WHAT DO WE NEED? THE EQUALITY ACT! WHEN DO WE NEED IT? NOW!

With a new pro-equality majority in the U.S. House, Speaker Nancy Pelosi and House leadership have made clear that the Equality Act is a top priority. Here’s why passing this critically important bill is vital for LGBTQ people, women, religious minorities and people of color. Learn more from HRC.

THREE FORMER PENTAGON LEADERS ACCUSE PENTAGON OF DECEIVING CONGRESS ON TRANSGENDER BAN: Reports The Hill’s Ellen Mitchell (@EllenEMitchell): Former Navy Secretary Ray Mabus, Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James and Army Secretary Eric Fanning said that Pentagon officials who testified at a congressional hearing last week made “the untrue assertion that holding all service members to the same standards affords ‘special accommodations’ to transgender troops.” In a statement organized by the Palm Center, they said that under the military’s current inclusive policy, “transgender service members must meet exactly the same fitness and deployability standards as everybody else.” Read more at The Hill.

UCLA’S WILLIAMS INSTITUTE RELEASES FASCINATING DATA ON DEMOGRAPHICS OF LGBTQ ADULTS NATIONWIDE: It found that an estimated 4.5 percent of adults in the U.S. identify as LGBTQ -- about 11.3 million people. View the full interactive results here.

Approximately 11.3 million adults in the U.S. identify as LGBT. The majority are women. Learn more in our Data Interactive: https://t.co/mZ1FcppvcC pic.twitter.com/8dnu67Ee0L

— Williams Institute (@WilliamsPolicy) March 5, 2019

WHAT WE’RE WATCHING WEDNESDAY -- CAST AND CO-CREATOR OF NETFLIX’S “ONE DAY AT A TIME” STOPPED BY HRC!: Watch show co-creator Gloria Calderón Kellett (@everythingloria) and stars Justina Machado (@JustinaMachado) and Isabella Gomez (@Isabella_Gomez) chat about representation. See the video here.

“We as Latinas have not had representation that accurately portrays us. The same is true with the LGBTQIA+ community.” - Gloria Calderon Kellett (@everythingloria)@OneDayAtATime is a trailblazing show that breaks barriers for #Latinx #LGBTQ visibility. pic.twitter.com/h3lZ6Ap8V9

— Human Rights Campaign (@HRC) March 5, 2019

TRUMP-PENCE HEALTH CARE GAG RULE CHALLENGED IN FEDERAL COURT BY AMERICAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION AND PLANNED PARENTHOOD: The AP’s David Crary (@CraryAP) reports that the lawsuit asserts that, if implemented, the dangerous rule will cause “a national public health crisis in short order. Pregnancies that are unintended, and thus riskier, will increase. The number of abortions will also increase. And there will be fewer tests for sexually transmitted infections and cancer screens — putting patients and their partners at great health risk.” Read more at APNews.

Health care is a human right. We stand with @PPFA & @AmerMedicalAssn as they challenge the Trump-Pence admin's dangerous gag rule, which threatens the health care of 4 million people who get care through the Title X program. #NoGagRulehttps://t.co/XnBfQJXvVe

— Chad Griffin (@ChadHGriffin) March 5, 2019

STATEHOUSE ROUND-UP

• LGBTQ advocates in Tennessee continue to speak out against slate of anti-LGBTQ bills. Read more from Bustle.

HRC MARKS THE BEGINNING OF LENT: Throughout the Lenten season, HRC will share devotionals from faith leaders, LGBTQ people and allies to create an environment in which LGBTQ people of faith and their allies can practice the spiritual traditions of their faith in a welcoming, inclusive environment. Read more from HRC.

GENDER SPECTRUM RELEASES REPORT OUTLINING PRINCIPLES FOR GENDER-INCLUSIVE PUBERTY AND HEALTH EDUCATION: HRC was a partner on the report.

GLOBAL EQUALITY NEWS

MAYOR OF WARSAW FACES BACKLASH AFTER PROTECTING LGBTQ RIGHTS: Mayor Rafał Trzaskowski signed a declaration to protect the rights of LGBTQ people in the Polish city. More from Pink News.

ADVOCATES WORK TO SUPPORT LGBTQ ASYLUM SEEKERS: Read more from the Los Angeles Blade.

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

KU Today reports on provisions in free trade agreements that specifically protect LGBTQ people and women; Gay Times speaks with actress Vanessa Redgrave, who recently starred in LGBTQ play “The Inheritance” in London;
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!