Tag Archives: LGBT

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Congress’s new low …a message from Joe Solmonese

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Can they sink any lower?

Speaker John Boehner and Republican House leaders have now committed taxpayer money to a morally bankrupt effort to keep the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) on the books.

Republican House leaders are defending DOMA in court and right-wing lawmakers have introduced an anti-LGBT resolution in the House.

But for the first time ever, we have bills in both houses of Congress to repeal DOMA.

And more than 90 U.S. representatives are wasting time on a mean-spirited resolution to reinforce DOMA by declaring same-sex couples unequal.

But here’s the catch. Our new poll shows they’re squarely at odds with a majority of Americans who think DOMA is just plain wrong.1

And starting this week, we have a new chance to fight back – now with hard data on our side.

The Respect for Marriage Act – a bill that would repeal DOMA – has just been introduced in both houses of Congress. But it won’t go anywhere unless thousands of people like you turn up the pressure on lawmakers on both sides of the aisle, starting immediately. Can you take one minute to send a letter now?

www.hrc.org

Make your voice heard. Tell Congress now is the time to toss DOMA for good.

The right-wing faction in Congress is so deeply committed to dialing back rights for LGBT Americans that nearly 100 of them are cosponsoring a resolution condemning President Obama for his brave decision last month to no longer defend DOMA in court.

As Americans struggle to recover from the recession, we just want our government to do right by us. But Republican House leaders are doing the exact opposite – committing taxpayer money and precious time to defend a law that most Americans oppose, and a social agenda that most Americans reject.

They want to continue denying loving couples the benefits of marriage. It’s outrageous – and the public doesn’t have the patience for it.

Thanks to the leadership of Sen. Dianne Feinstein and Rep. Jerry Nadler, we have a way of circumventing the defense of this law by Boehner and his cronies. Together, we can end DOMA, which denies legally married same-sex couples over 1,100 protections and responsibilities – and we can do it in the exact place it was first passed in 1996.

Join us in taking a stand for LGBT families everywhere. To make the Respect for Marriage Act a reality, your representatives in Congress need to hear from you.

Tell Congress: Repeal DOMA now!

Speaker Boehner doesn’t know what he’s up against as he goes all out to defend this discriminatory law. Our fight may have only just begun, but I know we’re fighting on the right side of history.

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

To repeal,

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.

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It’s simply not right … a message from Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand


Last year I helped lead the effort to overturn “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” and I’m thrilled that very soon, LGBT Americans will be able to serve openly in our armed forces. This is a big victory for equality, but there’s still so far we have yet to go.

I believe every American should be able to marry the person they love. Yet in 1996, the so-called Defense of Marriage Act (or DOMA) codified the discriminatory notion that marriage is only between a man and a woman.

DOMA denies same-sex couples the basic privileges enjoyed by straight couples, and prevents state-approved legal marriages from being recognized across the country.

This is wrong.

If we are to achieve full marriage equality for all, Congress must repeal DOMA now.

That’s why I’m proud to partner with Democracy for America to make sure the repeal of DOMA becomes a reality.

http://act.democracyforamerica.com/go/561?akid=577.1480546.tmfy-d&t=1

Recently, President Obama ordered the Justice Department to stop defending DOMA in federal court. This is a huge first step, but the fact is that as long as DOMA remains on the books it will continue to be enforced until Congress repeals it legislatively.

Tomorrow, I will join Senator Feinstein as we introduce DOMA repeal legislation in the U.S. Senate.

Can I count on you to join us on the frontlines of this fight?

Please sign here to join the fight for marriage equality by urging Congress to repeal this discriminatory and unconstitutional law. >> http://act.democracyforamerica.com/go/561?akid=577.1480546.tmfy-d&t=2

It’s simply not right that my husband and I should be able to enjoy rights and privileges that LGBT Americans are denied.

Thank you for everything you do to ensure marriage equality for all Americans,

– Kirsten

Senator Kirsten Gillibrand

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Texas school bans gay-straight alliance


When Nikki Peet recently asked for a safe space for students to meet and discuss issues like anti-gay bullying at Flour Bluff High School in Corpus Christi, Texas, she expected the support of her school district.

But instead, Dr. Julia Carbajal — Flour Bluff’s Superintendent — decided to cancel all extra-curricular clubs in order to prevent Nikki’s “Gay Straight Alliance” (GSA) student group from forming. It’s her way of getting around the federal “Equal Access Act” law mandating simliar access on school grounds to student groups, regardless of their politics or philosophy.

