LGBTQ Non-Profit Organizations
HRC report: ‘Epidemic of violence’ against transgender community
For the first time in its 40+ year history, the Human Rights Campaign declared a National State of Emergency for LGBTQ+ Americans
In marking the annual Transgender Day of Remembrance, the Human Rights Campaign released its 2023 annual report documenting the epidemic of violence taking the lives of trans and gender non-conforming people.
According to HRC’s report, at least 33 transgender and gender-nonconforming people were killed in the last 12 months, an overwhelming majority who were young people of color, with Black transgender women disproportionately impacted.
“In the 12 months since Transgender Day of Remembrance 2022 (November 20, 2022), we’ve reported on at least 33 transgender and gender non-conforming people killed in an epidemic of violence threatening our community. These victims had families and friends, hopes and dreams. None of them deserved to have their lives stolen by horrific violence,” said Tori Cooper, Director of Community Engagement for the Transgender Justice Initiative, Human Rights Campaign Foundation.
“Almost two-thirds of the victims were Black trans women, a tragedy that reflects an appalling trend of violence fueled by racism, toxic masculinity, misogyny and transphobia and the politicization of our lives. We need everyone to join us in empowering transgender leaders, building safer, stronger communities and reducing stigma. We cannot rest until all transgender and gender non-conforming people can live our lives safely as our full selves,” she added.
“The epidemic of violence against transgender and gender-nonconforming people is a national tragedy and a national embarrassment,” HRC President Kelly Robinson said Monday in a statement. “Each of the lives taken is the result of a society that demeans and devalues anyone who dares challenge the gender binary.”
The report also noted that the actual tally of deaths may be much higher because “data collection is often incomplete or unreliable when it comes to violent and fatal crimes against trans and gender-nonconforming people.”
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) recorded just 21 fatal hate crimes committed against transgender and gender-nonconforming people over the same time period.
This report comes amidst a tidal wave of anti-transgender legislation. In 2023, for the first time in its 40+ year history, the Human Rights Campaign declared a National State of Emergency for LGBTQ+ Americans, in response to the over 550 anti-LGBTQ+ bills introduced into state houses across the country, more than 80 of which were passed into law.
This is a record high for anti-LGBTQ+ legislation introduced and enacted in a single state legislative session since HRC began tracking—beating out 2022, which, with 25 anti-LGBTQ+ bills enacted, previously held the record for most anti-LGBTQ+ bills enacted in a single year.
The report noted that the vast majority of the bills introduced in 2023— over 220—specifically targeted transgender people in an attempt to: limit access to school sports, school restrooms and locker rooms; ban access to safe, effective, age-appropriate gender-affirming medical care; and remove inclusive books and references to LGBTQ+ identities and experiences from school curricula (a la “don’t Say LGBTQ”). Coordinated efforts led by well-funded right-wing extremist organizations such as the Family Research Council, Heritage Action, and the Alliance Defending Freedom have led to similar efforts in the U.S. House of Representatives, including attempts to pass nationwide trans sports bans and bans on gender affirming care, as well as attempting to enact anti-LGBTQ+ legislation through attaching extraneous riders to appropriation bills.
Against this backdrop of discriminatory legislation, attacks on the transgender and gender non-conforming community, as well as the LGBTQ+ community and its allies writ large, are on the rise. Proponents of anti-trans legislation in state houses and Congress, have often relied on hate-filled rhetoric that demonizes transgender people and their allies, perpetuates misinformation, and legitimizes anti-trans stigma, violence, and hate.
Such rhetoric has, unfortunately, begun to translate to real world violence: 2022 saw the highest number of anti-LGB and anti-trans and gender non-conforming hate crimes reported by the FBI to date, with the number of hate crimes based on gender identity increasing by over 32% from 2021 to 2022.
Almost 500 gender identity-motivated hate crimes were recorded in 2022, accounting for 4% of all hate crimes recorded in that year; anti-LGBTQ+ hate crimes overall accounted for more than one in five (20.8%) hate crimes. And this number is an undercount, given that FBI data reporting does not capture all hate crimes, as not all jurisdictions track anti-trans hate crimes, nor do all jurisdictions report hate crimes to FBI databases.
