Pam Spaulding's Blog, page 32
June 4, 2011
Boston Red Sox Announce "It Gets Better" Video Against Anti-Gay Bullying, Joining Giants And Cubs
Boston Red Sox Announce "It Gets Better" Video Against Anti-Gay Bullying, Joining Giants And Cubs
12-year-old Sam Maden started campaign on Change.org to honor his late uncle, asking the Red Sox to speak out about anti-gay bullying and homophobia
BOSTON, MA - The Boston Red Sox announced today that they will produce an "It Gets Better" video, becoming the third team in professional sports in a week to join the campaign in taking a stand against anti-gay bullying and homophobia. More than 9,000 people -- mostly Red Sox fans in New England -- signed 12-year-old Sam Maden's Change,org petition to the Red Sox, which he started in honor of his Uncle Chris, who died unexpectedly in January at the age of 43.
"We are proud of dedicated Red Sox fans like 12-year-old Sam Maden who have taken the courageous step of publicly standing up against bullying of LGBT youth," said Susan Goodenow, Senior Vice President/Public Affairs and Marketing for the Red Sox, in a statement. "The Red Sox have frequently done PSA videos, or public service announcement videos, on important social issues. We are currently producing an "It Gets Better" video to support the It Gets Better campaign to stop bullying of LGBT youth and teen suicides. We hope that when it is released it will both reflect our continued commitment to be active participants in the community and help advance the efforts of Sam and others to stop bullying. Our team stands for respect and inclusion - there is no place for discrimination or acts of hatred in Red Sox Nation."
Sam Maden's effort began after his seventh-grade teacher recently asked him to come up with a project that could "make a difference" in the world. Sam decided to merge his love for the Red Sox with a cause his uncle believed in passionately: ending the bullying of gay kids and kids perceived to be gay. Inspired by news that the San Francisco Giants had responded to a fan's petition on Change.org by announcing they would become the first pro sports teamto create an "It Gets Better" anti-bullying video, Sam decided to ask his favorite team -- the Red Sox -- to make a video as well.
Sam, who currently plays on three baseball teams and was invited by the Red Sox to shout "Play Ball!" before a sold-out crowd at Fenway Park, thinks a video from the team will be a milestone in professional sports.
"When I found out about my uncle's passing, I didn't know what to do," Sam Maden said. "This is something I can do to honor him. Uncle Chris knew how much I love the Red Sox and I think he would have been thrilled with the team making an 'It Gets Better' video to support kids."
In addition to Sam Maden's petition, more than 30 sports fans from around the country have launched petitions on the Change,.org platform urging their favorite sports teams to produce videos as well. The Giants responded with the first "It Gets Better" video in pro sports after lifelong fan Sean Chapin started a petition on Change.org supported by more than 6,000 fans and four mayoral candidates. On Friday, the Chicago Cubs announced they would become the second team to join the "It Gets Better" project after Cubs fan Joe Hinton launched a petition on Change.org.
More than 10,000 "It Gets Better" videos have been produced since syndicated columnist Dan Savage and his partner Terry Miller launched the project in September 2010, in response to an epidemic of teen suicides by gay kids and kids perceived to be gay. Through "It Gets Better" videos, President Barack Obama, Secretary Hillary Clinton, and corporations like Apple, Google, Microsoft, Pixar and other major organizations and leaders have provided hope to kids struggling with sexual orientation and gender identity.
View Sam Maden's Change.org petition to the Red Sox:
http://www.change.org/petition...
For more information on the It Gets Better Project:
June 3, 2011
Connecticut's Gender Inclusive Anti-Discrimination Is Now Being Heard In The Senate
The Republicans have introduced a number of draconian and punitive amendments for the bill including one that requires (All the amendments and information on the bill can before here)
Any person holding a motor vehicle operator's license whose gender-related identity is different from that traditionally associated with the person's physiology or assigned sex at birth shall notify the Commissioner of Motor Vehicles of such identity and the commissioner shall indicate such identity in the electronic record maintained by the commissioner pertaining to such person's operator's license.and one that increases the criminal penalty for a crime that was committed while crossdresed,
Any person who falsely exhibits a gender identity or expression, either through appearance or behavior, that is different from that traditionally associated with the person's physiology or assigned sex at birth, solely for the purpose of committing or facilitating the commission of a crime, shall, in lieu of the sentence of imprisonment authorized by section 53a-35a of the general statutes for the crime of which such person stands convicted, be subject to the sentence of imprisonment authorized by said section for the next more serious degree of misdemeanor or felony, as the case may be, except that if the crime is a class A misdemeanor, such person shall be subject to the sentence of imprisonment authorized by said section for a class D felony.It is expected that there will be a long debate lasting 6 or more hours.
