Battle for Equality is Far From Over in Anchorage

by HRC Staff

HRC is on the ground in Anchorage, Alaska, where existing vital protections for the city’s LGBTQ community could be taken away.

HRC is on the ground in Anchorage, Alaska, where existing vital protections for the city’s LGBTQ community could be taken away. On April 3, 2018, voters will be asked to weigh in on Proposition One, a dangerous proposition that would enshrine discrimination into the city code by forcing transgender residents to use facilities that are inconsistent with their gender identity.

Proposition One would undermine the comprehensive, fully-inclusive non-discrimination ordinance passed in 2015. Should Proposition One pass, the community that so many fair-minded Alaskans worked hard to build would be lost. Proposition One would place Anchorage on the wrong side of history as the city that turned its back on equality, social justice and its own residents.

A small radical group of conservatives led by Jim Minnery are supporting Proposition One. They have hired out-of-state organizers to validate an incredibly dangerous ballot measure that would hurt all Alaskans economically and socially. Proposition One represents an egregious violation to an individual's right to privacy, creating a dangerous and unsafe community.

As opponents of equality continue to spread fear and falsehoods in Anchorage, HRC remains committed to defending the city’s non-discrimination ordinance. Just last week, Western Regional Field Organizer Christopher Cooke was in Anchorage where he assisted with community education efforts. HRC was also on the ground earlier this year to celebrate pride, defend the Affordable Care Act and to activate our membership against the ballot measure.

When discussing transgender Alaskans, It’s important to remember that both Alaska Senators, Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan, have come out publically against the Trump/Pence administration's stance on transgender people serving in the military.

HRC stands firm with our partners at Fair Anchorage and will continue to fight for LGBTQ equality in Anchorage, across Alaska, and throughout the U.S. Learn more about how cities across the nation are working to advance LGBTQ equality through HRC’s Municipal Equality Index.