The Hill wrote:More than 150 LGBT elected officials penned a letter released this week calling on the incoming Congress to prioritize four LGBT equality initiatives.
Those initiatives include protecting trans constituents from "anti-trans Trump administration policies," passing federal legislation to protect the rights of LGBT people, focusing on HIV/AIDs treatment — particularly in communities of color — and supporting asylum claims from queer people around the world.
The 152 elected officials penned the letter, which will be delivered to the 116th Congress, during a conference last week. The gathering was hosted by Victory Institute, an advocacy organization focused on training and supporting LGBT political candidates.
The list of signatories includes down-ballot LGBTQ officials, including councilmembers, state senators and representatives, mayors and more.
“LGBTQ political power is growing thanks to the rainbow wave of LGBTQ people who won elected office in November — and this letter is the first sign of us wielding that new power,” Victory Institute President and CEO Annise Parker said in a statement. Parker is also the mayor of Houston.
Some analysts have said the 2018 midterm elections amounted to a "rainbow wave," with a record number of "out" LGBT candidates running and winning. Over 240 of the 432 LGBTQ candidates, or 56.5 percent, won their elections, Victory Institute's political action committee Victory Fund found in an analysis.
“The current U.S. Congress failed to advance equality policies and legislation that most Americans support: non-discrimination protections, addressing the HIV/AIDS crisis, protecting trans people from abusive policies, and being a moral voice on the global stage," Parker said in the statement.
"The next Congress can remedy these wrongs and LGBTQ elected officials are determined to add their voice and energize their constituents around these important measures," she added.
The officials are encouraging the 116th Congress to pass the Equality Act, federal legislation that would guarantee protections for LGBTQ people, which has not been passed.
The letter also details challenges faced by the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS (PACHA). In the letter, signatories note that Trump dismissed all remaining members of the council last year after some of members resigned over what they said was the Trump administration's inaction on the issue.
"Nearly 40,000 people are newly diagnosed with HIV each year in the United States and racial and ethnic minorities are disproportionately represented," the letter reads. "Almost 3 out of 4 new HIV diagnoses are among racial and ethnic minorities."
"If current HIV diagnoses rates persist, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention predict about 1 in 2 black gay men and 1 in 4 Latino gay men will be diagnosed with HIV during their lifetime," it continues. "This alarming lifetime risk is a call to action to increase prevention and care strategies now."
The letter also calls several of the Trump administration's actions "anti-trans," including its ban on transgender people in the military and the revocation of federal guidelines specifying that trans students can use public restrooms aligning with their gender identity.
"We call on Members of Congress to oppose all efforts to discriminate against transgender people or to limit the definition of gender identity and expression to mere biology," the letter reads.
The LGBT elected officials are still gathering signatures for the letter before it is delivered next year.
Source
So, 152 (and counting) LGBTQ elected officials have signed a letter to be delivered to the new Congress next year. The letter is a call to action for the new Congress to act on behalf of LGBTQ Americans in progressing the long fought pursuit for equal rights. The letter calls for the following four points of action:
1. Passage of The Equality Act
2. Reducing HIV/AIDS
3. Protecting Transgender People
4. Improving Our Commitment to LGBTQI Rights Globally
Lets look at these, one-by-one. Starting with the passage of The Equality Act. The passage of The Equality Act would be an amendment to the Civil Rights Act of 1964. An amendment that would further the reach of that the Civil Rights Act to include sex, sexual orientation, and gender identity. The Equality Act, if passed, would finally provide incredibly needed discrimination protections for LGBTQ people.
The Letter wrote:Despite significant steps forward, many LGBTQI Americans continue to lack non-discrimination protections where they live. The patchwork nature of current laws leaves millions of people subject to uncertainty and potential discrimination that impacts their safety, their families, and their day-to-day lives.
Thirty states still lack fully-inclusive non-discrimination protections for LGBTQI people, meaning that LGBTQI people are at risk of being fired, denied housing, and denied services for who they are or whom they love. Nearly two-thirds of self-identified LGBTQI Americans reported experiencing discrimination in their personal lives.
The Equality Act will provide non-discrimination protections for LGBTQI people in employment, housing, credit, education, public spaces and services and all federally funded programs.