When the bill was voted on in the House the debate lasted over five hours and the Republicans called three amendments, an amendment on the use of “sex segregated” facilities, a teacher amendment and an amendment defining gender identity and expression using the DSM. These amendments and three more will be called in the Senate.
You can follow the debate here,,, http://www.ctn.state.ct.us/webstream.asp?Channel=2
Updates to follow...
New York Catholic Conference Sticking Up For Hateful Ruben Diaz
Richard E. Barnes, Executive Director of the New York State Catholic Conference has posted a Note On Intolerance on Facebook. He laments the awful treatment that poor Senator Diaz has received from the gay community.
But that was small potatoes compared to the hate speech Rev. Diaz is getting. Death threats, real ones. The vilest filth directed at him that you can imagine. It is now reported, in a popular political blog that all policy-makers read in Albany, that the “F** Ruben Diaz Festival” will be held soon in Brooklyn, where winners of the “F** Ruben Diaz: Gay Erotica Featuring NYC’s Number One Bigot” writing contest will entertain themselves reading their dirty stories to each other, mocking this minister of the Gospel. And this is all known to the press and in the halls of the Capitol. So where is the outrage in the media? Where is the cry for tolerance and justice for Rev. Diaz against these hate purveyors? The answer, sadly, is that there is no outcry. Are they saving it for after something truly awful happens to this good man? Until the hate that is being incited boils over into violent behavior?
Yes, the gay community is mocking "this minister of the Gospel." But not nearly as effectively as he mocks himself, masquerading as a man of God while holding hate rallies.
I'd like to turn Mr. Barnes' question back on himself and ask, where is your own outrage and cry for tolerance when Rev. Diaz invited special guest Rev. Ariel Torres Ortega of Radio Visión Cristiana to speak at his rally in the Bronx last month? As Diaz looked on, Ortega riled against "committing sexual acts between man and man. And receiving the retribution of the things that they have done from straying away." And then he delivered this gem at 1:35 mark:
“Those who practice such things are worthy to death.”
Curiously missing from Mr. Barnes "cry for tolerance" is any mention of Rev. Diaz's part in fomenting hatred and violence toward LGBT people. Diaz himself gave an TV interview just days ago where he displayed just how insane he is with hatred for gays, and compared being gay with being a drug addict.
Nevermind that the Southern Poverty Law Center has looked at the statistics and concluded:
The bottom line: Homosexuals are far more likely than any other minority group in the United States to be victimized by violent hate crime.Apparently gays getting brutally assaulted on the streets of Diaz's own borough isn't anything that keeps Mr. Barnes awake.
Poor Mr. Barnes laments:
We are unjustly called “haters” and “bigots” by those who have carefully framed their advocacy strategy.
I'm sorry, if you're holding rallies where your invited speakers are calling for the death of other groups of people, you are a hater. If you're rushing to the defense of such people, you're not much better.
Fortunately a few members of our community called Mr. Barnes on his rank hypocrisy at his one-sided outrage on the group's Facebook page.
Director of Beginners: "I Loved My Gay Dad!"
Learn more and submit your own Beginners Story!
“I love my gay dad…so much!” – Mike Mills
We're All Beginners: Mark Snyder, COLAGE Communications Coordinator
Recently I had the honor of meeting and interviewing Mike Mills and Ewan McGregor of the new film Beginners. Some COLAGE staff and volunteers saw a sneak peek of the film, and we think you’re going to love it!
Interview: Mike Mills, Beginners by COLAGE
Aside from the fact that I share with the main character Oliver, played by McGregor, the experience of having an adorable Jack Russel Terrier, I also happen to have a gay dad.
In the film Oliver stands by his 75 year old father Hal, played by Christopher Plummer, through the coming out process, and through aging and eventually death. Meanwhile, he is managing his work life and his own intense relationship with a new girlfriend. I think a lot of us with LGBTQ parents can identify with the notion of bringing all our identities to the table.
Although the film explores the complexities of sadness and depression, it also shows that people can change and have new beginnings at anytime in their lives. When my father was incarcerated, and then began his coming out process within the prison industrial complex, everyone in my family had a new “beginning.”
