The President’s announcement that he supports marriage equality has encouraged other high- profile leaders and organizations to express their support for marriage equality, most notably the NAACP, which decided in a near-unanimous vote to pass a resolution officially supporting marriage equality. The President also adds his voice to a growing chorus of people of faith who embrace equality not in spite of their religious beliefs, but because of them. It would be tempting to see this moment as...
I am elated beyond words! President Obama has been re-elected. Marriage equality prevailed in ALL four states—Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, and Washington—that faced ballot measures. AND Tammy Baldwin is now Senator Baldwin, the first out LGBTQ person voted into the U.S. Senate. So many victories, including the Iowa Supreme Court justice who supported marriage keeping his seat and a host of openly LGBTQ folks being elected to public office. Mark this moment. We see a new future. Anything is...
Today, the Obama administration announced new rules designed to launch a major offensive to help stop the epidemic of sexual violence in the nation’s prison system and youth detention system. The rules, released by the Department of Justice (DOJ), aim to “prevent, detect, and respond to sexual abuse in confinement facilities.” The new rules—and a new report from DOJ that was also released today—recognize that sexual violence is an especially urgent issue for LGBTQ youth in juvenile justice...
Where were you when you first heard? I was in front of Lincoln Center (I’m in New York City this week for a meeting with other LGBTQ civil rights attorneys from across the country) when NCLR Deputy Director Arcelia Hurtado screamed, “He did it!” I turned around and said, “What?” To which she replied, “Obama came out in support of marriage!” We both screamed and hugged, teary eyed. The New Yorkers walking past us didn’t care. But we knew that this was a historic and indelible moment....
Tonight, President Obama gave his third State of the Union address, which focused on building a lasting economic recovery. For the first time in our nation’s history, two out lesbians—Air Force Colonel Ginger Wallace and Lorelei Kilker—were among the select group invited to attend the speech as guests of First Lady Michelle Obama. Wallace is an Air Force intelligence officer who served in the Iraq war. When she was recently promoted to her current rank, her partner participated in her official...
By Huong T. Nguyen NCLR Guest Columnist Saturday, December 18, 2010. It’s 8:30 a.m., and I am still in bed. I hear footsteps hurriedly coming up the stairs. My bedroom door slams open, and a big mass lands on my body. Thromp! I open one eye and see my earnest 5-year-old son, Rowan, staring intently down at me. He whispers, “Mommy, wake up, they are voting to move the bill. ~~~ It’s only been three hours since I succumbed to sleep. I was keeping a vigil. I had a crazy idea that the repeal of...
By Huong T. Nguyen NCLR Guest Columnist At the beginning of this school year, Rowan, my 6-year-old son, held court in his first-grade class about “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” (DADT). The unprompted conversation with his classmates went something like this: Rowan: My mom was in the military. Classmates: Really? Rowan: Yeah, but she was kicked out because she was gay. (His peers gathered around to hear his tale.) One classmate: No, I don’t believe you! Rowan: No, really, I saw her uniform! In the...
Today brings momentous news from President Barack Obama and the federal Department of Justice about the discriminatory and offensive so-called “Defense of Marriage Act,” or DOMA. This morning, Attorney General Eric Holder announced that, at the urging of the President, as well as based upon Mr. Holder’s own assessment, the Department of Justice will no longer defend Section 3 of DOMA—the section that prohibits the federal government from recognizing legal marriages between same-sex couples....
Sitting in the White House last night for a truly “once in a lifetime moment”—a movie screening of “Thurgood” with President Barack Obama—I was moved by how far justice and equality has really come in our nation, and how much further we have to go to finish the promise of “equality and justice for all.” Just a few feet from me, President Obama sat in one of the plush, red seats in the White House’s movie theater to watch the biopic about Thurgood Marshall, the lead attorney and key architect...
