Tag Archives: Human Rights Campaign

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Coming soon: NY marriage equality vote!


What has HRC done for me lately?

NY – HRC delivers unprecedented 25,000 marriage equality postcards to New York lawmakers.

NY – HRC and 100+ volunteers pound pavement for marriage equality in New York over Memorial Day weekend.

US – HRC joins Dept. of Ed. at first ever LGBT youth summit.

US – HRC brings together religious leaders in support of LGBT equality.

US – HRC launches “Father of the Year” campaign. Deadline today!

NC – HRC joins Equality NC to battle anti-gay constitutional amendment.

More Info at www.hrc.org

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ACT

Stop anti-LGBT groups from hijacking a day of prayer!

Texas Governor Rick Perry has invited the governors of all 50 states to join him for “The Response: A Call to Prayer for a Nation in Crisis” in Houston. The problem? The event is being sponsored by rabidly hateful anti-LGBT organizations, including the American Family Association (AFA), the International House of Prayer, and TheCall. Tell your governor to reject this hateful event!         http://www.hrcactioncenter.org/site/R?i=fO1Uq22NpdeoyAYGih29_w..

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SUPPORT       

 Help us cross the finish line in New York!   http://www.hrcactioncenter.org/site/R?i=2K8UWT29anMnPjSNzwGhCg..

Things are coming down to the wire in New York – and we’re pulling out all the stops to pass a marriage equality bill. Our campaign is running on all cylinders – but we need your help to get the message out with one last major advertising push that will help persuade undecided lawmakers and their constituents around New York.

http://www.hrcactioncenter.org/site/R?i=C17sX9Wrbf4tkFYH7a_tJA..

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NEWS

* House lawyers step up defense of DOMA
*Sen. Armed Services Cmte. considers Defense bill; DADT repeal-delaying amendments may be offered
*Civil unions take effect in Illinois
*CDC finds LGBT students at greater risk for unhealthy behaviors
*White House launches LGBT web page
*Openly-gay judicial nominee receives Senate hearing
*Nevada passes new transgender housing protections

 Sponsor Spotlight …

AA.com/rainbow

As you are making summer travel plans, consider flying with  American Airlines, the longtime official airline of HRC and a Platinum National Corporate Partner. When you book, make sure to enter the HRC Business ExtrAA number in addition to your personal AAdvantage number and we will both get valuable credit for the flight. The Business ExtrAA number is 527567.

Full list of National Corporate Partners »http://www.hrcactioncenter.org/site/R?i=0kSZxUul4k1KxOokXUaq8Q..

~ Culture & History, ~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Equality hangs in the balance. Will you tip the scales? … from HRC


I just got off the phone with HRC Board Member Bruce Bastian. He’s challenged HRC supporters to raise $100,000 – and he’ll match every dollar with one of his own.

He’s doing it because big things are happening here at HRC and all across the country – thanks to you. You’ve helped run ads and mobilize thousands of volunteers in an all-out blitz to win marriage equality in New York. You helped bring 250 pro-equality clergy members to Capitol Hill this week. And together we’ve sparked a new, national conversation about homophobia in sports.

But make no mistake. We could win in New York – or right-wing hatred could prevail. More sports stars could support equality – or more slurs could air on national TV. Speaker Boehner could stop spending tax dollars to defend discrimination in the DOMA case – or we could see a resurgence of discriminatory efforts in Congress.

It all depends on how quickly we can react to a crisis, on how skillfully we can fight when it counts – and on you.

www.hrc.org

Don’t miss this chance to double your impact – all gifts will be matched up to $100,000.

Look around. From TV sitcoms to professional sports, to new polls showing unprecedented support for equality – we’ve reached a tipping point in our culture.

After years of discrimination, when a single victory for LGBT equality was cause for hope, we are now in a place where it’s hate that’s out of place. And you’ve been at the center of that change. In just the past few months, look what you’ve accomplished:

•After an outcry from HRC supporters, a major law firm dropped its defense of the discriminatory Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA).

