#AM_Equality Tipsheet: August 16, 2017

by Allison Turner •

Trump aligns himself with neo-Nazis -- a danger to our country; #TXlege adjourns without passing anti-trans bill.

HRC PRESIDENT CHAD GRIFFIN -- “TRUMP STANDS WITH RACISTS, ANTI-SEMITES, NEO-NAZIS...IS UNFIT TO SERVE”: “Donald Trump's racist, white supremacist screed should have every leader standing up in outrage. If there was a line left to cross, he's crossed it,” said HRC President Chad Griffin (@ChadHGriffin). “These are desperate, unhinged rantings that normalize and encourage hatred and violence. Trump is not only morally unfit to serve -- he is dangerous and proved once again today that he stands with ‘alt-right’ racists and anti-Semites. He is a threat to democracy and every elected leader on both sides of the aisle must stand up to this threat to democracy. Tepid, idle response isn't good enough this time.” Griffin’s comments came after the President of the United States yesterday aligned himself with white supremacists and neo-Nazis who gathered last weekend in Charlottesville, leaving behind a trail of violence and death. Read the full transcript of Trump’s ravings from CNBC.

  • Sherrilyn Ifill, President and Director-Counsel of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (@Sifill_LDF) took over HRC’s Twitter yesterday to discuss Charlottesville, the rise of the violent white supremacist movement in America and Donald Trump’s failure to speak out clearly and unequivocally to condemn the violence and to hold our country together. Read Ifill’s full Twitter takeover here.
  • Foreign Policy reports that the FBI and DHS warned the Trump Administration months ago that white supremacists were responsible for the “lion’s share of violent attacks” in the U.S. -- 49 homicides in 26 attacks from 2000 to 2016 … more than any other domestic extremist movement, the FBI reported. More from FP.
  • Top U.S. House Democrats, including the heads of the Black, Hispanic, Asian and progressive caucuses, sent a letter to the White House calling for the dismissal of Trump advisors with white supremacist ties -- Steve Bannon, Stephen Miller and Sebastian Gorka. More from The Huffington Post.
  • America’s military leaders took to social media after Trump’s incendiary comments to assure servicemembers and the rest of the nation that the armed services will not tolerate racism in its ranks.

TEXAS LEGISLATURE ENDS SPECIAL SESSION WITHOUT PASSING ANTI-TRANS BILL: The Texas Legislature adjourned its special session sine die yesterday, and, due to the outpouring of opposition from Texans from all walks of life, anti-transgender legislation is dead for this session. “First and foremost, these bills were defeated because of the many voices that came out in opposition, saying, ‘don’t discriminate in the Lone Star State.’,” said JoDee Winterhof, HRC senior vice president for policy and political affairs. “[W]e realize that this was a difficult session for many Texans, and several harmful bills did get signed into law. But rest assured… if the legislature attempts to attack our communities again, all of us will come out with the same level of force and strength that we did throughout the regular and special session.”More from HRC.

  • During the regular legislative session and the special session -- thousands of Texans have spoken out against proposed anti-LGBTQ legislation, including: 27 Fortune 500 companies, nearly 500 faith leaders and 50,124 people who took action by signing petitions or testifying against these harmful bills.
  • ICYMI: HRC President Chad Griffin (@ChadHGriffin) met with families of transgender children in Texas to talk about the deep harms of anti-LGBTQ legislation being debated by state legislators.

WHAT WE’RE WATCHING WEDNESDAY: Last night and early into the morning, the city of Baltimore removed all four confederate statutes in the city -- following Mayor Catherine Pugh’s pledge to do so. “I did not want to endanger people in my own city,” she said. “I had begun discussions with contractors and so forth about how long it would take to remove them. I am a responsible person, so we moved as quickly as we could.” The Baltimore City Council unanimously passed a resolution to remove them as well. More from The Baltimore Sun.

COALITION RALLIES TO SUPPORT DREAMers: The future of young people in the country under an Obama-era program allowing undocumented immigrants brought to the U.S. as children hangs in the balance. Ten extremist attorneys general from across the country have called for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program to be rescinded, leaving immigrant youth -- including 75,000 LGBTQ Dreamers -- without work permits, driver’s licenses, and vulnerable to deportations. Yesterday, HRC joined FIRM, CASA, Planned Parenthood, MoveOn and more for a National Day of Action to defend DACA recipients.

  • Sheridan Aguirre, who is LGBTQ, is one of hundreds of thousands of DREAMers who has been able to work and obtain a driver’s license because of DACA. More from HRC.
  • Sheridan Aguirre, quien se identifica como parte de la comunidad LGBTQ, es uno de los cientos de miles de “soñadores” cuyo futuro está en peligro; este grupo de jóvenes traídos a EE. UU. durante la niñez son parte del programa de Acción Diferida para los Llegados en la Infancia (DACA). Lea más de HRC.

CBO REPORT -- TRUMP’S THREATS TO “IMPLODE” ACA WOULD CAUSE PREMIUMS, FED DEFICIT TO SKYROCKET: The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO), in an alarming assessment released yesterday, asserted that if Trump ends subsidies that help low-income people pay for doctor visits, prescriptions and hospital care, premiums “would shoot up 20 percent next year, and federal budget deficits would increase by $194 billion in the coming decade,” The New York Times reports. Read more at The New York Times.

GETTING READY FOR BACK TO SCHOOL? CHECK OUT THESE BOOKS: Inclusive language and diverse books are just two ways to help students and their families feel welcome at school. Check out this resource from HRC’s Welcoming Schools.

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY ELLEN AND PORTIA: Congrats to Ellen DeGeneres (@TheEllenShow) and Portia de Rossi (@PortiadeRossi), who are celebrating seven years of marriage today. These two have not only captured America’s heart, but helped bring LGBTQ visibility to the world by being their true, authentic selves.

READING RAINBOW

CNN speaks to HRC Welcoming Schools’ Cheryl Greene on talking to children about national tragedies; The Virginian-Pilot reports that Corporal Guy Saucier will service as a resource to Va. Beach police staff on LGBTQ issues.

Have news? Send us your news and tips at AMEquality@hrc.org. Click here to subscribe to #AM_Equality and follow @HRC for all the latest news. Thanks for reading!

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A.M. Equality

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