In addition to the FBI-reported hate crime incidents , between the beginning of 2022 and late April 2023 GLAAD recorded 161 different attacks against drag events, including bomb threats, vandalization, armed and violent protests, and in one instance the firebombing of venues that hosted Drag Story Hour and other all-age drag events.
These attacks were part of the more than 350 anti-LGBTQ+ incidents across 46 states, recorded by GLAAD and the ADL over the same period. June 2023 saw 145 additional anti-LGBTQ+ extremism incidents recorded at Pride events across the country. Transphobic violence and hate has even taken the lives of several cisgender allies this year, such as in the case of Colin Michael Smith, a White cisgender man in Oregon who was stabbed and killed while defending a non-binary friend from an assailant “hurling anti-LGBTQ+ slurs,” and Laura Ann Carlton, a White cisgender woman in California, who was shot and killed for refusing to stop flying a pride flag over her store.
These attacks are occurring against a community which is already vulnerable and marginalized. As detailed in HRC’s report “Dismantling a Culture of Violence,” transgender and gender non-conforming people face multiple forms of sigma, which result in lower access to status, power, and resources, and higher risk of discrimination, including in employment, healthcare, and housing. Together, this contributes to higher risk of poverty and homelessness/housing insecurity, social isolation, and worse physical and mental health outcomes, which in turn results in increased risk for violence.
Such stigma, bias and discrimination compounds for transgender and gender non-conforming people who hold multiple marginalized identities. Transgender women and transgender people of color are at elevated risk of fatal violence, and the risk is compounded for Black transgender women, who comprise the vast majority of victims of fatal violence against trans and gender non-conforming people.
“We must imagine a better future for transgender and gender-nonconforming people,” Robinson said Monday. “Not just surviving, but truly living as free and equal members of our society.”
LGBTQ Non-Profit Organizations
Blade contributor wins GLAAD Media Award
Erin Reed recognized for Outstanding Blog
Los Angeles and Washington Blade contributor and journalist Erin Reed took home a GLAAD Media Award this past Saturday as she was honored for her reporting on LGBTQ laws, people, and moments around the world with special emphasis on in-depth reporting on issues affecting the trans community, of which she along with her fiancée, Montana state Rep. Zooey Zephyr (D-Missoula) are part.
Reflecting on her recognition by the world’s largest LGBTQ media advocacy organization winning for Outstanding Blog: Reed said:
“When I started reporting on queer and trans issues several years ago, I never envisioned myself becoming a journalist in this space. Instead, I was simply trying to help people understand where to get their healthcare resources, what laws challenged those resources, and what they could do to advocate for themselves through the legislative process and courts. I moved to writing long-form content almost two years ago when I realized that major media outlets were leaving a giant void in reporting on queer and trans issues.
I have been so blessed to be in the position I am in, where I can tell our stories every day. I cannot do this without standing on the shoulders of giants — the trans kids I saw tonight at the Gender Cool Project, the trans elders who fought for our healthcare long before us, and the activists in every single state messaging me every time they see something important. I also could not do it without all of you, the subscribers who make this work sustainable.
Thank you from the bottom of my heart. You make this work worth it.”
The 35th annual GLAAD Media Awards:
GLAAD President Sarah Kate Ellis, introduced by New York State Attorney General Letitia James, said in part: “10 years ago when I started at GLAAD, It was a much different landscape …And now we have the urgent need to protect it all. Our latest poll shows that more than half of American voters are turned off by candidates who are anti-trans. Hating us is becoming a losing proposition. We have to keep telling our stories, raising our voices, pushing back on the rhetoric.”
