eQualityThinking brought you great thinkers with new ideas and careful analysis. As a follow up, here are 20 actions you can take.
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By Juan and Ken Ahonen-Jover
Contact
Juan and Ken are the founders of eQualityGiving, the online donor community for LGBT equality. They are also the founders of eQualityThinking, the free and open virtual convention for LGBT legal equality.
For more information about eQualityGiving and their backgrounds, check the About section here.
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Over a period of 10 weeks, with a team of 11 volunteer organizers, we brought you 16 hours of panels with 82 prominent panelists and 27 question moderators.
It was refreshing to hear the thought processes of some of the brightest and most experienced minds working for LGBT equality as well as the passion and commitment of our youth.
Now it is time to put these ideas into action. Choose among the proposed actions, those that are more appropriate for you.
1. ASK FOR FULL EQUALITY
We will never get full equality if we do not ask for it. Review the Equality & Religious Freedom Act (Omnibus Equality Bill) written by Karen Doering, Esq. and introduced by eQualityGiving on March 18, 2009. We need legislation that is comprehensive and does not negotiate away our equal rights even before it is introduced. Ask Congressman Polis to introduce legislation for full equality and to ensure that there is an open discussion about its contents.
2. HELP PASS FEDERAL EQUALITY LEGISLATION
Listen to US Senator Merkley and Congresswoman Baldwin discuss -for a whole hour- how to pass LGBT legislation in the Senate and the House. And then help push, push, and push because equality should be embraced by all fair-minded Members of Congress.
3. HELP PASS FULL NON-DISCRIMINATION FEDERAL LEGISLATION
This is critical for anyone, but especially for the transgender community and for those who live in states without such a protection. It is difficult to be out and fight for other things if you are not secure in your employment and other basic civil rights. According to Barney Frank, the main sponsor of ENDA, it is going to be difficult to pass ENDA in 2011-2012. Use this time to lobby for a truly comprehensive legislation, such as the American Equality Bill, as well as to ensure that ENDA does not have the large exemptions in the currently proposed legislation.
4. DO MAKE IT BETTER FOR OUR YOUTH
After the heart wrenching campaign "It Gets Better" by Dan Savage, we brought to you the leaders who are working to make it better. Check the websites of our panelists and question moderator and listen to their discussions with two Members of Congress to really make it better. Also listen to four youth talking about their issues and activism; very impressive.
5. HELP TRULY REPEAL DON'T ASK DON'T TELL
The new majority of the House of Representatives is working to throw roadblocks to ensure that the repeal of DADT does not happen as planned. Listen to this debate about how the repeal occurred and support the organizations that have the most knowledge in this area.
6. SUPPORT ACTING DIFFERENTLY
New organizations and many individuals are taking direct action. This is something important to support as a complement to our other approaches to reach LGBT equality. Listen to these people who are definitely acting differently and choose who to support.
7. HELP GET EQUALITY THROUGH THE COURTS
This is one of the most effective tools at our disposal. Listen to the litigation that our top LGBT legal organizations are battling and assist them.
8. MAKE POSSIBLE THE APPOINTMENT OF FAIR JUDGES
It is critical for our equality to help elect a president who can appoint fair judges to the Supreme court and other courts. Our investment in the legal organizations mentioned above cannot produce the best results without fair judges.
9. BUILD BRIDGES WITH CORPORATE AMERICA
One of the new challenges after the Citizen's United decision is that a corporation may give a grant to your favorite organization while at the same time supporting the election of candidates who do not support our equality under the law. One of the significant gaps in our movement, and in the progressive movement in general, is that we do not have a database of corporate giving to politicians. This is not easy to do without more disclosure legislation, but it is critical. To formulate your own actions, listen to this thoughtful discussion about building bridges with corporate America.
10. ENSURE GOVERNANCE WITH FULL L+G+B+T REPRESENTATION
The board of directors that govern the LGBT organizations need to fully represent the movement. Work with the boards and executive directors of the organizations that you are involved to ensure full transgender representation. Twenty two of our largest national LGBT organizations do not have a single transgender board member. Check our Transgender Board Member Resource to help. Also, listen to this panel about the perils of tokenism.
11. HELP WITH STATE ISSUES
We had great presentations and discussions with the executive directors of four state organizations, moderated by the ED of the Equality Federation and a journalist. Check how the different states rank in our scorecard (or take this quick test if you want to see if you can guess their rating). No state has a perfect score right now. Listen to the discussion and help your own state.
12. GET MORE STATES TO ALLOW US TO MARRY
Check this panel for states with potential to pass marriage in 2011 or 2012 and listen to Freedom to Marry big plan for a marriage campaign.
13. SUPPORT THE SCIENCE AND PRACTICE OF CHANGING HEARTS AND MINDS
Media campaigns are very expensive. It is a very good investment to support those who are studying the science and practice of how to change hearts and minds. Check the websites of our panelists and listen to their enlightening discussion. Then support their work.
14. CHANGE THE DIALOG ABOUT ROLE OF RELIGION
We had a panel with religions leaders from different denominations. One of the highlights of the discussion was that they do not want politicians to use religion as an excuse for their legislative actions. Listen to this great discussion and propagate this message.
15. TAKE MORE RISKS AS A DONOR
We all get comfortable with a certain level and way of giving. Maybe stretch more. Maybe think of giving to new approaches to reach equality. Listen to this discussion with four donors and consider additional approaches for your giving. It was frank and very enlightening whether you are a new donor or a very experienced one. And listen here to three of the next generation givers.
16. DO SOMETHING ABOUT HIV CRIMINALIZATION
Some of the most insidious laws against anyone with HIV refer to criminalization of HIV. Check the resources provided by these speakers and listen to their examples of some of the laws in our land and internationally.
17. SUPPORT EQUALITY THROUGH MOVIES
Movies can reach wide audiences and help inform as well as change hearts and minds. Listen to five filmmakers, producers, and writers discuss their new projects. Hear about them before anybody else. And support them in their work.
18. SUPPORT NEW MEDIA AND SOCIAL MEDIA
This is a flashy place to invest. But check the financials of each group, since some of them are operating out of a shoestring while others have raised quite a bit of money. Listen to this panel about these organizations.
19. THINK REALLY BIG AND DIFFERENTLY
What if we could have an organization of the size and effectiveness of NRA or AARP lobbying for our rights? This is the idea behind the National Parents Association. Read the memo or listen to its founder describing it. An idea worth exploring for your support.
20. LAST, BUT NOT LEAST: DON'T ACCEPT ANY MORE EXCUSES
There is always a good reason to delay ensuring equal rights. But as Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. said: "A right delayed is a right denied." Listen to a discussion about The Dallas Principles and a tool, Act on Principles, that helps, in a new way, to push for our legislation. Also listen to Dan Choi in our last panel.
