#AM_Equality Tipsheet: January 9, 2019

MORE FEAR MONGERING FROM TRUMP: There is no “national emergency” at our southern border. It’s disgraceful that Trump-Pence continue to peddle this lie in order to stoke fear. The #TrumpShutdown, now in its third week, is owned solely by Trump-Pence. By manufacturing a “crisis” at the border, they are only hurting federal workers and their families every day the government remains closed. Enough. HRC joins Speaker Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) in demanding that Trump-Pence end this shutdown and reopen the government. The demonization of undocumented immigrants and asylum seekers at the expense of government workers is inexcusable.

.@realDonaldTrump’s speech only serves to stoke fear and division.

The crisis at the southern border deeply affects the LGBTQ community and demands serious action. #TrumpAddress t.co/06Qek8heIw

— Human Rights Campaign (@HRC) January 9, 2019

VICTORY FOR HRC-BACKED JENNIFER BOYSKO IN VA STATE SENATE SPECIAL ELECTION: Boysko has been a strong and consistent voice for LGBTQ equality in the Virginia House of Delegates, worked to improve the schools and economy in Northern Virginia and fought to expand Medicaid to thousands of Virginians. More from HRC.

HRC TO HONOR AMANDLA STENBERG AND JORDAN ROTH AT 2019 HRC GREATER NEW YORK GALA: Award-winning actress Amandla Stenberg will receive the HRC Visibility Award and Tony Award-winning producer Jordan Roth with receive the HRC Legacy Award at the February 2 gala in New York City. The annual event raises crucial funds in the fight for LGBTQ equality and attracts more than 1,000 of the organization’s most active members and supporters, political officials from federal, state, and local governments, as well as celebrity entertainers and leaders from the business community. More from HRC.

.@HRC will honor award-winning actress @AmandlaStenberg with the HRC Visibility Award and Tony Award-winning producer @Jordan_Roth with the HRC Legacy Award at the 2019 HRC Greater New York Gala. t.co/1dWFT8pB4t

— Human Rights Campaign (@HRC) January 9, 2019

TEXAS HOUSE SPEAKER DENNIS BONNEN SAYS LAWMAKERS WILL NOT FOCUS ON ATTACKING TRANSGENDER PEOPLE’S ACCESS TO PUBLIC SPACES: Said HRC Texas State Director Rebecca Marques: “It’s encouraging to see that Speaker Bonnen is not looking to repeat the 2017 legislative session in Texas, where businesses, faith leaders, community organizations and everyday Texans stood up to oppose anti-LGBTQ bills. Texans simply don’t have an appetite for discrimination.” More from Dallas Morning News.

JUSTICE — 1.4 MILLION FLORIDIANS REGAIN RIGHT TO VOTE: Yesterday, citizens who have paid their debt to society regained their voting rights in one of the largest enfranchisement of U.S. citizens in the past century. More from The Washington Post.

1/ Today, more than a million citizens will have their voting rights restored in Florida after voters overwhelming passed Amendment 4 in November.

This is major victory for Floridians who have served their time and have paid their debt to society. t.co/6VXOG4OLB4

— Human Rights Campaign (@HRC) January 8, 2019

WHAT WE’RE READING WEDNESDAY — ON TRUMP’S SUPREME COURT GAMBLE: Trump’s nationalist and racist immigration policies and his attacks on transgender people hoping to serve their country in the military have faced significant roadblocks in the lower courts. Now, the Supreme Court of the United States is considering taking up cases on the discriminatory policies promulgated by Trump-Pence. More from USA Today.

• Title VII at SCOTUS: The Supreme Court is considering three cases involving whether Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act protects workers on the basis of gender identity or sexual orientation. More from Bloomberg.

CONGRESS SHOULD PASS UNIVERSAL BACKGROUND CHECKS: HRC is calling for Congress to pass legislation that mandates universal background checks for the purchase of firearms in the United States in response to the introduction of H.R. 8, the Bipartisan Background Checks Act of 2019 and a similar bill in the Senate. More from HRC.