Secondly, reduction of HIV/AIDS. This point brings attention to the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS (PACHA), which was established by President Bill Clinton. One year ago, President Donald Trump dismissed the remaining members of this council. With this in mind, the letter calls upon Congress to establish a Congressional Advisory Commission on HIV/AIDS, calls for setting a goal to hit zero new infections in the United States each year, and to take "proactive measures to address the continuing disparities in HIV diagnoses and treatment in communities of color."
The Letter wrote:Today, after decades of direct action, political organizing, and strategic prevention and programmatic efforts, we have the bio-medical interventions to stop new HIV infections, and help those who are HIV-positive reduce their viral loads to undetectable. The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) adopted a transformative agenda for the global HIV response, which aims to get zero new infections, zero AIDS-related deaths, and zero discrimination or stigma.
Despite the progress that has been made, nearly 40,000 people are newly diagnosed with HIV each year in the United States and racial and ethnic minorities are disproportionately represented. Almost 3 out of 4 new HIV diagnoses are among racial and ethnic minorities. If current HIV diagnoses rates persist, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention predict about 1 in 2 black gay men and 1 in 4 Latino gay men will be diagnosed with HIV during their lifetime. This alarming lifetime risk is a call to action to increase prevention and care strategies now.
Third, protecting transgender people. This one is pretty straight-forward for what it says, calling on Congress to "oppose all efforts to discriminate against transgender people or to limit the definition of gender identity and expression to mere biology."
The letter wrote:The Trump Administration has threatened to make several changes to strip away rights from transgender and intersex people. Soon after taking office, President Trump announced that he would institute a ban on enlisting and retaining transgender military personnel because the military should not be “burdened with the tremendous medical costs and disruption that transgender in the military would entail.” The Trump Administration revoked federal guidelines specifying that transgender students have the right to use public school restrooms that match their gender identity. And recently, the Administration announced plans to change federal civil-rights law to include a definition of sex as “a person’s status as male or female based on immutable biological traits identifiable by or before birth.”
These actions eradicate federal recognition of some 1.4 million transgender Americans. The proposed changes can have a traumatic effect, leaving people exposed and their rights revoked.
Finally, improving our commitment to LGBTQI rights globally. For this, the letter calls for Congress to "Oppose efforts to change the asylum system in ways which would make it more difficult for LGBTQI people who are facing persecution and violence in their home countries from seeking asylum in the United States." It also calls upon Congress to ensure that LGBTQI rights are "a cornerstone of our foreign policy at the United Nations and throughout the world."
The Letter wrote:LGBTQI people of all ages and in all regions of the world suffer from violations of their human rights. They are physically attacked, kidnapped, raped and murdered. In more than a third of the world’s countries, people may be arrested and jailed (and in at least five countries executed) for engaging in private, consensual, same sex relationships. Transgender people are often denied identity papers that reflect their preferred gender, without which they cannot work, travel, open a bank account or access services. LGBTQI children and adolescents face bullying and discrimination in school. Young people may also be thrown out of their homes by their parents, forced into psychiatric institutions or forced to marry based on their actual or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity.
LGBTQI asylum seekers may flee their countries due to persecution based on their sexual orientation or gender identity, or for the same reasons as any other refugee – such as ethnic conflict, political unrest, or the lack of religious freedom. The U.S. Department of Justice has announced plans to restructure the current asylum system to make it more difficult for people to apply for asylum. These proposals will have a serious impact on numerous people, especially LGBTQI people from Central America who are already living in this country.
So NSG, how do you feel about this? What do you think? Which one of these, personally, is most important of the four for you or are they all equally important? Do you think Congress should act upon this letter? Do you think Congress will act upon this letter? General thoughts after reading this post?
For me, personally, the first point of the four is most important because its the one - of the four - that directly effects me in my present state. Living in the state of North Carolina, my employment can be terminated solely due to my sexuality, furthermore it's illegal to sue the employer in state courts for the discriminatory termination. State law (thanks House Bill 2) bans local municipalities from establishing laws ensuring protection from discrimination on the basis of gender identity or sexual orientation.
Overall, however, all four points are important and need to acted upon by Congress since Donald Trump has shown that he's not going to do anything to actually care for the American people, especially those who are LGBTQ.
Also, in closing, if anybody wants the link to the letter, as well as the long list of all who have signed it thus far, here it is.
