 | | | TAKE ACTION: JOIN US FOR A VIRTUAL VIGIL FOR TDOR | | Join PFLAG National and Waves Ahead on Friday, November 20th at 8pm ET/5pm PT for a special PFLAG Connects virtual vigil in honor of Transgender Day of Remembrance, led by Lisbeth Meléndez Rivera, MAL. We will gather to say the names of our transgender loved ones who died by violence in the last year, and celebrate trans lives to mark the end of Transgender Awareness Week. Download your virtual TDOR background--both photo and video options available--in our TDOR toolkit at pflagnation.al/tdor2020. Register now to join us for this special PFLAG Connects event. | | | | A more conservative Supreme Court hears same-sex foster parent case. Catholic Social Services, affiliated with the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, says its religious views keep it from certifying same-sex couples as foster parents.The Supreme Court on November 4th seemed likely to side with a Catholic social services agency in a dispute with Philadelphia over the agency’s refusal to work with same-sex couples as foster parents. The Fulton case is the first heard by SCOTUS in which Justice Barrett participated since being confirmed by the Senate in a 52-48 vote. PFLAG National joined Family Equality in providing an amicus brief to the court, citing the harm caused to children in foster care when prospective LGBTQ+ parents were rejected because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Supreme Court Appears Likely To Uphold the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The Supreme Court, with a newly constituted and far more conservative majority, took another look at The ACA on November 10th. But experts say, even with a conservative majority, the ACA looked as though it may well survive. LGBTQ+ advocacy groups file lawsuit over Trump’s order barring federal diversity training. Represented by Ropes and Gray and Lambda Legal, six organizations filed a complaint in San Francisco on Tuesday, November 3rd, stating the executive order to be unconstitutional, alleging that it violates freedom of speech by limiting information that can be provided during diversity training. Families sue over surgical requirements to change birth certificate gender marker. The parents of three transgender children filed a lawsuit challenging the Arizona Department of Health Services’ policy requiring trans people to undergo surgery before being able to change the gender marker on their birth certificates. The children in question are D.T., 13-year-old transgender boy who lives in Pima County, “Jane Doe,” a 10-year-old girl who lives in Maricopa County, and “Helen Roe,” a six-year-old who lives in Pima County. $30K settlement in sexual harassment lawsuit brought against NYPD by trans advocate. Linda Dominguez, a cosmetologist and human rights activist, claims New York Police Department officers arrested her while she was walking home for being in a park after hours, mocked her, forced her to wear pink handcuffs in custody, and charged her with "false personation" when she had to produce two conflicting identity documents. | | | | State Department no longer challenging citizenship of same-sex couple's children. The State Department will no longer challenge court rulings that recognize the U.S. citizenship of two gay couples’ children who were born abroad via surrogates.The State Department in August appealed U.S. District Judge Theodore D. Chuang’s ruling in favor of Roee Kiviti and Adiel Kiviti of Chevy Chase, Md., who legally married in California in 2013. Their daughter, Kessem Kiviti, was born in Canada via surrogate in 2019. Over 290 LGBTQ+ candidates celebrate election wins in record-setting 2020 results. Many victors are first-time and history-making seatholders, and 44 elections are still undecided. Some federal and state victories include PFLAG National friend Sarah McBride, the first openly transgender person to be elected to a state senate (Delaware); Richie Torres, the first openly gay member of Congress (New York); and Mauree Turner, the first non-binary Muslim Oklahoma state lawmaker. Though a tense election, results show increased representation for BiPOC LGBTQ+ people elected to positions of power. LGBTQ+ people of color also keep breaking election barriers. Several state legislatures will see their first LGBTQ+ members of color, and Congress will have its first gay Black members. Overall, the 117th Congress will have a record number of LGBTQ lawmakers. Openly transgender veteran named to President-elect Biden's transition team. Shawn Skelly was named a member of the review team for the Defense Department. In 2013, Skelly joined the Obama administration and was the first openly transgender veteran to serve as presidential appointee. | | | | Transgender representation to nearly double in state legislatures. At least eight transgender, nonbinary and gender-nonconforming state candidates won on Election Day. Voters in six states handed eight transgender, nonbinary and gender-nonconforming candidates victories in state legislatures.These candidates were on the ballot in at least 13 state House and Senate elections California - Man arrested in Los Angeles for murder of Philadelphia transgender woman. The body of Dominique "Rem'mie" Fells was found in June. [TW: Murder/Violence] Delaware - PFLAG National friend Sarah McBride becomes first openly trans person elected to a state Senate. Delaware’s newly elected state Senator Sarah McBride is the first openly transgender person to be elected to a state’s Senate and in January will be the highest-ranking openly transgender state legislator in the U.S. Nevada - First state to recognize same-sex marriage in state constitution. Voters overturned an 18-year-old ban on same-sex marriage, making the state the first to enshrine in its constitution same-sex couples’ right to marry. The “Marriage Regardless of Gender Amendment” also asked if religious organizations and clergy retained the right “to refuse to solemnize a marriage.” The results were 62 percent in favor and 38 percent against, according to the Nevada secretary of state, with more than three-fourths of the votes counted. New Mexico - Openly gay Roger Montoya wins election, making him first openly LGBTQ+ member of the New Mexico state house. Montoya, who is also openly HIV positive, is a longtime community organizer whose work centers on anti-violence and HIV education. Ohio - She says the sheriff fired her for being gay. Now, she'll be the sheriff. After losing her job at Ohio’s Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office, Charmaine McGuffey decided to run against her former boss; she won. Puerto Rico - Many out candidates in Puerto Rico won their races. It was a record year for LGBTQ+ candidates. | | | | | | | | PFLAG National proudly partners on HBO’s TRANSHOOD. Filmed over the course of five years in Kansas City, TRANSHOOD is an inspiring chronicle of the lives of four young people and their families as they each navigate growing up transgender in America’s heartland. The documentary offers a long-range insight into the unique journeys of four transgender youths (ages 4, 7, 12 and 15 at the start of filming) as they redefine “coming of age” and share personal realities of how gender expression is reshaping their American families. LGBTQ+ bars used as polling sites on Election Day. Buddy’s, an LGBTQ+ bar In Houston, and the Eagle, a legendary LGBTQ+ leather bar in San Francisco, transformed their spaces into polling places, priding themselves on bringing something new to the community. World-class soccer champions Megan Rapinoe and Sue Bird get engaged. They met at the 2016 Summer Olympic Games and started dating shortly thereafter. Selena Gomez to portray openly lesbian pioneering mountaineer Silvia Vasquez-Lavado. Peruvian Vasquez-Lavado is the first openly gay woman to complete the Seven Summits, the highest mountains (including Mount Everest) on each of the seven continents. Gomez will produce "In the Shadow of the Mountain" through her July Moon Productions. Playboy Mexico puts first transgender model on the cover. Beauty influencer Victoria Volkova has broken new ground as the first transgender woman to appear on the cover of Playboy Mexico. Volkova, 27, was born in the state of Querétaro in central Mexico. With more than 900,000 followers on Instagram, she has become an outspoken advocate for the LGBTQ+ community in her country. The Craft: Legacy stars Latina trans actress Zoey Luna. Twenty-four years after the original supernatural teen flick The Craft hit theaters, a new generation of witchy young women are stepping up to show off their sorcery skills. The sequel follows four new witches who come together to experiment with magic and to see how powerful they can become when they combine forces. One of these witches is played by trans Latina actress and newcomer Zoey Luna. | | | |