By Huong T. Nguyen NCLR Guest Columnist Year: 2010 The girl became my wife. Sixteen years after we first met, Alison and I live in the San Francisco Bay Area, and are proud parents of two wonderful boys. Two years ago, we were legally married in her parents’ backyard, surrounded by our closest friends and family. We had the unique joy of sharing that milestone with our children. ~~~ In 1997, the military discharged me without any characterization—meaning, neither honorable nor dishonorable....
Equality Florida is the largest civil rights organization dedicated to securing full equality for Florida’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) community. We’re changing Florida through lobbying, grassroots organizing, education, and coalition building — so that no one suffers harassment or discrimination on the basis of their sexual orientation or gender identity or expression.
Come Out With Pride
The mission of Come Out With Pride Orlando is to cultivate visibility, authenticity, and acceptance by curating inclusive experiences that celebrate and embody the spirit of queer resilience.
Orlando Youth Alliance
Since 1990, the Orlando Youth Alliance (OYA) has been providing safe spaces for LGBTQ youth in Central Florida. Their coverage area includes metro Orlando, but also spans out to include the rural counties surrounding Orlando. In 2008, they created a chapter in Lakeland, Florida (Polk County). OYA oversees the highly successful Polk Pride Festival which attracts over 6,000 people annually.
Southern Legal Counsel
Southern Legal Counsel, Inc. (SLC) is a Florida statewide not-for-profit public interest law firm that is committed to the ideal of equal justice for all and the attainment of basic human and civil rights. SLC developed its Transgender Rights Initiative to fill a gap in access to justice for Florida’s transgender community, including in areas such as access to legal authenticity, access to safe and affirming school and work environments, access to medically necessary healthcare, and more. SLC’s Trans Rights Initiative protects the rights of Florida’s LGBTQ+ community utilizing federal impact litigation, policy advocacy, and individual representation. SLC has litigated many of the recent federal cases against the state of Florida, and has successfully overturned the Medicaid Ban on gender-affirming care (Dekker v. Weida); permanently enjoined the medical care bans for minors and restrictions for adults created by SB 254 and the Boards of Medicine rules (Doe v. Ladapo); preliminarily enjoined the pronoun ban for transgender teachers in Florida’s public schools; and more.
Joy Metropolitan Community Church
Joy MCC is the spiritual home to a multi-cultural, inclusive, and diverse community of faith. We are rooted in the life, ministry, and teachings of Jesus. We experience a vibrant spirituality that is positive, practical, and progressive. We’ve always been a totally open and affirming church. We welcome the full participation of people of allraces, cultures, ages, abilities, spiritual backgrounds, sexual orientations, and gender identities. We share a deep sense of community where our diversity is celebrated, not merely tolerated.
ACLU of Florida
The mission of the ACLU of Florida is to protect, defend, strengthen, and promote the constitutional rights and liberties of all people in Florida. We envision a fair and just Florida, where all people are free, equal under the law, and live with dignity.
QLatinx
QLatinx is a grassroots community-led racial, social, and gender justice organization dedicated to the advancement and empowerment of Orlando’s LGBTQ+ Latinx community. QLatinx is committed to building a supportive infrastructure, addressing inequity, promoting inclusionary QLatinx aims to deepen the political consciousness of LGBTQ+ and Latinx individuals about intersections and complexities of institutional, interpersonal, and internalized forms of oppression. This work includes empowering local LGBTQ+ leadership to become cognizant of gender and racial inequities with the LGBTQ+ community and in relation to cisgender populations.
Community Spring
Community Spring is a grassroots organization dedicated to economic justice. The two pillars of our work are income and power: income to meet people’s needs and power to reshape the systems that keep them down.
Pride Community Center of North Central Florida
The Pride Community Center of North Central Florida offers safe spaces, resources, services and events to foster and enhance the well-being and visibility of LGBTQ+ people in North Central Florida. Visibility changes minds. Here in North Central Florida, LGBTQ+ people deserve access to safe spaces where they can not only express themselves, but where they can also be a part of a community. Come join us.