Equality News

by Wes Sanders

AUCTION: Go to the Super Bowl with Football Hall of Famer Ron Mix

Pro Football Hall of Fame Member, Ron Mix, purchased two tickets to the Super Bowl to create an event to benefit the transgender community. Mix said:

“The mistreatment of transgender people is contrary to everything athletics embraces: fair play, equal opportunity and respect and judging people by their character and conduct not by bigoted preconceived perceptions. Family rejection, discrimination and violence cause an estimated 40% of the 1.6 million homeless youth being from the transgender and other LGBQ groups. That horror should be a shock to the conscience of Americans.”

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by Danielle Quesenberry

2019 Legislative Preview

 

It’s always a challenge to predict what will happen in any upcoming legislative session, but the 2019 session is already shaping up to be one of the most unpredictable in decades. While Republicans still have large majorities in both the House and the Senate, Democrats flipped a total of eleven seats in the House and two in the Senate. Perhaps more importantly, there are an additional sixteen seats in the House and six in the Senate that could be competitive in the 2020 election. That fact alone could make for some interesting politics. However, beyond the simple partisan math, due to incumbents who either retired or lost seats in the primary or general elections, there will be some 30 new members of the legislature. While roughly half of them we know to be pro-equality, we don’t know much about the others and how they will vote on issues of concern to Georgia Equality’s members and the LGBTQ community.

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by Wes Sanders

Help me go out with a bang!

It is bittersweet that I’m sharing with you that tomorrow is my  last day as Deputy Director at Georgia Equality. I want to go out with a bang, but I’ll need your help! Today, I’m asking you to donate to continue the work I’ve been lucky to be apart of.

From numerous victories against anti-LGBTQ legislation to developing and expanding strategic programming for LGBTQ people throughout the state, Georgia Equality works incredibly hard to ensure we are treated with dignity and respect. I’m thankful having the opportunity to work, learn, and grow in this space. I’m also honored to have worked with such an amazing crew of brilliant minds and tremendously inspiring thought leaders – Jeff Graham, Wes Sanders, Eric Paulk, Percy Brown, Chanel Haley, and Shannon Clawson. They are rock stars in their work and wonderful friends to have in my extended family.

As I transition from staff member to donor, I know the fight for equality in Georgia doesn’t end when I leave these doors. It is why I’m asking you join me in funding the important and necessary work Georgia Equality does for LGBTQ people and our familes.

And to you – Georgia Equaliy members, volunteers and donors – thank you for lifting me up, joining our calls to action, and giving your support by volunteering your time or funding the movement. Will you join me in supporting Georgia Equality again today? 
 

With much appreciation and gratitude-

Amanda Hill-Attkisson, Deputy Director

by Wes Sanders

Georgia Equality invested in me

Dear Friend,

I’m DeMarcus Beckham, a member of Georgia Equality’s Board of Directors from Macon. My connection to Georgia Equality began as an intern for the organization almost two years ago, and I’m asking you to join me in donating to the organization that has given so much to me and other LGBTQ Georgians.

Being an advocate for my communities has always been my passion and my calling. Through the years, Georgia Equality fed my passion and provided resources for my success. I gained a voice that many others have fought for me to have, and now use that voice as a leader in Georgia’s movement for LGBTQ equality.

For the last five years, Georgia Equality has fought against RFRA and other anti-LGBTQ legislation, built programs to develop the next generation of transgender leaders, and led the path to make Georgia safer for LGBTQ people and our allies.

From my days as an intern to currently sitting on the board, I’m proud to be part of the Georgia Equality family and its amazing work across the state. This holiday season, I encourage you to invest in Georgia Equality the way the organization has invested in me. Please support Georgia Equality by making a donation to continue our work across the state.

 

Sincerely,

DeMarcus Beckham, Board of Directors

by Danielle Quesenberry

Georgia Equality Commemorates World AIDS Day with a Week of Events

Georgia Equality marked the 30th World AIDS Day with a week of events to engage the community. United by the “Know Your Status” theme, we joined our community partners in commemorating World AIDS Day 2018 with events that included a screening of the film Boy Meets Girl followed by a panel conversation led by Georgia Equality’s Gender Inclusion Organizer, Chanel Haley focused on HIV and dating in the trans community. Our partners at Sisterlove led us in a conversation around Black women and HIV. We also partnered with Thrive SS for an evening of spoken word, led by artists living with HIV.

To round out the week, we united with Actor’s Express for a staged reading of the play, Before it Hits Home by Cheryl L. West, directed by True Colors Theatre Company’s incoming Artistic Director, Jamil Jude. The play explored the dynamics of an African-American family dealing with the HIV during the late 1980s. The reading was followed by a panel discussion.

We closed the week with our annual World AIDS Day Policy & Action Luncheon hosted by our Youth HIV Policy Advisors (YHPA). The YHPA cohort is a group of future leaders trained to guide policy around HIV and AIDS, and serve as unofficial policy advisors to elected officials. The event included remarks from Atlanta City Council President Felicia Moore and Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms. Other elected officials from all levels of state and local government also attended and heard from program participants about the specific needs and challenges that come with being a young person living with HIV in the metro-Atlanta area.

Georgia Equality would like to thank our community partners, YHPA, and elected leaders who attended our week of programs this year. While much has changed over the past 30 years – HIV is no longer a death sentence but a treatable and manageable chronic disease – we recognize that we still have a long way to go.