GLAAD presented the following awards onstage in New York:
- “Our America Who I’m Meant to Be – Episode 3” received the GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding TV Journalism – Long-Form presented by Don Lemon
- “Family Karma” received the GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Reality Program presented by the cast of “We’re Here” (Jaida Essence Hall, Latrice Royale, Priyanka, Sasha Velour)
- “Melissa Etheridge: My Window” received the GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Broadway Production presented by Uma Thurman
- “Jennifer Hudson Surprises HIV Activist with $10,000” “The Jennifer Hudson Show” received the GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Variety or Talk Show Episode presented by Carla Gugino and Mary McDonnell
- “Red, White, and Royal Blue” received the GLAAD Media Award for Queer Fan Favorite presented by Cody Rigsby and Beanie Feldstein
GLAAD also announced these winners in an offstage video reel in New York:
Outstanding Podcast: “Las Culturistas” (iHeart)
Outstanding Film – Streaming Or TV: “Rustin” (Netflix)
Outstanding Documentary: “Beyond the Aggressives: 25 Years Later” (MTV Documentary Films), “Kokomo City” (Magnolia Pictures), and “The Stroll” (HBO | Max Documentary Films)
Outstanding New Series: “The Last of Us” (HBO)
Outstanding Kids & Family Programming or Film — Live Action: “Heartstopper” (Netflix)
Outstanding Broadway Production: “Melissa Etheridge: My Window,” by Melissa Etheridge
Outstanding TV Journalism Segment: “New York City Gay Bar Deaths Classified as Homicides” (NBC News Now)
Outstanding Live TV Journalism — Segment or Special: “Indiana Students Put on LGBTQ-Themed Play Themselves After it’s Canceled By the School” “Yasmin Vossoughian Reports” (MSNBC)
Outstanding Print Article: “As Drag Bans Proliferate, Maren Morris Goes Deep With Drag’s Biggest Stars on Why the Show Must Go On” by Stephen Daw (Billboard)
Outstanding Online Journalism Article: “The AP Interview: Pope Francis Says Homosexuality Not a Crime” by Nicole Winfield (AP.com)
Outstanding Online Journalism — Video or Multimedia: “7 Remarkable Trans Elders Share Lessons for the Next Generation” (them.us)
Outstanding Blog: Erin Reed (“Erin in the Morning”)
Spanish Language — Outstanding Online Journalism Article: “Personas mayores LGBTQIA+ ‘tienen que regresar a un clóset para poder buscar vivienda’” por David Cordero Mercado y Joaquín A. Rosado Lebrón (PeriodismoInvestigativo.com and ElNuevoDia.com)
Spanish Language — Outstanding Online Journalism — Video or Multimedia: “Conoce a la primera diputada negra y trans de Brasil” por Natalia Barrera Francis, Joyce García, David von Blohn, Paula Daibert y Claudia Escobar (Descoloniza – AJ+ Español)
GLAAD previously announced Special Recognition awards for “The Dads” (Netflix), “Love in Gravity, Relighting Candles” (Hulu), “Renaissance: A Film by Beyonce” (AMC Theatres), “The Tennessee Holler, Yes I Am: The Ric Weiland Story, Drag Latina” (Revry / LATV), “Enamorándonos” (UniMás), “El sabor de la Navidad” (ViX), “Wendy, perdida pero famosa” (ViX)
GLAAD also previously announced that +Life Media received the Barbara Gittings Award for Excellence in LGBTQ Media.