Watching Hal come out of the closet as an older gay man was inspiring. It conquered a piece of the isolation I have been feeling about having an aging father who is coming to terms with his own sexuality, and it gave me hope that perhaps my dad and I can soon share a more open and honest bond as he becomes more open and honest with himself. Plus, it would be super fun to throw a coming out party at the Twin Peaks gay bar in San Francisco where all the older guys hang out!
I want to thank Mike Mills, Ewan McGregor, and the Focus Features crew for being so supportive of COLAGE and for taking a risk in making this film. Films like these make a huge impact on our families by showing us that we are not alone and by introducing our stories into the mainstream so that people begin to see the importance of treating all families with dignity and respect.
NOM's Brian Brown sets record for most lies told in a letter
crossposted on Holy Bullies and Headless Monsters
t's one thing to lie. But it's quite another to lie so poorly that you are immediately exposed and not care.The National Organization for Marriage's president, Brian Brown post a letter on NOM's blog. In the letter, he talked about a recent incident in California in which a class was taught gender diversity:
Just when you think it can't get any weirder or more disturbing, an Oakland grade school decided to teach kindergartners about multiple genders, under the banner of preventing bullying.
Watch that video. Look at the children's faces. And then look at the activist from a group called "Gender Spectrum" who wants to embed in these children's minds the idea that we all have a right to make up our own gender(s).
Let's ignore Brown's hysterical tone and do exactly what he says. Look at the video:
At .42 seconds of the video, the announcer says "these fourth graders were told that in nature, things aren't always what they seem."
Did you catch that? In spite of Brown's and the video claims that these are kindergartners, the announcer clearly says that they are fourth graders.
Now some folks may say "what difference does this make?" It should make a big difference. Why did Brown and NOM feel the need to lie about the grade of the children involved in the lesson plan? To add further hysteria to the false meme of "gays recruiting children," no doubt.
And that's not the only lie told by NOM.
At 1:45, the announcer said, "the school maintains most parents, teachers, and students had no problem with what was taught."
This statement calls into question the accusation lodged by Brown and the title of the video that parents did not consent for their children to be taught these lessons.
A written Fox News story further calls into question the accusation by Brown and NOM that this situation took place without parental consent. The article quoted Oakland Unified School District spokesman Troy Flint saying that parents were given prior notice and in fact, three families opted their children out of the lesson.
The rest of Brown's letter is filled with pathos and descriptions of morality and truth - in between the phony anecdotes of gays persecuting Christians. He even mentions the Catholic Charities in Illinois controversy while omitting the crucial part about taxpayer money and an incident involving a therapist who was busted using "ex-gay" therapy in Great Britain - making sure to make her sound like the victim of course. For the truth of that story, go here.
He even mentions NOM's efforts to ban marriage equality Minnesota, making sure to omit the ugliness regarding his organization's partner in that effort, the Minnesota Family Council, and its manual linking homosexuality to pedophilia, bestiality, urine and feces consuming:
In 2012, we hope, pray and expect that the people of Minnesota, after a dignified and civil debate, will join 31 other states in voting to protect marriage as the union of one man and one woman.
I think he can kiss that hope goodbye. Finally Brown ends his letter in part with:
Thank you for all you make possible. At NOM we want no less than to be your voice for your values—and for the truth about the human person: We are born male and female, called to come together in love so that the future can happen.
I know what you are thinking because I was thinking it too.
Why can't that old wives tale about lightning striking audacious liars be true?
UPDATE - NOM makes a pathetic attempt to cover up the mistakes made by Brown in letter. But in doing so, the organization demonstrates the depths it will stoop to in order to deceive folks.
June 2, 2011
Letter from Jim Neal after his arrest for equality direct action at the NC General Assembly
All of those arrested were charged with Trespassing 2 and disorderly conduct. Jim's court date is July 11.In NC we are witnessing an attempt by state legislators in the majority- abetted by a few in the minority- to effectively repeal the 20th century. Aside from targeting and seeking to intimidate the LGBT community with the threat of denying equal rights under the State constitution (amendments to constitutions usually expand- not restrict- individual rights)-- here as across America there is a frontal assault on our education system, our mental and public health systems, our environment, womens' reproductive rights and the social compact that has maintained a strong middle class.......and most cynically, doing so on the backs of the poor, the intimidated and the disenfranchised.
What's playing out before my eyes is the classic "it's them" divide and conquer strategy, a strategy that has always failed in this nation's ongoing march towards full equality. "Equal rights" aren't some nebulous province of this class or the other; rather, equal rights are your rights, they are my rights and they are the rights of all mankind.
