Supreme Court Takes Cake Case

The United States Supreme Court should take the opportunity to unequivocally state that religious freedom cannot be used as cover for denying rights to others when they decide the case of Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission next term. The fact is the owner of the Colorado bakery violated the state’s anti-discrimination laws when he claimed the religious freedom to refuse to serve gay & lesbian couples according to the Colorado Civil Rights Commission. Supported by the deep pockets of religious right organizations such as the Alliance Defending Freedom the owner will argue before the high court that his personal religious beliefs outweigh the rights of LGBTQ individuals to be treated fairly. Nick Little, Center for Inquiry Legal Director stated, “Religious freedom is not a license to discriminate against individuals. Dressing anti-LGBTQ prejudice in religious garb does not & must not endow that prejudice with legal privileges. If this baker is permitted to exclude LGBTQ people from his store based on his religious views, the floodgates of discrimination will have been opened. Today it is the same-gender couple seeking a wedding cake; tomorrow it could just as easily be women seeking contraception, or African Americans seeking a meal at a lunch counter. This so-called ‘right’ to discriminate based on religion cannot be cabined & threatens to turn America back to the dark days of legally justifiable segregation.” Robyn Blumner, CFI’s President & CEO concluded, “This baker has the right to hold negative opinions about gays & lesbians; he has the right to believe they are damned to Hell. What he does not have is the right to refuse them service at his business.”
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LGBTQ Health Care At Risk

The American people deserve so much more than what the American Health Care Act proposes. If the Senate passes this insult to humanity millions of Americans will lose coverage, Plan Parenthood is in jeopardy & millions of LGBTQ people & people living with HIV will lose their health insurance. Rick Zbur Equality California Executive Director stated, “The bill unveiled by the Senate isn’t just mean, as Donald Trump himself admits about the House version, it’s immoral. If passed, it will have a devastating impact on the health & lives of millions of LGBTQ people & people living with HIV, who will lose health insurance & transgender people who received coverage for the first time under the ACA. Because LGBTQ people are twice as likely to be living in poverty as the general public, the Medicaid expansion & federal subsidies are important components of the ACA which significantly increased healthcare coverage for people in the LGBTQ community. The weakening of protections for people with preexisting conditions means that insurers can once again deny coverage to millions of people or charge them exorbitant premiums, which effectively denies them coverage. The bill also guts Medicaid & hundreds of billions of dollars in federal insurance subsidies, making healthcare unaffordable for millions more. It also imposes a one-year freeze on Medicaid reimbursements to Planned Parenthood, a vital healthcare provider on which millions of women & LGBTQ people depend for a wide range of healthcare services. In addition to the cruel & harmful impact on the LGBTQ community, the Republican proposal would devastate the health & wellbeing of millions of vulnerable Americans, including those who are low-income, disabled, living with HIV, older than 50, in poor health or have mental health needs. Equality California is committed to fighting this bill in the days ahead in Washington, D.C., in California & across the country to preserve healthcare access for the LGBTQ community & all Americans.”
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LGBT Seniors Erasure Partial Win

In March we reported that the Trump Administration was going after the most vulnerable members of our LGBTQ community by attempting to erase our LGBTQ seniors from the National Survey of Older Americans Act Participants (NSOAAP). Today SAGE (Services & Advocacy for LGBT Elders) has declared a victory on getting a question pertaining to sexual orientation back into the NSOAAP survey. While we celebrate this achievement, we must continue to condemn the Trump administration’s continued removal of gender identity from the 2017 survey. All of our elders including our trans elders must be counted. SAGE refuses to let trans older adults or any of the elders who are part of our community be invisible. Michael Adams SAGE CEO stated, "Thousands of LGBT elders & their allies forced the Trump administration to reverse course on their discriminatory plans. But if the administration thinks that with this partial victory SAGE will now abandon trans elders, it's in for a big surprise." In the next 30-day comment period, SAGE will continue to fight to have all LGBT elders included in this survey. The Trump Administration wants to pretend that transgender elders do not exist but we all must not allow them to get away with this. SAGE worked with their sister LGBT advocacy organizations, including the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) & the Center for American Progress (CAP), as well as ally aging organizations, including the National Association of Area Agencies on Aging (n4a) & the National Association of States United for Aging and Disabilities (NASUAD) to get this question back on the NSOAAP survey. They also recognize the steadfast support of the 72-member Leadership Council of Aging Organizations (LCOA).
For More Info: sageusa.org
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NYC Pride March Rise & Resist