The following winners were announced at the 35th GLAAD Media Awards in Los Angeles on March 14:
Outstanding Drama Series: “Yellowjackets” (Showtime)
Outstanding Comedy Series: “Ted Lasso” (Apple TV+)
Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series: “Fellow Travelers” (Showtime)
Outstanding Film – Wide Theatrical Release: “Bottoms” (Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer)
Outstanding Film – Limited Theatrical Release: “Monica” (IFC Films)
Outstanding Reality Competition Program: “RuPaul’s Drag Race” (MTV)
Outstanding Music Artist: Renee Rapp, “Snow Angel” (Interscope)
Outstanding Breakthrough Music Artist: David Archuleta (Archie Music)
Outstanding Children’s Programming: “Blue River Wedding” “Ada Twist: Scientist” (Netflix)
Outstanding Kids & Family Programming or Film — Animated: “Hailey’s On It!” (Disney Channel)
Outstanding Magazine Overall Coverage: “Out”
Outstanding Video Game: “Baldur’s Gate 3” (Larian Studios)
Outstanding Comic Book: “Star Wars: Doctor Aphra,” written by Alyssa Wong (Marvel Comics)
Outstanding Original Graphic Novel/Anthology: “Four-Color Heroes” by Richard Fairgray (Fanbase Press)
Outstanding Scripted Television Series — Spanish Language: “Las noches de Tefía” (Atresplayer)
Outstanding TV Journalism — Spanish Language: “Adolescentes trans relatan su experiencia” “Noticiero Telemundo” (Telemundo)
LGBTQ Non-Profit Organizations
Center for Black Equity announces leadership change
Founder Earl Fowlkes to retire
The Center for Black Equity, the D.C.-based national organization that advocates for the Black LGBTQ community, announced this week that its founder and Chief Executive Officer/President Earl Fowlkes will retire in August and the organization’s deputy director, Kenya Hutton, has been named interim CEO/president.
“After 25 years of dedicated service leading the organization’s fight for racial equity, Mr. Fowlkes will step down from his current role but will remain actively involved with the CBE in an advisory capacity as CEO/President Emeritus,” a statement released by the organization says.
“The CBE Board of Directors has unanimously appointed Mr. Kenya Hutton as Interim CEO/President,” the statement says. “Mr. Hutton, a seasoned leader with a proven track record in advancing racial justice initiatives, will assume his new position on August 1, 2024,” according to the statement.
The CBE describes itself as a “leading national organization dedicated to achieving racial equity and economic justice for Black LGBTQ+ communities” through “advocacy, education, and empowerment programs.” Among other things, the Center for Black Equity has been the lead organizer of D.C.’s Black Pride celebrations and has supported Black Pride celebrations worldwide.
“It’s been an incredible privilege to lead the Center for Black Equity for the past quarter century,” Fowlkes said in the statement. “While I’m excited to embark on this next chapter, I have no intention of stepping away from the fight for racial equity,” he said. “I look forward to supporting Kenya Hutton and the talented CBE team in their ongoing efforts to dismantle systemic barriers and empower Black LGBTQ+ communities,” Fowlkes said.
The statement says Hutton has served as deputy director of CBE for the past four years and prior to that served for a decade in other positions with the organization. “Mr. Hutton brings 26 years of experience in public service with various organizations,” the CBE statement says.
“I am honored by the board’s trust and excited to build upon the incredible foundation laid by Earl Fowlkes Jr.,” Hutton says in the statement. “The Center for Black Equity plays a vital role in advancing racial equity, and I am committed to leading the organization in its next chapter of impactful work.”
LGBTQ Non-Profit Organizations
LGBTQ activists, celebrities included in Time’s 100 Most Influential People of 2024 list
HRC President Kelley Robinson among honorees
Time magazine on Wednesday unveiled its highly anticipated list of the 100 Most Influential People of 2024, and it includes several LGBTQ celebrities and activists who continue to champion queer rights.
Among the notable figures that Time recognized is actor Coleman Domingo, who portrayed civil rights activist Bayard Rustin in the biopic “Rustin.” Domingo, among other things, is the second openly gay man nominated for an Oscar for his portrayal of a gay character.
Other people on the list are:
- Actor Elliot Page, known for his roles in “Juno” and “The Umbrella Academy.” His recent memoir, “Pageboy,” sheds light on his journey as a transgender man, inspiring audiences amid ongoing challenges to trans rights.
- Human Rights Campaign President Kelley Robinson.
- Frank Mugisha, executive director of Sexual Minorities Uganda, a Ugandan LGBTQ rights group.
- Rosanna Flamer-Caldera, an LGBTQ activist in Sri Lanka who led the effort to decriminalize consensual same-sex sexual relations in her country.
Time’s list also includes other LGBTQ influencers, such as fashion designer Jonathan Anderson, reproductive biologist Katsuhiko Hayashi, chef Dominique Crenn, and healthcare advocate Ophelia Dahl.
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