I am but one individual, an individual who once campaigned for elective office as a proxy for those having no voice- as politicians all so often do. My campaign didn't end in 2008 anymore than did our nation's progress end on the battlefront at Yorktown, the steps of Appomattox Courthouse or the streets of Selma. For until the day when no man, no woman and no child is embraced in the bosom of liberty and justice, there will be equal rights for none.
I am no longer willing to passively bear witness to the ghettoization of LGBT people, the poor, the middle class and the weak. No body and no individual has the rightful dominion to diminish the unalienable rights to to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness in our United States of America.
This note in response to my defiance of the law today is neither some personal manifesto, act of self-aggrandizement, stunt nor press release. It's been a long day and I felt like recording my thoughts and forwarding them to a collection of friends and family. What I and other did today was hardly courageous or unprecedented. I will say that my personal expression of civil disobedience today was perhaps the most noble gesture I have made in my lifetime.
As some of you know, two of my heroes are Alexander the Great (hence, the name of my business The Agema Group) and Sir Winston Churchill (hence, the name of my youngest son Winston Dwyer Neal.) Both men captured my fancy for their courage and leadership and defiance. Alexander, the King of all kings, always led his troops into battle from the front line (protected by his elite regiment, the agema) putting his life at most risk. And Sir Winston, amongst his many quips, said:
You have enemies? Good. That means you've stood up for something sometime in your life.
Thanks for your support.
I'm still standing.
jim
GetEQUAL NC activists, former U.S. Sen. candidate Jim Neal arrested at NC General Assembly
Following GetEQUAL NC's -- a direct action lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender civil rights organization; "Rally in Raleigh" today -- an event to protest the anti-gay Senate Bill 106 -- local gay activists were arrested for disrupting the legislative session in progress when they demanded full legal recognition for LGBT North Carolinians. Activists included Angel Chandler of GetEQUAL NC, the North Carolina chapter of the national organization GetEQUAL, Chandler's partner, Mary Counce; and Asheville City councilman and 2008 U.S. Senate candidate James Neal. Shortly after entering the chamber, the activists began chanting "Liberty and Justice for All in North Carolina." The activists were immediately taken into custody by police and are currently being booked and charged with "disorderly conduct and trespassing".I was there to capture the whole fracas on video. Jim had announced during his speech at the rally that he was going to go into the legislative chamber, so a group of us followed him in and up to lobby outside of the chamber. And that's where the video starts.
Around 2:20 into it, while Jim and the GetEQUAL activists are being arrested, that's when the security threatened to arrest me and a couple of other people for simply being present to videotape/photograph the event.
Is this how Republican House Speaker Thom Tillisand company run the people's legislature? No wonder NC is going to hell in a handbasket under GOP rule for the first time since Reconstruction. It's an embarrassment. BTW, there's more about the hijinks of the police that occurred earlier during the rally. That's below the fold.
After being told to leave the third floor by Mr. Jackboots, while waiting for the elevator I ran into Laura Leslie, the Capitol Bureau Chief for WRAL (see its coverage), who works the beat at the legislature and filled her in on the details of the protest since she arrived just as things were breaking up.
Jim Neal texted me ("I'm OUT!") when he was released from police custody about 4 hours later (Angel and Mary were also cut loose just after Jim). His court date is July 11.
Speaking with him a bit later he has no regrets and joked that he doubted some of his "friends in the general assembly" will be asking him for an endorsement or to do fundraising for them any time soon after his uninvited appearance today. Ha. He also mentioned that it was an amazing experience to see so many young people at the rally who are committed to fighting this amendment, and he wanted to set the bar to let them know he's ready to work with them side by side.
Updates on the condition, charges, and penalties assessed to the three activists will be available via GetEQUAL's social networks and via GetEQUAL NC's website, www.getequalnc.org.
Coverage of earlier rally is below the fold, including photos and video of a pathetic counterprotest by some fundies.