•After HRC’s rapid-response campaign in major media outlets and on Twitter, all-star Kobe Bryant personally called me to apologize for calling a referee a “f***ing f***ot” in front of millions of young viewers – and the commissioner of the NBA fined him an unprecedented $100,000.

•Star athletes such as the NBA’s Steve Nash and the NHL’s Sean Avery have joined our “New Yorkers for Marriage Equality” campaign – the videos are everywhere from cable TV to New York City cabs right now – and when Avery was attacked for his brave stand, thousands of you spoke out in his defense.

•Mayors, governors, actors, past presidents and even George W. Bush’s daughter Barbara have all joined HRC’s campaign for marriage equality in New York.

And, for the first time ever, polls show a majority of Americans support marriage equality – not just civil unions.

These aren’t unconnected events. But this moment is only what we make of it. People like you generously funded ads, fueled outreach to prominent figures, and gave us the strength to respond to attacks without delay – and to seize this opportunity, we’ll need you again.

www.hrc.org

Don’t miss out: have your gift MATCHED in the next seven days.

We can create a sea change in our society – but we may still slip backward. I know that HRC supporters like you will be the deciding factor, and that we can count on you to fight.

Let’s tip the scales,

Joe Solmonese

President

~ Culture & History, ~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Law firm drops DOMA defense! but we’re not done yet! this from a Public Servant-who should Serve & Protect everyone-what about your oath?


The media is buzzing. King & Spalding, the law firm hired by House Republican leaders to defend the discriminatory Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), decided to drop the case.

Last week, we ran a public campaign calling out K&S’s hypocrisy: the firm touted its efforts to recruit and retain lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) lawyers, while choosing to argue against their equality in court.

As I wrote in today’s Washington Post, we just couldn’t stay silent while K&S advertised a high rating on HRC’s Corporate Equality Index, even as it sought to defend discrimination.

K&S made the right call in the end – and we thank them. But House Speaker John Boehner is still planning to spend more than half a million of our tax dollars on defending DOMA in court.

We need to build on the momentum of K&S’s decision – and make it clear to Speaker Boehner that he’s out of touch with the American people.

Add your name to our petition to Boehner: “Don’t waste my tax dollars defending discrimination. Repeal DOMA!”

Polls show that Americans overwhelmingly want Congress to focus on jobs and the economy, not hurting loving couples.1 Yet Speaker Boehner and House Republicans decided to hire an outside law firm (at great taxpayer expense) after President Obama announced that his Justice Department would no longer defend DOMA.

That’s where you came in. As the LA Times pointed out, “The decision came a week after the million-member Human Rights Campaign launched a publicity war to ‘shame’ King & Spalding…”

You reached out to K&S, and you spread the word on Facebook and Twitter. You enabled HRC to immediately spring into action, informing the firm’s clients as well as student groups at law schools where K&S competes to hire the top graduates.

Your voices joined with those clients and students to help K&S understand it had a stark choice: maintain a pro-equality reputation that attracts clients and new recruits, or stand on the wrong side of history. The firm made the right call. And it showed we’re at a tipping point in our culture. Most Americans now find anti-LGBT discrimination shameful.

Yet despite this setback, it’s clear that Boehner still plans to spend hundreds of thousands of our tax dollars to uphold this odious law.

We can’t back down. If tens of thousands of us speak up right now, we can show Speaker Boehner that attacking same-sex couples has left him out of step with the American people.

Click here to add your name now.

While Americans struggle to recover from a recession, we just want our government to do right by us. Instead of wasting time and money defending discrimination, Speaker Boehner should support the Respect for Marriage Act, legislation that would repeal DOMA and end our federal government’s policy of treating married gay and lesbian couples like second-class citizens.

Thank you for everything you do – and for joining us in this effort.

Sincerely,

Joe Solmonese

President

1A recent poll from HRC and Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research shows 51 percent of Americans oppose DOMA while 34 percent favor it. 54 percent of Americans want Congress to focus on jobs and only 32 percent would prefer Congress spend time defending DOMA.

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

NOM Exposed: A Facebook Swarm -from Kevin Nix


A door just opened, one that allows all of us to further expose and challenge the homophobia of the National Organization for Marriage.