Inspired by the defiant spirit from which NYC Pride was born, 18 diverse LGBT community organizations will march together at the front of this year’s NYC Pride March on Sunday June 25th. The allied “Resistance” was formed in response to the attacks on the LGBTQ community by the Trump Administration & other enemies of civil rights & social justice. The group is expected to attract a large number of protesters & celebrants. Ken Kidd, a longtime New York City activist who conceived the plan for resistance groups to lead the march & who led the negotiations with Heritage of Pride, the organization that plans NYC Pride stated, “Since the Stonewall Riots & the first pride march, LGBTQ rights & indeed our very lives--have never been under siege like they are now under the Trump regime. Every year, the March celebrates our victories in our fight for equality. This year, it must celebrate our ongoing commitment to keep the rights our community has worked so hard to achieve & bond us together to expand on them.” Building on the momentum from the pride parade in Los Angeles, which activists turned into a resistance march; the Columbus, Ohio, Pride Festival, where refugees fleeing persecution will serve as grand marshals & Washington, DC, where activists mounted their own alternative March for Unity & Pride, thousands of marchers will convert their frustration & anger at the president into a celebration of strength, perseverance & community. The diverse, multi-generational groups plan to employ chanting, singing, dancing, die-ins & a wide array of props & visuals to express their resistance to a historic assault on LGBTQ rights.
For More Info: riseandresist.org
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Glamour Spain Cover Andreja Pejic

Andreja Pejic is one of the most prominent out, working transgender models of our time. As an LGBTQ advocate she has made another stride in the right direction. Pejic has landed the July cover of Glamour Spain & this is the first cover that doesn’t label her as 'transgender' & acknowledging her more so as a model of the moment. Pejic has helped drive the fashion industry forward when it comes to issues of non-binary & transgender acceptance. In 2014 Pejic publicly announced her sexual reassignment surgery. In May 2015 she became the first transgender model to feature in American Vogue & has gone on to be the first to land the covers of Marie Claire Spain & GQ Portugal. Andreja Pejic, Stated on Instagram,"Here I am rolling around Coney Island in the latest Balenciaga captured by one of my favorite up & coming photographers Rebekah Campbell. Also, really want to give Glamour Spain a big thumbs up for not feeling the need to slap my gender or medical history across the cover in order to sell more copies. Can I get an amen?" Definitely a step in the correct direction, Bravo Glamour Spain! Pejic has also graced the covers of international editions of Elle, L'Officiel, Fashion, GQ & Harper’s Bazaar Serbia this month. Andreja has also appeared in editorials for fashion publications including, Vogue, Elle, I-D, Dazed & Confused, Love, Allure, Purple & Numero.
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The Center LGBT Garden Party

Kick off Pride Week in New York City at the 34th annual Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center’s Garden Party: A Taste of Pride with tastings from dozens of New York City’s premier restaurants on June 19th from 6P to 10P. Sip seasonal smart cocktails at an open bar while you bid on delicious silent auction items & watch the sun set over the Hudson River. Proceeds from Garden Party supports The Center’s life-changing programs & services 365 days a year. Glennda Testone, The Center’s Executive Director stated, “I hope you will join us & enjoy the gorgeous weather as we kick off Pride Week at Garden Party: A Taste of Pride, our longest-running, most anticipated event. Celebrate with us & 1500 of our closest friends on Monday June 19th on Hudson River Park’s Pier 84 for a delicious evening of sampling scrumptious food & drinks from over 30 of New York City’s top restaurants. Your support helps The Center keep its doors open 365 days a year & offer vital programs & services to those in our community who need them most. So join us for the most tempting, tastiest Pride kick-off event in NYC!” Tasting Partners include: Ample Hills Creamery, Bittersweet, Boqueria, Café Patoro, Dinosaur BBQ, Haven's Kitchen, Hill Country BBQ Market, Javelina TexMex, Luke's Lobster, Massoni Noreetuh, North Square Restaurant, Peanut Butter & Co, Seamore's, Sticky's Finger Joint, Sweet Chili, The Standard Grill, Toro & more! Tickets start at $85 for Center Members & $99 for the general public. For More Info & Tix: gaycenter.org
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Trump Erasing LGBT Civil Rights

Protection for our LGBT community has taken another turn for the worse with the Commerce Department’s decision to remove sexual orientation & gender identity from its equal opportunity employment policy. As the Trump administration began we feared that an executive order would be signed to legalize LGBT discrimination under a “religious liberty” order. That didn’t happen but we did witness Trump revoke President Obama’s guidelines that protected our most vulnerable transgender students from discrimination in public schools & LGBT seniors removed from federal census. Without federal protections LGBT workplace discrimination has unfortunately been one of those state by state issues until the Obama administration changed the policy to read: “The Department of Commerce does not tolerate discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex (including sexual harassment & pregnancy discrimination), sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age (40 years of age & over), genetic information or disability (physical or mental), including the provision of reasonable accommodations for qualified applicants & employees with disabilities.” Kelsey Louie CEO of GMHC stated, “The Commerce Department’s decision to remove sexual orientation & gender identity from its equal opportunity employment policy is a direct assault on LGBTQ Americans. We look to the federal government to protect all citizens; this revised statement further marginalizes the LGBTQ community in an attempt to strip us of our rights. We will continue to make our voices heard, ensuring that all Americans are protected at work & fight the draconian changes by the current Administration that devalue and disrespect LGBTQ lives.” (Equality graphic by Richard Emmanuel.)
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