MOONLIGHT TAKES HOME BEST PICTURE, FIRST LGBTQ FILM TO DO SO: Last night, Moonlight, the coming of age story of a gay Black man, took home the coveted “Best Picture” award, becoming the first movie with an LGBTQ plotline to do so. Mahershala Ali also won “Best Supporting Actor” for his performance in the film, and the film additionally won “Best Writing Adapted Screenplay.” Check out all the winners from CNN.

Congratulations to @MoonlightMov on 3 #Oscar Awards! Thank you for sharing this powerful story with audiences around the globe. #Moonlight pic.twitter.com/CnHXjG9L13

— HumanRightsCampaign (@HRC) February 27, 2017

DEAR SEAN, HERE’S SOME #REALFACTS ON TRANSGENDER KIDS WHO WILL BE HURT BY YOUR BOSS’S DECISION. BEST, CHAD: White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer was a bit, how shall we say, fact-challenged last week when he took to the podium and defended with some egregious #alternativefacts on President Trump’s unconscionable decision to rescind critical guidance protecting transgender children in their schools. Enter HRC President Chad Griffin (@ChadHGriffin), who dashed out a quick, helpful email to Spicer, reminding the seemingly clueless spokesperson that five circuit courts have determined that the nation’s civil rights laws prohibiting sex discrimination protect transgender people, and that wanting to protect this vulnerable population is not new -- Minneapolis passed a city ordinance doing just that back in the 1970s. If the president cares about transgender kids, as Spicer asserted, rolling back protections for young people whose lives are too frequently marked by harassment, violence and hopelessness, is a truly shameful way to show it. Explain to transgender students and their parents, Griffin wrote, why they shouldn’t be alarmed. We’re waiting…

• Morning must read: HRC President Chad Griffin debunked the Trump Administration’s claim that the decision to rescind this guidance was because of “states’ rights” -- the same argument used by opponents of equality throughout history as a license to discriminate. More from Mic.

Human Rights Campaign boss @ChadHGriffin BCCs White House press on his public memo (press release) re #LGBT rights to @PressSec (1/2) --> pic.twitter.com/yQenaMwRc4

— Phil Elliott (@Philip_Elliott) February 24, 2017

WE CANNOT REPLACE HB2 WITH “NEW” HB2.0: Yesterday, HRC President Chad Griffin joined Equality NC Executive Director Chris Sgro and NC NAACP President Rev. William Barber in calling out a Republican-led proposal in North Carolina that would double down on the most discriminatory provisions of North Carolina’s HB2. Writing in the Raleigh News & Observer, they said: “This train wreck of a bill does nothing to alleviate the economic suffering or end the unconscionable discrimination HB2 has rained down on the state. North Carolinians have made it clear that they do not want laws that hurt cities’ ability to govern, that put civil rights on the ballot and that continue to undermine equality for their LGBTQ neighbors, friends and colleagues.” Among a host of discriminatory and troubling measures, the new proposal would prevent cities from passing meaningful non-discrimination protections --- forbidding them from passing ordinances ensuring transgender people have access to restrooms --- as well as prevent cities from implementing policies that stop taxpayer funds from being used by contractors to discriminate against LGBTQ people. It would also impose additional new and unnecessary penalties for crimes committed in restrooms, and it would create a mechanism for non-discrimination ordinances to be subject to a burdensome referendum process. Read the full oped from the Raleigh News & Observer.

• Yesterday, in a full-page advertisement in the Raleigh News & Observer, Equality North Carolina and HRC renewed their call for full repeal of the anti-LGBTQ HB2 law and featured the powerful voices of legendary basketball coaches Mike Krzyzewski of Duke and Roy Williams of the University of North Carolina, as well as NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, and NCAA President Mark Emmert. See the full ad here.

.@HRC & @EqualityNC ad in @NewsObserver calling for full repeal of anti-equality #HB2 features powerful North Carolina voices. #RepealHB2 pic.twitter.com/1ndnwgnWJw

— HumanRightsCampaign (@HRC) February 26, 2017

MONDAY MUST WATCH: LGBTQ advocates and allies gathered for a rally and dance party outside of the Texas Statehouse late last week to protest a slew of anti-LGBTQ bills the Legislature has introduced this session, including the transphobic SB6.  “Remember, this is not a choice for a trans kid; you don’t wake up one morning and decide you want to be a boy,” transgender advocate Meghan Stabler, a Texan and member of HRC’s Board of Directors, told the crowd. More from the Austin American-Statesman.

SCOTUS SHUTS DOWN TRANSPHOBIC LIBERTY COUNSEL LAWYER: Anti-LGBTQ activist and Liberty Counsel Founder Mat Staver was called out by the Supreme Court of the United States over the weekend for intentionally misgendering Gavin Grimm in court documents he filed in Gloucester County School Board v. Grimm. The case, which SCOTUS will hear on March 28, involves discrimination against Grimm, a transgender boy, who filed suit against the school board alleging the district violated Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 by denying him use of the boy’s restroom. More from Slate.

HRC MOURNS TIARA RICHMOND, TRANS WOMAN OF COLOR MURDERED IN CHICAGO: Last week, a vigil was held for Tiara Richmond, a transgender woman of color who was killed in South Chicago. Richmond, also known as Keke Collier, 24, was fatally shot in Englewood on the morning of February 21, according to the Chicago Tribune. Police and a local report from ABC initially misgendered Richmond; this article has since been removed. In 2012, Tiffany Golden and Paige Clay, both transgender women of color, were also victims of violence on the same street where Tiara lost her life. These cases remain unsolved. Two rallies in the city are planned to honor Richmond and respond to Trump's recent rollback of federal guidelines enacted by the Obama administration to ensure the protection and dignity of transgender students. More from HRC.

“YOU CAN’T BE WITH US IN THE BEDROOM AND NOT IN THE CPAC BALLROOM”: Attendees at the Conservative Political Action Conference this past weekend who called up the popular LGBTQ dating app, Grindr, got a pointed political message from HRC along with the anti-LGBTQ rhetoric CPAC serves up. More from The Advocate and Indy 100.

TONIGHT -- WHEN WE RISE PREMIERES ON ABC: Tonight, Academy-Award winner Dustin Lance Black’s new project, When We Rise, premieres on ABC. The seven-part miniseries depicts the biggest moments in the LGBTQ movement. More from ABC.

BRENDON URIE JOINS HRC’S EQUALITY ROCKS CAMPAIGN: Panic! At The Disco has been an active supporter of HRC in the past, collaborating on a t-shirt to go along with their single “Girls/Girls/Boys.” In 2014, Urie told The Advocate, “I feel like [sexual fluidity] should be celebrated. There’s no shame in it.” More from HRC.

INTERNATIONAL ALLIES: Stonewall, Britian’s largest LGBTQ civil rights organization, issued a statement supporting the U.S. transgender community and condemning Trump’s rollback of guidelines protecting transgender students.  Additionally, LGBTQ advocates in Argentina, Malta, Ireland and Norway are praising their governments’ work to #ProtectTransKids. More from BuzzFeed and ABC.

GLOBAL LGBTQ VOICES SPEAK OUT ON CAPITOL HILL ABOUT TRUMP’S ORDER ON IMMIGRATION: Last week, HRC joined with the Congressional LGBT Equality Caucus for a briefing on how Trump’s executive order on immigration impacts extremely vulnerable LGBTQ individuals abroad. More from HRC.

READING RAINBOW

HRC shares the story of an Mississippi transgender man as part of its #LoveYourNeighbor campaign… Late Night with Seth Meyers delivers a take down of the Trump Administration's decision to rescind a protective guidance for trans kids...

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