triangle Foundation announce their merger.

Equality Florida covers pressure on state to repeal anti-gay adoption laws. read on

Friday Roundup

This is Indiana Equality's weekend of Love is Equal dinners.

TransOhio is sponsoring the film City of Borders at the 34th Cleveland International Film Festival.

Equality North Carolina celebrates SAGE's new federal grant and ambitious new initiatives.

Basic Rights Oregon calls our attention to two strong trainings coming up soon.

And Tennessee's Grand Division has an interesting quote of the day. read on

Around the States

Equality Texas reflects on Creating Change and how to create change at home.

Equality South Dakota highlights NYT Op Ed on the curious silence of the Right on DADT.

Equality California's guest blogger, one on the 18,000 couples married before Prop. 8, tells her heart-warming story.

Equality Florida notes panel discussion on employment discrimination. read on

Friday State Roundup

TransOhio's February newsletter is available online.

Equality California remembers Lawrence King in the second anniversary of his murder.

Basic Rights Oregon offers an anti-racism toolkit for LGBT equality organizations and activists.

Equality Florida launches the Council of 1000.


And Equality North Carolina tell you how to oppose DADT. read on

No Marriage Equality for NJ, Garden State Equality Heads Back to Court

Garden State Equality Chair and CEO Steven Goldstein delivered the remarks below at a news conference in Trenton on Thursday, January 7, 2010, after the New Jersey Senate’s vote on the marriage equality bill.

With today’s vote in the state Senate, the New Jersey legislature defaulted on its constitutional obligation to provide same-sex couples in New Jersey equal protection, as unanimously mandated by the New Jersey Supreme Court in 2006. That’s why we at Garden State Equality are here with our partner Lambda Legal, which has an extraordinary track record of advancing LGBT civil rights in the courts. Now our organizations will announce major news. Our side is going back to court to win marriage equality.

We’ll hear from Lambda Legal in a moment. Let’s be clear about what this news means. We are not waiting out the term of any new Administration to bring equality to same-sex couples in our state.

In 2006, the New Jersey Supreme Court told the legislature it could enact marriage or another structure that provides the equal protection of marriage. But the civil union law failed to do that. Too often, civil union couples too often cannot visit loved ones in hospitals, make medical decisions for their partners or receive equal health benefits from employers. Hospitals and employers have treated civil union couples differently because they’ve been labeled differently. Children have been treated differently at school because their families are labeled differently.

In recent months, including today and at the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing in December, New Jersey legislators publicly recognized these failures. They publicly acknowledged that the civil union law has not provided equal protection. That’s important. New Jersey legislators themselves said it. Our opponents in the legislature said it.

In other words, though we didn’t achieve our final victory today, we’re better positioned than we were a few months ago to win marriage equality. So if you’re wondering how we feel, it’s complicated. On the one hand, we resent, more than you can imagine, remaining second-class citizens a bit longer. On the other hand, the ball has moved forward. The public record for the courts is mighty, and we’re closer than ever to winning.

In 2006, New Jersey enacted an experiment called civil union. In 2010, New Jersey has a mountain of proof that the experiment has failed.

Now let’s talk about what happened politically.

Things didn’t go our way in the legislature because of one factor: Governor Corzine lost reelection.

After his win in November, Governor-elect Christie persuaded a number of legislators to reverse their support of the bill. Before the election, nearly every neutral observer in New Jersey thought marriage equality was certain to become law in lame duck. It became the zeitgeist in Trenton, with good reason. In contrast to today’s outcome, before the election we had votes to spare in the Senate, including from a number of Republicans.

But the election changed everything and our national opponents changed nothing. They didn’t do much or spend much in New Jersey. As you saw from our thousands of members at the State House these past few weeks who symbolized the massiveness of our campaign, we overwhelmed our opponents on every front – but one. Our opponents had the Governor-elect on their side, and that’s all they needed to have. It’s ironic given that marriage equality wasn’t even an issue in the election, and that the candidates who favored marriage equality together won a majority.

All this said, we extend to Governor-elect Christie an outstretched hand. He will be the Governor of all of us. We ask him to continue the tradition of his Republican predecessors, Christie Whitman and Tom Kean, who always kept an open door to the LGBT community. And though we differ with the Governor-elect on marriage equality, we also seek to explore with him and his Administration the issues on which we may have agreement and can work together.

