#AM_Equality Tipsheet: January 18, 2018

by Allison Turner

Pass the Dream Act now; Building Bridges for global workplace equality; Shameful - judge will not release Prop 8 tapes until 2020

HRC CALLS ON CONGRESS TO PASS THE DREAM ACT NOW TO PROTECT DACA RECIPIENTS: “By rescinding DACA, Donald Trump launched a fresh assault on the American Dream, risking the lives -- and livelihoods -- of more than 800,000 Dreamers. There are more than 75,000 LGBTQ people who are eligible for DACA; an estimated 36,000 of them have received DACA status and face uniquely complicated -- and potentially dangerous -- circumstances if the Trump-Pence assault is carried out,” writes HRC Senior Vice President for Programs, Research and Training Mary Beth Maxwell in a piece for The Washington Blade. HRC is encouraging it’s grassroots army of more than 3 million members and supporters to contact their elected officials and urge them to pass the Dream Act now. More from The Washington Blade.

  • In an ad published in Politico, HRC -- along with the American Federation of Teachers and dozens of organizations -- urged 34 House Republicans to join Democrats in passing the Dream Act. View the ad here.

BUILDING BRIDGES FOR GLOBAL WORKPLACE EQUALITY: Yesterday in Chile, HRC kicked off its groundbreaking partnership with Fundación Iguales & Pride Connection with an international launch of HRC’s Corporate Equality Index (CEI), the premier report tracking LGBT inclusion in the world’s largest companies. “Following the equality trend across the Americas, Chile is now taking a clear lead by investing in LGBT inclusion in the workplace, which is both fair and smart for business,” said Deena Fidas, Director of HRC Equidad MX and HRC’s Workplace Equality Program. “This partnership with Fundación Iguales demonstrates our commitment to deliver concrete results for LGBT employees in Chile and around the globe.” HRC has previously launched the CEI internationally in Mexico, marking the historic HRC Equidad MX initiative that works with leading employers in country to create more diverse and LGBT-inclusive workplaces. More from HRC.

THROWBACK THURSDAY: In 2015, twins Aaron and Austin Rhodes came out to their father in a video that quickly went viral -- it now has more than 25 million views. Recently, they reflected on the powerful video, and shared how coming out has changed their lives.

SHAMEFUL -- JUDGE WILL NOT RELEASE TAPES OF PROP 8 TRIAL UNTIL 2020: In April HRC, backed efforts by KQED to release the full record of the groundbreaking case, including videotapes, which have remained under court seal. Prop 8 was the 2008 amendment to the California Constitution that stripped the state of marriage equality and was ultimately overturned by the Supreme Court of United States  in the case Perry v. Brown. “The lives of millions of Americans have been changed by the historic fight to secure marriage equality nationwide. The effort to keep the Proposition 8 trial proceedings hidden from the public was wrong then, and it is wrong now,” said HRC President Chad Griffin (@ChadHGriffin) in April. More from BuzzFeed.

HRC, EQUALITY OHIO AND LOCAL ADVOCATES CALL ON LEGISLATORS TO PASS FAIRNESS ACT: Yesterday, Rep. Nickie Antonio (D-Lakewood) joined representatives from HRC Ohio, Equality Ohio, the Ohio Business Competes Coalition and TransOhio to call for passage of the Ohio Fairness Act. Ohio is one of 31 states that lack explicit state-level protections for all LGBTQ people, and ranked in the “High Priority to Achieve Basic Equality” category in HRC’s 2017 State Equality Index (SEI), which provides a comprehensive state-by-state analysis of laws and policies that affect LGBTQ people and their families.