We know what happens when schools fail to address the bullying of LGBT kids: depression, isolation, and suicide. So we need to help.

http://www.change.org/petitions/let-nikki-peet-start-a-gay-straight-alliance-in-corpus-christi-texas?alert_id=eugiUuWWNO_LvfvIMydvo&me=aa

Nine out of ten LGBT students experience harassment in school because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. At least two-thirds feel unsafe in the classroom. LGBT teens can be up to four times more likely to commit suicide than their heterosexual peers.

In just a few days, nearly 4,000 Change.org members have signed the petition supporting Nikki, sharing the story on Facebook and forwarding emails like this to their friends.

This Friday, Nikki and members of the Corpus Christi community are organizing a major demonstration outside Flour Bluff High School. At the protest, Nikki and her supporters will be delivering petition signatures to Flour Bluff administrators, sending a strong message that it’s time to provide a safe, caring and effective learning environment for all students — including LGBT youth.

The superintendent’s outrageous actions have garnered attention throughout the U.S. Students, parents, and school officials everywhere are watching to see what happens — and the outcome in Corpus Christi will have reverberations across the country.

Sign our petition today, so Nikki can deliver the signatures of as many people as possible this Friday in Texas:

http://www.change.org/petitions/let-nikki-peet-start-a-gay-straight-alliance-in-corpus-christi-texas?alert_id=eugiUuWWNO_LvfvIMydvo&me=aa

Thanks for taking action,

– Eden and the Change.org team

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URGENT: House Republican​s preparing to defend DOMA!


In the wake of President Obama’s courageous decision to stop defending the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), radical lawmakers have sunk to a new low.

Speaker John Boehner and Majority Leader Eric Cantor have spent this past week working to placate anti-LGBT members of Congress and their right wing base by indicating they will defend DOMA – no matter what it takes.

So much for their pledges to focus on jobs and the economy. These so-called fiscal conservatives are wasting Congress’s time and resources to defend discrimination.

We’ve never taken these attacks sitting down – and we can’t start now. Time and again, our opponents lash out when we make progress. And time and again we band together to stop them. We’ve got to do it again this week, with a rapid-response effort in Congress and beyond. Can you help now? www.hrc.org

In the past several weeks, HRC has helped drive major victories: civil unions in Hawaii and Illinois; unprecedented progress on marriage equality in Maryland, Rhode Island, and New York; and President Obama’s decision on DOMA. All of those phone calls, rallies, letters to Congress, meetings with lawmakers – they’re working.

But these victories have pushed our opponents to redouble their efforts to undermine equality.  www.hrc.org

So we’re at a crossroads. We can catapult off of these recent victories and others in Illinois and Hawaii, grab this momentum with both hands and lay a foundation now for a future of full marriage equality – or we can let the extreme right wing dictate America‘s political agenda.

Right-wing radicals know the tide is turning against them. It’s just making them more desperate. Only your generous grassroots support will help us stand strong. We must seize this moment. Are you with us    www.hrc.org

Thank you for helping us win – and for keeping this movement stro ng.

Best,

Joe Solmonese

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Administration Drops Defense of DOMA


Administration Drops Defense of DOMA

Thank the President for standing up for same-sex couples and their families. 202-456-1111

In a rare and extraordinary step, today the Obama Administration announced that it will stop defending the discriminatory federal “Defense of Marriage Act” (DOMA) in court – specifically, the section that denies federal benefits to married same-sex couples.

DOMA keeps these couples from getting family and medical leave, Social Security survivors’ benefits, joint tax filing, and immigration rights, among many other benefits.

You helped bring about this historic day. HRC supporters like you have written tens of thousands of letters to President Obama, shared thousands of personal stories of how DOMA has hurt their families, and helped HRC engage in years of advocacy on this issue with the administration.

As President Obama himself has said, DOMA unfairly discriminates against Americans. He needs to know how many people applaud his decision to defend the principles of the constitution.

Thank the President for standing up for same-sex couples and their families.  202-456-1111

The Obama Administration has dealt a double blow to DOMA today. Not only has it stopped defending this law (which the president has long called discriminatory), it has affirmed that any law that discriminates based on sexual orientation should have to pass a higher legal test in court.

This is a monumental decision for thousands of same-sex couples and their families.

Unfortunately, anti-LGBT leaders in Congress may have a chance to defend the law themselves, so it’s not the end of the road for DOMA.

But together, we’ll fight any attempt to waste taxpayer dollars defending this patently unconstitutional law. The federal government has no business picking and choosing which legal marriages they want to recognize.

Right now, send a message to the President thanking him for today’s decision.

Thank you for all your hard work on this issue, and for your continued commitment to building a nation where all are equal.

Administration Drops Defense of DOMA

Thank the President for standing up for same-sex couples and their families.

Sincerely,

Joe Solmonese

President