John,

Our nation rests on twin aspirations -- that all people are created equal, and that all people have fundamental rights that cannot be taken away. We had so far to go to reach these ideals at the time of our founding, and the greatest story of our history has been the fight by so many brave Americans to make them real.

That fight has not ended. That's why I'm writing to ask for your help to get the Equality Act passed in the United States Senate.

This Friday is the first LGBTQ Presidential Candidate Forum for the 2020 cycle. As someone who remembers that it was not too long ago that candidates would not openly discuss the freedom to marry, Friday's forum is a big deal.

You may not know that in 29 states LGBTQ Americans can be fired from their job or thrown out of their homes all simply because of who they love and how they identify. The Equality Act looks to address those areas of discrimination.

President Trump has claimed he's "done very well" by the LGBTQ community, but GLAAD counts more than 124 anti-LGBTQ policy and rhetorical attacks from the Trump Administration. Trump has withdrawn an Obama directive on treatment of transgender students, reinstated a ban — which Obama had ended — on transgender people serving in the military, and stripped anti-discrimination protections for LGBTQ people in the Affordable Care Act. In August, the Justice Department stated that federal anti-discrimination workplace protections do not cover sexual orientation or gender identity.

In Colorado, we fought and succeeded in passing comprehensive non-discrimination protections based on someone’s real or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity in areas of housing, employment, or public accommodations. However, more than half of LGBTQ Americans live in 29 states without those protections. The Equality Act has passed out of the House and is now awaiting a vote in the Senate. And Senator Cory Gardner is a critical vote there.

Sign the petition calling on Senator Cory Gardner to support The Equality Act. Now is the time for explicit and consistent national nondiscrimination protections for LGBTQ Americans.

My very best,
John

P.S. Also, One Colorado has asked me to invite you all to join them at Blush & Blu on Friday, September 20th at 6 PM for a free LGBTQ Forum Watch Party. You can find the Facebook event here.

Paid for by John Walsh for Colorado