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Entrance to the historic United States Court House in New York C

Legal Aid & Legal Services

About 30 million people in the U.S. need and qualify for free legal services each year, and many legal aid providers work diligently to meet the need. However, because of a systematic lack of resources, legal aid providers have to turn away about half of those who would otherwise qualify for services coming to them for legal assistance nationally.

Despite a persistent myth that LGBTQ people are wealthy, the fact is that LGBTQ people face poverty at the same or greater rates than their straight, cisgender counterparts. Transgender and bisexual people in particular are disproportionately affected by poverty. NCLR works to remove barriers to LGBTQ people in accessing vital legal aid, and provides training and technical assistance to legal aid organizations to provide culturally-competent legal services to low-income LGBTQ clients.

Read about the National LGBTQ Legal Aid Forum, a listserv dedicated to improving legal services for low-income LGBT clients.

Advocacy

Legislation & Policy

Coalition on Human Needs

Federal

NCLR joined the Coalition on Human Needs (CHN) in 2018 as the first LGBTQ organizational member. CHN is an alliance of national organizations working together to promote public policies which address the needs of low-income and other vulnerable populations.

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Resources

Publications

KNOW YOUR RIGHTS: Laws, Court Decisions, and Advocacy Tips to Protect Transgender Prisoners

This guide—a National Center for Lesbian Rights and ACLU joint publication—identifies laws, court decisions, advocacy tips, and other resources that may be helpful for adult transgender prisoners. Each transgender person’s experience in prison and jail is different, in part because the conditions vary a great deal from one prison to another and change over time. However, the safety and health of every transgender prisoner in the United States is guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution no matter where the prisoner is held. This guide includes sections regarding the Prison Rape Elimination Act, Safety and Protection from Violence, Medical Care, Housing and Administrative Segregation, Searches and Privacy, Safely Preserving/Enforcing Rights, and a list of Helpful Resources.  View the guide

 

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