GetEQUAL:
Earlier in the afternoon, hundreds of North Carolinians attended the "Rally in Raleigh" organized by GetEQUAL NC and local activist Jonathan Green. The rally focused on SB106, the discriminatory bill that would put an amendment on the 2012 ballot that would prevent private businesses and municipalities in NC from offering domestic partnership insurance benefits, and invalidate Domestic Partnership Registries in the three cities in NC that offer them (Chapel Hill, Asheville and Carrboro). The authors of the bill included North Carolina State Senators James Forrester, Jerry W. Tillman, and Dan Soucek.Former minister and author of the book Adam's Gift, Jimmy Creech, spoke eloquently about religion-based bigotry used by politicians in the NC General Assembly to justify passing a marriage amendment."Rally in Raleigh" Speakers included:
? Cecil Bothwell, Asheville City Councilman, author, & US Congressional Candidate for NC 11th District 2012
? Janet Owen, Co-Chair Interfaith Voice of Winston-Salem
? Chelsea Sayre, GetEQUAL NC
? James Neal, Businessman and openly gay 2008 Democratic primary candidate for U.S. Senate
? Pam Spaulding, Pam's House Blend
? Jonathan Green, Sexuality And Gender Alliance
? Angel Chandler, GetEQUAL NCGetEQUAL's Executive Director, Robin McGehee, responded to the arrests, "GetEQUAL issued a call to the President today to stand up for full LGBT equality, and we're proud to support LGBT North Carolinians in issuing the same call to their state elected officials. As North Carolina gears up to host the Democratic National Convention next year, we hope that the state will be moving toward fully recognizing the dignity and equality of LGBT North Carolinians, rather than trying to further enshrine discrimination in the state constitution. North Carolina residents deserve better than the legalized discrimination that this bill promises."
I spoke as well (I don't know if anyone taped my remarks), and while I was speaking, some fundies across the mall started bleating god knows what with a bullhorn. The police were eventually called to make them stop that, but they continued shouting without the bullhorn, which was fine. I yelled "I love you too" to them.
After I finished up, I went over to take some photos of these young troubled men. The hard-headedness of these fundies is sad. Quoting scripture, not understanding the separation of church and state. God's law superceding civil law, you name it, this guy covers it. Oh yes, and pedophilia and bestiality was first up on the menu of his diatribe.
We did agree on one thing - a plainclothes cop trying to tell me he didn't want me to ask questions of the young man in a civil manner, and that he didn't like the content of my question - which was to ask "how my marriage was hurting him." It is none of this cops's business. We were both on public ground in the appropriate places (I was on the grass where the permit for the rally covered, he was on the sidewalk). Apparently this officer has little regard for our first amendment rights.
Photos from the rally. This album is also on Facebook.
Will the rainbow flag fly proudly over Seattle's Space Needle in 2011?
Remember these amazing pictures from 2010 when the rainbow flag flew proudly over Seattle's Space Needle during Pride week? According to Seattle's Josh Castle "the Space Needle has not announced plans to raise the Pride flag for Seattle 2011 Pride". He's created a Change.org petition inviting all to "Please join me in thanking the Space Needle for raising the flag in 2010, and ask them to raise the Pride flag again in 2011."
Photo credits: Aaron Last, Dan Cox and James Whitely
Related:
* Rainbow flag flying proudly over Seattle's Space Needle
New Poll: NY Supports Marriage Equality -- Big Time. 14 Other States Say 'I Do' Too.
Quinnipaic, 6/1/11, 1257 registered voters.
"Would you support or oppose a law that would allow same-sex couples to get married?"
Support: 58%
Oppose: 36%
This is but the latest of five polls taken this year that show marriage equality to be the majority position in NY State: 58-36, 54-42, 58-36, 56-37, 57-38. A sixth poll asking whether respondees supported marriage equality, civil unions, or no recognition recorded an astounding 50% in favor of marriage equality, an unprecedented result in any state for any poll with those three options.
The poll also reports that Governor Cuomo, a staunch supporter of marriage equality who has been pushing for the legislature to pass such a bill, has an astronomically high popularity rating (unlike certain Republican Governors such as he-who-must-not-be-named in Wisconsin):
Do you approve or disapprove of the way Andrew Cuomo is handling his job as Governor?
Approve: 61%
Disappove: 18%
Even Republicans approve by a margin of 59% - 22%.
Another huge supporter and fierce advocate for marriage equality, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, is not quite in the heavens approval-wise, merely in the stratosphere:
Do you approve or disapprove of the way Kirsten Gillibrand is handling her job as United States Senator?
Approve: 53%
Disappove: 22%
A mere 31% differential when compared with Cuomo's 43% differential...
Unfortunately, whether a marriage equality bill passes the NY Legislature is not up to them. It is basically up to eight on-the-fence State Senators, three Democrats and five Republicans, of which six are needed to reach a bare 32 vote majority.
