Equality News

by Wes Sanders

Georgia’s “other” epidemic – World AIDS Day 2020

In the flurry of COVID-19 headlines, it is easy to forget that this is not Georgia’s first brush with a global pandemic. In honor of World AIDS Day, we should all take time to reflect on why after more than three decades, our state ranks number one among all states in new HIV infections.

The answer is inequality, and it will take all of us continuing to fight to end HIV in Georgia. Join me in supporting Georgia Equality for World AIDS Day 2020 and #GivingTuesday by making a contribution in support of this vitally important work.

For too long, our state’s leaders have put politics before human dignity and denied healthcare access to hundreds of thousands of Georgians, leaving them vulnerable to the effects of untreated chronic illnesses and infectious diseases like HIV and COVID-19. We know that HIV, and most pandemics, thrive in places where inequality goes unchecked- where access to healthcare is marked by stark racial and gender disparities, and where leaders fail to promote health equity. To create lasting health equity, we must provide healthcare coverage for all Georgians, and we must start by expanding Medicaid.

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by Wes Sanders

This year, we’re thankful for you!

What can we say except that 2020 has been one for the history books. This year has brought unprecendented challenges for all of us, but because of your continued support, and our amazing staff and volunteers, our organization has seen unprecedented successes in our 25th year!

Since March, when we transitioned our work entirely online, we’ve seen engagement skyrocket with our 60 online programs exceeding 43,000 total views! As a result, we’ve been able to accomplish some pretty amazing things together–

  • For the seventh year in a row, we ensured that no anti-LGBTQ legislation passed in Georgia.
  • 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.
  • Just this month, Hapeville became the 12th municipality in Georgia to pass a non-discrimination ordinance specifically prohibiting discrimination against LGBTQ people in housing, employment, and public spaces.
  • We contacted over 400,000 voters in communities across the state to turn out the pro-equality vote.
  • You showed up at the polls in support of our endorsed, pro-equality candidates. As a result, the number of open LGBTQ legislators has grown to 7 with the election of Marvin Lim (HD 99) and Georgia’s first openly LGBTQ State Senator, Rev. Kim Jackson (SD 41). Overall 70% of endorsees won their races!
  • We’re helping turn out the pro-equality vote AGAIN in the upcoming US Senate runoffs– running phone banks 6 nights a week and have the most ambitions GOTV plan in our organization’s history, to reach between 400,000 – 650,000 pro-equality voters.
  • During the legislative session, 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.
  • The TransActionGA Leadership Academy is now in it’s third cohort, training current and future transgender and non-binary leaders with the tools to lead positive conversations and action in their communities.

In 2021, we will continue to fight for LGBTQ people across the state – that means ensuring no one has to be afraid of losing their job, their home, or their access to education simply because of their sexual orientation or gender identity.

Your support has made all of this possible, and inspires me for our future together.

Sincerely,

Jeff Graham,

Executive Director

 

PS On a very personal note, I want to express my gratitude to the staff, board and those in the community who have extended their support to me as I faced the sudden loss of my husband and partner of 32 years.

by abryant

Law & Policy Series: Session 3

On October 23, 2020, Equal Footing LLC and Transformation Journeys Worldwide along with Georgia Equality and Lambda Legal, hosted the third of a 3-part series focusing on laws and policies currently impacting companies, your LGBTQ+ employees (and their families) and our communities.

This session, sponsored by Mercedes-Benz USA, focused on employer’s roles in creating supportive communities for LGBTQ+ youth with emphasis on schools/sports, homelessness, foster care, and healthcare. 

Our Deputy Director, Eric Paulk, discussed the effect of homelessness on youth and youth living with HIV, and how fostering a stronger LGBTQ+ friendly work culture could allow LGBTQ+ parents and parents of LGBTQ+ youth access to more resources, including healthcare.  

Attendants were provided with: 

– Greater insight into issues that impact LGBTQ+ employees

– Broader knowledge that will enable quality discussions within organizations

– Information that will support more informed business decisions

– Awareness of action steps that can be taken by your organization and individual employees

– A better understanding of Georgia Equality and Lambda Legal and their critical role in the LGBTQ+ community

– Availability of additional educational resources

 

For more information on this session, or if you are interested in joining us for a special Post-Election session, please email email hidden; JavaScript is required. 

by abryant

Invisible Histories Project

In 2015, two friends, Joshua Burford and Maigen Sullivan, who had professional and educational experience in LGBTQ history began wondering why the Queer South was so underrepresented in mainstream and national narratives around LGBTQ history. Was this due to a lack of historical people, events and places? Is the South, as we are so often told, truly 20 years behind? Or was something more complicated at hand? Was there in fact, a rich and diverse history of the Queer and Trans South that was simply hidden and desperately in need of research and preservation? It was quickly decided that this history was alive, numerous in measure, and suffered from a lack of resources and investment not a lack of supply. 

This conversation led to the Invisible Histories Project (IHP) which began officially collecting LGBTQ archival materials in February 2018 throughout Alabama. IHP is a 501(c)3 nonprofit based in Birmingham, AL. IHP is an intermediary organization that connects resourced institutions like libraries, museums, and universities to LGBTQ people and organizations. IHP is a conduit of information and access. We work with individuals to locate and collect archival materials; transfer those materials to permanent housing in local libraries and archives; and work with students, faculty, and community scholars to ensure that materials are researched and made accessible to the communities with whom they matter most. 

In April 2019, IHP received a generous grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. This grant allowed IHP to expand from Alabama into Mississippi and Georgia. IHP kicked off our Georgia expansion on March 5th of this year, right before the COVID-19 outbreak shut things down.  Not a great time to start a new venture but with the help of our site at the University of West Georgia in Carrollton, we have been able to continue to collect new materials related to LGBTQ Georgia and our research for new collections is well under way. 

We are working with Dr. Stephanie Chalifoux in the Department of History at UWG to give students a chance to work with donors and collections.  This past Spring and Fall the students in her class worked with our first donors, the Gourd Girls.  The Gourd Girls are an amazing pair of lesbian artists from North Georgia whose collections go back to the 1970s.  

We are hoping to reach out to communities across the state of Georgia in smaller cities, towns, and rural areas whose history is often overlooked.  If you are part of the LGBTQ community in Georgia then we want to talk with you about how we can preserve and make your collections accessible.  Not sure if you have collections?  Well the truth is that everyone has materials that are an important part of the story of LGBTQ Georiga.  If you visit our website at www.invisiblehistory.org and click on “Archiving from Home” you will be able to read about how the process works and see a description of the types of materials that we are looking for.  Once you have located materials simply reach out to email hidden; JavaScript is required and get the process started. If you do not have materials, but would like to support the preservation of LGBTQ Southern history, you can donate here: https://invisiblehistory.org/donations/donate-to-ihp/. To stay up-to-date with IHP, follow us on Facebook and Instagram at Invisible Histories Project.

by Wes Sanders

Georgia makes history!

With final votes are  still being tabulated around the state, we know one thing for sure– well, SEVEN!

When the Georgia General Assembly convenes in January, it will do so with a record seven openly LGBTQ legislators, more than any other southern state, and the most in our state’s history. What’s even more is that the State Senate has its first openly lesbian member in Senator-elect Kim Jackson. Kim joins Representative-elect Marvin Lim as the two freshmen members of the LGBTQ caucus at the state legislature with previously elected Representatives Karla Drenner, Park Cannon, Renitta Shannon, Sam Park, and Matthew Wilson. Continue reading →