NCLR has been on a tear the past several weeks. Each week, we’ve reported a great new success—our win for high school student Dynasty Young in Indiana, our federal court victory in Pennsylvania for surviving same-sex spouse Jennifer Tobits, our historic partnership with the Department of Justice on behalf of a transgender student in Arcadia, CA, and this week the signing of historic legislation protecting transgender students in California. Make no mistake: your support made each of these...
Our Voices
When I first heard Jennifer’s story, I was angry and shocked. Not shocked in the sense of “how could something like this happen?”—I’ve been doing this work too long to be that naïve—but shocked in the way we are when faced with cruelty and a lack of common decency. Jennifer Tobits and Sarah “Ellyn” Farley married in Canada in 2006. Shortly after their wedding, Ellyn was diagnosed with cancer and passed away in September 2010. Jennifer had lost Ellyn, the love of her life. But in...
Just yesterday, you heard from us about the groundbreaking settlement announced by the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Department of Education in our case to win equal access and protections for young transgender people. Last night, The New York Times published an editorial celebrating this agreement, calling on every school district in America to adopt the guidelines announced in this agreement. The editorial is a clarion call, and a vindication of our important work. I am truly...
You already know that the NCLR staff is comprised of talented and wicked-smart individuals who possess an unwavering commitment to the full dignity and humanity of all LGBTQ people. But you don’t often hear directly from the key staff members who make so much of what we do possible. Today, in this message from NCLR Staff Attorney Asaf Orr, you will hear the story of a young boy who made an impact far beyond his 14 years, and whose courage and refusal to be diminished will make life...
In the same week that we celebrated the end of Proposition 8 and Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), NCLR was on the brink of settlement in a key case for one of our most inspiring clients. Dynasty Young is gay, African-American, and proudly gender non-conforming. What happened to him is appalling and shocking, and in many ways, reminds us of how much work we have left to do. Dynasty moved to Indianapolis from Arizona in the summer of 2011. From the day he enrolled at Arsenal...
Anyone who knows me knows I run at a pretty high pitch–lots of energy, passion and intensity. You also know how much I love and honor this work. It is a privilege every day to do work that advances the dignity and protection of LGBTQ people. I am almost always thinking about this work and how to do it better and faster. I’ve always seen these attributes as a plus, and they almost always are. But on the Wednesday morning of the rulings knocking out Prop 8 and striking down section 3 of DOMA, my...
When my kids were born. When we won marriage in California. When Sandy and I got married. Today. These are moments I will remember with joy and elation for the rest of my life. Today, in a huge way, in an unprecedented way, our lives and our love were validated by the U.S. Supreme Court. The Proposition 8 and Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) rulings were sweeping affirmations of our right to equal dignity and respect, and everything as we have known it will change forever. This is a new day. It...
Doing the AIDS LifeCycle ride—the seven day, 545-mile bike ride from San Francisco to Los Angeles that began yesterday and raises millions of dollars to fight HIV/AIDS—has always been on my bucket list. But last year I was shocked to realize how close we are to ending the pandemic. How did I not know this? Today, LGBTQ movement leaders from across the country are committing ourselves to ending HIV/AIDS.Read our joint letter, watch the video, and take the pledge to recommit to the fight...
At first, it seemed like a good way to get in better shape for a great cause. But as the months of training rides give way to the first day of the AIDS Lifecycle ride—the 545-mile, seven-day cycling event from San Francisco to Los Angeles—on June 2, I find myself thinking every day about the loved ones my wife Sandy and I have lost to AIDS. They were unlucky enough to be in the first or second wave of infections, during a time when our government turned a blind eye and left our community to...
Five years ago today, the ground on marriage equality shifted permanently. Do you remember where you were on May 15, 2008? I will never, ever forget it. That day, the California Supreme Court ruled that excluding same-sex couples from marriage violated the California Constitution. It was a beautiful morning. A friend snapped a picture of me on the steps of the courthouse in San Francisco, a huge smile across my face, while I held the ruling in one hand and pumped my fist over my head with the...