No political party should write off any constituency. And no party should take any constituency for granted either. Our fundamental right to equality should never have been left to sudden death overtime by the party to which the LGBT community and our allies have been unstintingly loyal and have given so much.

To be clear, we will continue to support those who support us. Over the past five-and-a-half years, the separate Garden State Equality political committee has provided thousands of campaign volunteers and raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for supportive candidates through contributions to the organization, or through contributions from individuals directly to candidates.

Of course, when we exceed politicians’ expectations in ways they like, we never hear, you’re going too far, your fervor is too much. That double standard, which other minority communities have heard in their own fights for equality, hurts deeply. And it hurts everyone who stands for equality, including supporters in the majority.

Now there will be a sustained response not only from the LGBT community, but also from straight progressive voters who have been our equal partners. Marriage equality stopped being just a gay issue long ago.

To those who let us all down, here’s our policy: Don’t ask, don’t expect. You can’t take progressives’ money and volunteers with one hand, slap us in the face with the other, and then act astonished when we declare our independence. The marketplace of democracy runs along a two-way street.

Members and friends, today was not an outcome lost, but rather a juncture in an otherwise glorious road to justice. Since Garden State Equality’s founding in 2004, New Jersey has enacted 210 LGBT civil rights laws at the state, county and local levels, a national record. We have 64,000 members – LGBT and straight alike – who have improved the lives of millions. A watchdog organization, eQualityGiving.com, just ranked New Jersey #1 in America for LGBT rights, tied with three other states, and we haven’t even won marriage equality yet.

But we will soon. Cesar Chavez said it best. You cannot uneducate the person who has learned to read. You cannot humiliate the people who feel pride. You cannot oppress the people who are not afraid anymore. We have seen the future, and the future is ours.

Before I introduce our colleagues from Lambda Legal, some thanks are in order. Thank you to all our Senate sponsors, including prime sponsors Loretta Weinberg and Raymond Lesniak. We appreciate Loretta and Raymond beyond measure for their indefatigable leadership, and extend to them our love. We thank Senators Bill Baroni and Nia Gill – unwavering voices for justice at our committee hearing. We thank all our Assembly sponsors, including prime sponsors Reed Gusciora, Valerie Vainieri Huttle, John McKeon and Mila Jasey. We thank our Governor Corzine and Speaker Roberts for their support. And let me say this about Governor Dick Codey: He’s been an extraordinary champion of equality who kept his word about a Senate vote. Every progressive in New Jersey should view Governor Codey as a hero.

We thank the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, the Human Rights Campaign, Gill Action, the Civil Marriage Collaborative, the Arcus Foundation and Freedom to Marry, which have given us resources and wisdom. We thank our partners at the state level, including the ACLU of New Jersey, BlueWave, Democracy for America, New Jersey Citizen Action, New Jersey Stonewall Democrats and the state’s progressive voice on the web, Blue Jersey, to which we owe so much.

We thank our spectacular field staff who joined us from across the country. We thank our executive committee, board, staff and donors who make Garden State Equality possible. We thank the New Jersey Lesbian and Gay Coalition for its decades of groundwork. We thank all the supportive staff in the legislature and executive branch. We especially thank our thousands of volunteers – the stars of Garden State Equality – who rallied at the State House and worked in our offices and in the field throughout the year. And if I may, I thank my partner Daniel and all the loved ones of our staff and volunteers who have supported us and sacrificed so much.

Most of all, we thank our colleagues at Lambda Legal, without whom our march toward equality would never have gotten this far. We’re thrilled to reunite with our partner Lambda Legal in the next stage of the battle. Please welcome Leslie Gabel-Brett, Lambda Legal’s director of education and public affairs.
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Hate Crimes in Florida - Powerful Video

From Equality Florida on their website read on

International AIDS Day

Tennessee Equality Project highlights Secretary of State Clinton's speech. She identifies discrimination as a major barrier to HIV treatment.

Empire State Pride Agenda does their morning sweep.

Equality Florida posts the President's Proclamation on World AIDS Day.

And Indiana Equality asks you to go shopping for equality. read on

We'll Be Back, and We'll Win

crossposted from Equality North Carolina's blog

Waking up this morning to the news that Maine voters narrowly approved a measure overturning the marriage equality law passed by the legislature was a kick in the gut. The memory of California's Prop. 8 last year is still fresh.