COLORADO GOVERNOR JARED POLIS SWORN IN AS NATION’S FIRST OPENLY GAY GOVERNOR: “Our mission now is to make Colorado a place for all families to have a chance to thrive today, tomorrow and for generations to come,” he said in his first speech as governor. Openly bisexual Oregon Governor Kate Brown is the first LGBTQ governor in the nation. More from The Denver Post.

HORRIFYING — TRANS WOMAN ASSAULTED IN NORTH CAROLINA BATHROOM: Police have charged two women with second-degree kidnapping and sexual battery for the crime. More from USA Today.

• Check out HRC’s brief guide for reporters on writing about transgender people here.

DENVER CITY COUNCIL UNANIMOUSLY VOTES TO PROTECT YOUTH FROM DANGEROUS “CONVERSION THERAPY”:  More from Denverite.

GLOBAL EQUALITY NEWS

HOY — EL SENADO CHILENO DEBATIRÁ EL PROYECTO DE LEY DE MATRIMONIO IGUALITARIO: El proyecto impulsado por la expresidenta Michelle Bachelet en 2017 modificaría el artículo 102 del Código Civil para señalar que el matrimonio es la unión entre “dos personas” y no entre un “hombre y una mujer”. Más de 24HORAS.

TODAY — CHILEAN SENATE TO DEBATE SAME-SEX MARRIAGE BILL: Introduced in 2017 by former Chilean President Michelle Bachelet, the bill would modify article 102 of the Civil Code to indicate that marriage is the union of “two people” and not between a “man and a woman.” More from 24HORAS.

DUTCH PROSECUTORS EXAMINING WHETHER ANTI-LGBTQ “NASHVILLE STATEMENT” SIGNED BY LOCAL CLERGY VIOLATES THE LAW: More from Dutch News.

READING RAINBOW – Bookmark now to read on your lunch break!

Advocate interviews ‘Crazy Ex-Girlfriend’ star Vincent Rodriguez (@VRodriguezIII); BBC reports that a main character in the video game Overwatch is LGBTQ; Elle reports on Janet Mock’s (@janetmock) Golden Globes outfit and its hidden meaning

Have news? Send us your news and tips at [email protected]. Click here to subscribe to #AM_Equality and follow @HRC for all the latest news. Thanks for reading!

www.hrc.org/blog/am-equality-tipsheet-january-9-2019?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss-feed

Congress Should Pass Universal Background Checks

Today, HRC called for Congress to pass legislation that mandates universal background checks for the purchase of firearms in the United States in response to the introduction of H.R. 8, the Bipartisan Background Checks Act of 2019 and a similar bill in the Senate.

“It is long past time for Congress and this White House to take real action to end gun violence,” said HRC Government Affairs Director David Stacy. “There is bipartisan support for meaningful steps to stop these preventable tragedies, including an assurance that no person in this country can purchase a firearm without clearing a background check. From Newtown to Orlando to Parkland to Pittsburgh, Americans have called for action, only to be ignored. No more.”

In 2016, after a gunman killed 49 people – most of them LGBTQ and Latinx – in Orlando’s Pulse Nightclub, HRC’s Board of Directors adopted a resolution that addresses both the epidemic of hate that has fueled anti-LGBTQ-motivated murder, assault and discrimination as well as common-sense gun violence prevention policies that would help keep the LGBTQ community safe. The resolution established HRC’s organizational position that the safety of LGBTQ people in the United States requires the adoption of common-sense gun violence prevention measures, including limiting access to assault-style rifles, expanding background checks, and limiting the ability for suspected terrorists–and those with a history of violence against women–to access guns.

According to Everytown for Gun Safety, more than 33,000 gun deaths happen every year.

www.hrc.org/blog/congress-should-pass-universal-background-checks?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss-feed

Transgender Pose Actress Our Lady J Slams L.A. Times for Body-Shaming

The Pose producer responded to her labeling as one of the “worst-dressed” at the Golden Globes.

www.advocate.com/people/2019/1/08/transgender-pose-actress-our-lady-j-slams-la-times-body-shaming