  • Our favorite headlines: Cleveland.com, “Ohio Chamber of Commerce backs LGBTQ anti-discrimination bill;” The Columbus Dispatch, “Advocates: State LGBT anti-discrimination law would help Ohio business;” Dayton Daily News, “LGBT bill picks up support in Ohio;” ABC 6, “Push to protect LGBT community in Ohio Statehouse;” and WKSU, “Antonio Renews Push for LGBTQ Protections”

TRANS MAN WHO DREAMT OF MILITARY CAREER FINALLY ABLE TO ENLIST: Ohio resident Nicolas Talbott tells NBC, “It’s absolutely thrilling. I can finally look forward with my future and start a career and really enter properly into my adult life.” Qualified transgender people who want to serve their country in the military were finally allowed to sign up openly on January 1 after the Department of Justice decided not to appeal federal court rulings blocking Trump's discriminatory transgender military ban. More from NBC.

FIRST OPENLY GAY U.S. WINTER OLYMPIAN CALLS OUT MIKE PENCE FOR ANTI-LGBTQ ACTIONS: In an interview with USA Today Sports, Adam Rippon (@Adaripp), when asked about a traditional pre-Olympics meeting with Pence, said, “If it were before my event, I would absolutely not go out of my way to meet somebody who I felt has gone out of their way to not only show that they aren’t a friend of a gay person but that they think that they’re sick… I don’t think the current administration represents the values that I was taught growing up. Mike Pence doesn’t stand for anything that I really believe in.” More from Christine Brennan (@cbrennansports) at USA Today.

DISAPPOINTING -- VIRGINIA SENATE COMMITTEE KILLS INCLUSIVE HATE CRIMES BILL: By a vote of 9-6, the Virginia State Senate Courts of Justice Committee struck down a bill that would have added sexual orientation and gender identity to the state’s hate crimes law. More from The Washington Blade.

ARIZONA STATE SENATE BILL COULD PROTECT YOUTH FROM SO-CALLED “CONVERSION THERAPY”: The bill, introduced by State Senator Sean Bowie, would ban the dangerous and debunked practice. More from Arizona Central.

WASHINGTON STATE CONSIDERS BILL TO SUPPORT LGBTQ ELDERS: It would require state nursing home workers and other long-term service providers to receive training on the needs of LGBTQ elders. More from McKnight’s Long-Term Care News.

  • Masterpiece and LGBTQ elders: Allowing businesses to discriminate against LGBTQ people could harm elders who rely on services including long-term care facilities and meal delivery services. More from KJZZ.

MAN CHARGED IN MURDER OF TRANSGENDER WOMAN: Kevyn Ramirez faces the charge in the stabbing death of Viccky Gutierrez, a transgender woman from Honduras. Gutierrez is believed to be the first transgender woman of color to have died this year as a result of violence. Transgender women of color make up a horrific percentage of reported transgender murder victims. More from ABC 7.

CALL ME BY YOUR NAME ACTOR WILL DONATE SALARY FROM WOODY ALLEN FILM: Timothée Chalamet (@RealChalamet), citing his support for the #MeToo movement, said his earnings will be directed to TIME'S UP, the LGBT Center in New York and the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network. More from CNN.

PANAMA SIGNALS IT WILL COMPLY WITH LANDMARK LGBTQ RULING: The country’s government agencies have been notified of the ruling by the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, which ordered the Costa Rican government to recognize and guarantee all rights and protections for same-sex couples, including in marriage. The decision creates precedent and could lead to similar outcomes in the 19 other countries that have submitted to the jurisdiction of the court. More from The Washington Blade.

TUNISIA HOLDS FIRST-EVER LGBTQ FILM FESTIVAL: Courageous activists are organizing the festival despite the fact that Tunisia is one of 72 countries around the world that criminalize same-sex relations. More from Middle East Eye.

READING RAINBOW 

Outsports reports that openly LGBTQ journalists Chris Hine (@ChristopherHine) and Stefanie Loh (@StefanieLoh) were recently honored by the National Sports Media Association; Billboard interviews non-binary singer, drag performer and voice actor Jinkx Monsoon (@JinkxMonsoon); Curve highlights 10 bisexual authors; The Atlanta Journal-Constitution shares the art of a local gay Arab-American artist;

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A.M. Equality