(If you live in NY State and want to help by calling your State Senator, you can use this nice tool set up by Senator Gillibrand.)
While New York is the only recently polled state to show such high support for legalizing same-sex marriage, polling done recently in ten other states show more support for marriage equality than not:
State2011 Poll ResultsCA 45-45 (1), 51-40 DE 48-47 ME 47-45 MD 51-44 MN 46-45 NH 56-35, 62-29, 59-34 (2) RI 50-41 VA 47-43 WA 48-46 DC 56-35 (3)
(1) Binder Research, not publicly announced(2) On whether to repeal NH's marriage equality law(3) 2010 poll
New Jersey had a poll taken in 2009 showing same-sex marriage favored by a 46-42 margin, and Vermont, Massachusetts and Connecticut (states which already have marriage equality) having polling from years ago showing majority support. Support in all these states has likely increased over time.
That's 15 states (including DC) with at least plurality support. Other states for which no specific polling has been done but which might show plurality support would, I suspect, include Hawaii, Oregon, Illinois and Colorado.
How do these results, favoring same-sex marriage in only 30% of states, reconcile with nationwide polling which now shows that a majority of Americans support marriage equality?
Simple. These statewide polls are almost always done by sampling registered or likely voters, while the nationwide polls are generally done by polling adults. And, for whatever reason, the likelier you are to vote, the less inclined you are to support marriage equality, probably by something on the order of a five to seven percent swing going from likely voters to adults.
There is a ways to go, but it is remarkable the change that has occurred. Just a decade ago, by a margin of 29% (31%-60%), the US public was quite dead-set against marriage equality. That hasn't quite been reversed, but it's coming, to quote a famous politician, whether you like it or not.
The all-but-required and now-iconic Nate Silver graph:
Nevada Governor signs two more gender identity anti-discrimination bills into law
Good news from Nevada! Yesterday Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval, a Republican, signed into law bills prohibiting discrimination in housing (SB368) and public accommodations (SB331) on the basis of gender identity or expression. Last week he signed AB211, a bill prohibiting discrimination in employment on the basis of gender identity or expression. Taken together, the three new laws represent fairly comprehensive anti-discrimination protections for trans people in Nevada. However, as housing, employment and public accommodations were each handled in separate bills, the outcome could have been less desirable. What are people's thoughts on whether it is better to introduce a single comprehensive bill or separate bills like Nevada did? What would be the conditions where one approach would have a better chance at success than the other? Would we be cheering today if the Governor had only signed one or two of these bills into law?
The laws will go into effect on October 1.
Update: Responses below the fold.
National Gay and Lesbian Task Force
Nevada governor signs three transgender nondiscrimination bills
June 2, 2011The Task Force applauds Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval for signing three transgender nondiscrimination bills. The new laws prohibit discrimination in employment, housing and public accommodations based on gender identity or expression.
Nevada becomes the 14th state with clear protections for gender identity in its statewide nondiscrimination laws. More than 130 local jurisdictions also have this coverage, meaning that now 42 percent of the U.S. population lives in a jurisdiction with one of these laws.
The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force has been working with the Las Vegas-based staff of the Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada (PLAN) to pass protections for transgender Nevadans. This includes sending organizers from the Task Force Academy for Leadership and Action to assist and train local activists there, as well as providing monetary support.
The Task Force and the National Center for Transgender Equality recently released Injustice at Every Turn, which reveals the depth of discrimination against transgender and gender non-conforming people. The study is the first large-scale national study of discrimination against transgender and gender non-conforming Americans, and paints a more complete picture than any prior research to date.
The survey showed that 26 percent of transgender people have lost a job due to bias, 50 percent have been harassed at work, 19 percent have been denied a home/apartment, and 19 percent were homeless at some point due to bias, with higher rates for transgender people of color.
National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Executive Director Rea Carey said today:
Our national survey spotlights just how pervasive and severe discrimination is toward transgender and gender non-conforming people. The alarming personal stories and stats show that transgender people face injustice in many places - from school systems that promise to shelter and educate, to harsh and exclusionary workplaces, to the grocery store, at the hotel front desk, in doctors' offices and at emergency rooms. We thank the governor and fair-minded lawmakers for ensuring that all Nevadans, regardless of gender identity or expression, are protected from such discrimination. These new laws will literally save lives. We congratulate the Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada and transgender rights advocates for their hard work and leadership on this critical issue of fairness.
Pam Spaulding's Blog
- Pam Spaulding's profile
- 1 follower
