I’ll be honest, I’m looking forward to waking up tomorrow in a new year. 2020 has been like no other, and while it’s easy to name all the bad this year brought, I’d like to use my last email of the year focusing on what we’ve been able to accomplish together. In spite of all of it, we have so much to be proud of, and I hope you’ll chip in right now to make sure this work continues next year.

In January, we helped make Brookhaven the seventh municipality in Georgia to pass a non-discrimination ordinance specifically prohibiting discrimination against LGBTQ people in housing, employment, and public spaces.

We spent February ensuring that no anti-LGBTQ legislation passed in Georgia, for the seventh year in a row.

In March we managed to pass a much needed reform of our HIV criminalization law through the House of Representatives with the bipartisan support of 124 House members, setting the stage for passage in the next legislative session.

We spent April and May transitioning our work entirely online– this year we’ve held 65 online programs which have exceeded 47,000 total views!

In June, we worked closely with the Anti-Defamation League and Georgia NAACP to get an LGBTQ-inclusive Hate Crime law passed by both houses, and signed by the governor, and East Point became the 8th city to pass a comprehensive non-discrimination ordinance for LGBTQ folks.

In July, Savannah because #9

In August, Smyrna, #10

In September, we kicked off our general election volunteer efforts, hosting 17 volunteer nights around the state.

In October, Statesboro, #11

In November, Hapeville became #12 AND the number of open LGBTQ legislators in Georgia grew to 7 with the election of Marvin Lim (HD 99) and Georgia’s first openly LGBTQ State Senator, Rev. Kim Jackson (SD 41).

We’ve spent December contacting over 650,000 voters in communities across the state to turn out the pro-equality vote in the upcoming runoff.

I don’t know what 2021 will bring for us, but I do know that if we continue to work together and continue beating the drum of equality, more and more change will come to Georgia. We can protect more LGBTQ people, elect more pro-equality candidates, make more calls, train more Georgians and see more change, with your support. 

 

Yours in Equality,

Jeff Graham,
Executive Director