My thoughts go out to all the families in Maine who will continue to be denied dignity and equality under the law. Many of us will need time to grieve over the fact that a majority of our fellow citizens would vote to deny lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people their full civil rights.

And yet, I'm also encouraged by what happened in Maine. Just under half of voters — tens of thousands of people — voted for marriage equality. While it wasn't enough, let's not forget that just fifteen years ago, few Americans had even heard of the concept of marriage equality for same-sex couples.

We've come a long way fast. And, despite the heartbreaking setback of yesterday's vote, the momentum is still very much on our side.

I also find hope in the phenomenal campaign that the No On 1 team ran. They talked one on one with tens of thousands of voters. They put the faces and stories of same-sex couples and families at the forefront. They engaged leaders from local elected officials to the Governor in the fight for marriage equality.

We even had a number of Equality North Carolina supporters who went up to Maine to help out, and many more who made calls to Maine voters from their homes.

Of course, after some time to grieve, we should look at what worked well and what could be done better next time. But I suspect that in the final analysis we'll see that the work No On 1 did won over thousands and thousands of voters to our side.

The state just wasn't quite there yet. But it will be.

A little history: Maine voters went to the polls four times to vote on nondiscrimination based on sexual orientation. The first three times they rejected it. But Equality Maine didn't give up, and the state legislators who believed in fairness didn't give up. Now it's the law of the land.

We've got to keep fighting in Maine and in every state.

Yesterday, voters in Washington state approved comprehensive domestic partnerships, and in Kalamazoo, Michigan, voters rejected vicious attacks on the transgender community to support the city's nondiscrimination ordinance.

New York and New Jersey have a real chance of passing marriage equality legislation this year. The Federal Employment Non-Discrimination Act, which would protect many workers from discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, could become law in the next few months.

All of that's going to take a lot of hard work.

Rest assured, if we do that work, we'll win marriage back in Maine, California, and, eventually we'll win our full civil rights in states like North Carolina and the whole nation. We know how to do it.

I'm in it to win it. Are you?And here is the rest of it. read on

Historic Hate Crimes Bill Signed Today

President Obama signed into law the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act. It's taken a decade to get this law passed.Some wonder what difference it will make. NPR reported that one boon to local hate crime laws will be the availability of federal money for investigations. But the effect on states and municipalities without local hate crime laws isn't clear.

Equality Texas has an eloquent blog post up on this law that has been such a long time coming. read on

Midweek State Blog Round Up

Empire State Pride Agenda launches its click to call campaign for marriage equality.

Equality Florida raises an eyebrow at anti gay OK Rep. Tom Coburn's opinion piece in The Advocate and makes an important endorsement.

The Tennessee Equality Project reports on an important Federal bill that could remove hurdles to LGBT adoption.

GLSEN's new report on the experience of trans youth in schools reviewed by Equality North Carolina.

Fair Wisconsin travels to celebrate domestic partnership protections.

TransOhio cheers the NY State appellate judges who struck down "doctor's note" requirement for transgender name changes.
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Monday State Blog Round Up

The Tennessee Equality Project Foundation is rolling out several new initiatives.

Tampa Bay celebrates Coming Out Day and Equality Florida's own Tobias Packer inspires the crowd at the National Equality March.

Former Federation intern, Stephen Wiseman, blogs about ENDA for Equality North Carolina.

At Basic Rights Oregon, a benefit for Polk County Democrats, a rally for Immigration Reform, and BRO's new campaign for transgender justice.

And Geoff Kors, Equality California, calls this A Time for Action, read on

Friday State Blog Round Up

Basic Rights Oregon and other state groups are presenting The Laramie Project. BRO is also offering a Safe Schools Training and (psst) they're hiring.

Empire State Pride Agenda's Pride in My Workplace Coordinator reports on their recent Business Leaders for LGBT Equality Series

Equality California reminds us that October 15 is Latino AIDS Awareness day

Equality Florida invites you to meet their outspoken Congressman Grayson at their upcoming gala.

An ex-Equality Maryland intern talks about field work for No On 1.

Equality North Carolina does its own roundup of local and not-so-local news.

Equality South Dakota notes study showing gay parents are good parents (no surprise) and reports on organized labor's support for full inclusion (maybe a little surprise).

And the Tennessee Equality Project channels Morrissey as they think about approaching equality.
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