HRC ENDORSES OREGON GOVERNOR KATE BROWN FOR RE-ELECTION: “As the nation’s first openly bisexual governor, Kate Brown is a champion of equality who has fought for the LGBTQ community throughout her career,” said HRC President Chad Griffin (@ChadHGriffin). “Helping to improve the lives of countless people, Governor Brown has worked tirelessly to make the principles of fairness and equality a priority for Oregon. HRC is proud to endorse Governor Brown in her bid for re-election.” Said Governor Brown:  “I've been fighting for LGBTQ equality my entire career and am proud of our record of leadership. I want to make Oregon an even better place to live, work and raise a family -- no matter who you are, how you identify or who you love.” Under her leadership as governor, Oregon banned the dangerous practice of so-called “conversion therapy” for LGBTQ young people and extended critical protections for transgender students in Oregon schools. During her time as majority leader in the Oregon Senate, she played a key role in passing the state’s LGBTQ-inclusive non-discrimination law. More from HRC and The Associated Press.

.@HRC is proud to endorse @OregonGovBrown in her bid for re-election. Governor Brown is a champion of equality. https://t.co/X5HkghP3kb pic.twitter.com/MnNhsNtlDv

— HumanRightsCampaign (@HRC) October 4, 2017

DEADLINE FOR DREAMERS TO RENEW DACA IS TODAY: Immigration offices must receive DACA renewal paperwork TODAY from Dreamers -- undocumented young people who

were brought to the U.S. as minors, many of whom have been allowed to stay and continue their studies and work in the U.S. under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. But the Trump-Pence administration has announced it will be cancelling the program, phasing it out over the next six months. It is estimated that approximately 75,000 Dreamers are LGBTQ. HRC has endorsed the 2017 DREAM Act (H.R.3440/S.1615), which would provide a path to citizenship and stop the unconscionable deportation of Dreamers.

• IBM has launched a major lobbying effort to support Dreamers, modeling its effort after the company’s similar work in Texas recently to stop an anti-transgender bill. More from Axios.
• HRC rallied at the U.S. Capitol this week to protest the Trump-Pence plan to end DACA.

.@HRC rallied at the Capitol to protest ending #DACA, which shields ~75K #LGBTQ #Dreamers from deportation. Congress must pass the #DreamAct pic.twitter.com/LymmLxkTbi

— HumanRightsCampaign (@HRC) October 3, 2017

THROWBACK THURSDAY -- REMEMBERING LGBTQ EQUALITY SUPPORTER TOM PETTY: In 2009, Petty, a supporter of LGBTQ equality, allowed HRC to use a cover of his song in the fight for marriage equality. Every day, we will honor his incredible life and legacy… We Won’t Back Down.  

DURING SENATE HEARING, SAM BROWNBACK REFUSES TO DENOUNCE FOREIGN LAWS CRIMINALIZING LGBTQ STATUS: The Washington Blade’s Chris Johnson (@ChrisJohnson82) reports that Brownback, the governor of Kansas and another of Trump’s anti-LGBTQ nominees, deflected questions during his confirmation hearing yesterday for U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom. Said David Stacy, HRC’s government affairs director, “Brownback’s long history of anti-LGBTQ actions in Congress and as governor was reflected in his refusal at his hearing today to unequivocally condemn the inhumane treatment, including execution, of people based on sexual orientation and gender identity. While he expressed some support for the LGBTQ human rights work at the State Department, his other responses give us every reason to believe that Brownback will continue to use his own narrow view of ‘religious freedom’ as permission to discriminate against LGBTQ people.” More from Washington Blade.

SHOCKED/NOT-SHOCKED -- THE ODIOUS ROY MOORE FEATURED ANTI-LGBTQ, EXTREMIST RHETORIC ON FACEBOOK PAGE: Among the despicable items uncovered by CNN’s Andrew Kaczynski (@KFILE) and Nathan McDermott (@NathanMcdermott) on the Alabama Republican nominee for U.S. Senate’s page were multiple racist ‘cartoons,’ and a disturbing article praising Russia’s anti-LGBTQ laws. In 2016, Moore was removed from the Alabama Supreme Court for refusing to implement a ruling that brought marriage equality to Alabama. Despite his assertion that he was only opposing marriage equality as a legal matter, his subsequent comments about the LGBTQ community have revealed a deep, underlying animus toward LGBTQ Alabamians. Recently, he took his extremism one step further by saying that he and Vladimir Putin may be “more akin... than [he] knows,” specifically citing both of their views on LGBTQ rights. #NoMoore from CNN.  

TODAY AT 10 AM ET -- SENATE FOREIGN RELATIONS COMMITTEE TO CONSIDER RESOLUTION CONDEMNING VIOLENCE IN CHECHNYA: If the bipartisan resolution (S.Res. 211) passes, it will likely move to the Senate floor for a full vote. The resolution “calls on Chechen officials to immediately cease the abduction, detention, and torture of individuals on the basis of their actual or suspected sexual orientation, and hold accountable all those involved in perpetrating such abuses.” It also calls on the U.S. to condemn the atrocities and consider sanctions against the perpetrators.

JOE BIDEN WRITING FOREWORD FOR MEMOIR BY GROUNDBREAKING TRANSGENDER ACTIVIST SARAH MCBRIDE: The former vice president and HRC National Press Secretary Sarah McBride (@SarahEMcBride) are fellow Delawareans -- and as a high school student McBride worked for Beau Biden’s campaign for Attorney General. McBride’s memoir, Tomorrow Will Be Different: Love, Loss, and the Fight for Trans Equality, will focus on her journey as a transgender woman; her heartbreaking romance with Andy Cray, a fellow transgender activist who died of cancer days after their wedding; and the broader fight for transgender equality. More from HRC, The Hill and The Associated Press.

Congratulations to my friend & colleague @SarahEMcBride on her new book! Excited for so many more to hear your story https://t.co/G0ds4lT4Fr

— Chad Griffin (@ChadHGriffin) October 4, 2017

MEN WHO HAVE SEX WITH MEN STILL CANNOT DONATE BLOOD: As the country struggles to heal from the horrific shooting in Las Vegas, men who have sex with men are still being denied the ability to donate blood unless they have remained abstinent for a year. “The policy stigmatizes gay and bisexual men and simply cannot be justified in light of current scientific research and updated blood screening technology,” said David Stacy, HRC’s government affairs director. “HRC is committed to working toward an eventual outcome that both minimizes risk to the blood supply and treats gay and bisexual men with the respect they deserve.” More from The Washington Post.

CONDÉ NAST TO LAUNCH THEM, NEW LGBTQ-FOCUSED MEDIA PLATFORM: Them was created by former Teen Vogue and Allure Digital Editorial Director Phillip Picardi (@PFPicardi), who will be its chief content officer. More from Fashionista.

HORRIFYING -- TRANS STUDENT ATTACKED BY FELLOW STUDENTS; Seven students were suspended at a New Jersey high school for assaulting Kylie Perez, a transgender 14-year-old. The County Prosecutor’s office is investigating. More from NBC.

NEPAL SUPREME COURT RULES TRANS PEOPLE CAN UPDATE GENDER MARKER & NAME ON ALL DOCUMENTS: The South Asian country also allows for Nepali people to utilize a third gender option on passports, citizenship cards and in the national census. More from Gay Star News.  

READING RAINBOW

BBC reports that Murray Edwards, a women’s college at Cambridge University in England, will accept transgender applicants; Google highlights the UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center’s LGBT and Mujeres Initiative;

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