You may have heard about Louis Marinelli, NOM’s online strategist who recently resigned because he supports marriage equality. He took all of the organization’s 290,000 Facebook fans with him. They’ve just begun to rebuild a Facebook fan base from scratch.

Here’s where you come in. If everyone on this list – after holding your nose – friended NOM, pro-equality supporters would outnumber NOM’s current anti-equality supporters 6 to 1.

But you know what would really make an impact? Leave a comment on NOM’s Facebook posts. Let’s saturate their page with positive, fact-based pro-equality messages. Some suggestions:

-Marriage for gays and lesbians will do nothing to religious freedom. Houses of worship will continue to decide whether they want to recognize gay marriages, or not. We’re talking about committed gay and lesbian couples going down to city hall to get married.

-Gay couples want to make the public commitment of marriage – and be held accountable for that commitment .

-Credible polls show a majority of American Catholics actually support marriage for gay and lesbian couples. People in the pews do not necessarily agree with the Catholic hierarchy.

You can get more ideas for comments in our “Fact” section of NOMExposed.org. But – please – don’t leave personal, ad hominem attacks. Don’t let them drag you into the gutter. No tit for tat. That gets us nowhere. We need elevated, positive conversation.

http://www.hrcactioncenter.org/site/R?i=5k_xjG_BkXX9ISoCeENCgQ..

One last thing. The fight for marriage in New York is heating up. While HRC and other LGBT groups just launched a new campaign in New York. NOM has too and is trying to mobilize its people. If you live in New York State, become a NY NOMWatcher. We need more eyes and ears on the ground and online.

http://www.hrcactioncenter.org/site/R?i=4anDOjLLVetvFWAvD1fd8g..

As always, thanks for your interest and engagement.

Kevin Nix

Director, NOM Project

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Don’t let your tax dollars pay for discrimina​tion …


This is how Congress is spending its time.

Right now, behind closed doors, Republican House leaders are deciding exactly how they’ll use our tax dollars to protect the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA).

And more than 90 right-wing lawmakers are wasting Congress’s time on a resolution condemning President Obama and declaring that same-sex couples should be denied equal rights. Some are even talking about impeaching the president for his principled stance against DOMA.

Meanwhile, as right-wing groups vilify gay members of Congress, we’re showing every lawmaker that a majority of Americans – both straight and LGBT – want DOMA repealed.

We need 535 more straight allies to join HRC in the next 24 hours so that we have the resources to get our message to all 535 members of Congress. Can you help fund this fight?

www.hrc.org

Join HRC in the next 24 hours with an urgent gift to fight DOMA and stand up for equality.

DOMA’s sole purpose is to deny married, same-sex couples the protections straight married couples enjoy: Social Security survivor benefits, joint tax filing, taking leave to care for a spouse, and more.

In the past few weeks, we’ve sent more than 170,000 letters to Congress calling out this discrimination. We’ve also released a new poll showing that a majority of Americans have no patience for these antics.1 They want Congress to focus on creating jobs – not defending DOMA.

Straight allies’ voices are critical in our fight to show Republican House leaders that they’re out of step with the American majority.

We refuse to be quiet. We’re standing up to right-wing ideologues, rallying support and fighting for DOMA repeal bills in the House and Senate. We’re continuously highlighting the scary truth about DOMA in the press. And we’re making sure your voice is heard in Congress on this issue.

This is not a test – equality for loving couples and families is on the line.

Declare your support as a straight ally. Stand up to hate – chip in now.    www.hrc.org

I know you’re disgusted by our opponents’ hypocrisy and that you’re eager for progress. From the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. hate crimes law to “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” repeal, we’ve shown we can get things done together. I’m hoping you’ll stand with us today.

Keep up the fight,

Joe Solmonese

President

1 A new poll from HRC and Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research shows 51 percent of Americans oppose DOMA while 34 percent favor it. 54 percent of Americans want Congress to focus on jobs and only 32 percent would prefer Congress spend time defending DOMA.