Dear John, In 1972, Jeanne Manford’s voice was one not yet heard by advocates for LGBTQ+ equality. She was the mother of a gay son, and she had had enough of the harassment, violence, and discrimination her child faced, every day -- simply for being himself. Jeanne marched proudly in the streets of New York by her son Morty Manford’s side, demanding equality and justice for her son, and with a call to action for other parents to do the same for their LGBTQ+ kids. With that one loving act, she became the Mother of a modern ally movement of parents, family members, friends, and colleagues in support of LGBTQ+ people. Nine months later, emboldened by her son’s advocacy and courage, and moved to further action by LGBTQ+ people asking her to speak to their parents, Jeanne convened the first gathering of parents, families, and friends of LGBTQ+ people in the basement of a church in New York. PFLAG was born, and has saved hundreds of thousands of lives -- and kept hundreds of thousands of families together -- ever since. On December 4th, we will honor the 100th birthday of PFLAG founder Jeanne Manford, and what better way to do that than to support PFLAG for Giving Tuesday, on December 1st. We’ve set a big goal this year: $100,000. Will you please make an early Giving Tuesday gift to PFLAG National and help us reach our goal? | |
We’ve come a long way in the nearly 50 years that PFLAG has been on the frontlines fighting for equality. Same-sex couples now legally marry; the Supreme Court ruled that workplace protections now include sexual orientation and gender identity; and in communities, cities, and states across the country, we’ve helped pass anti-discrimination ordinances and legal protection against harmful practices such as so-called conversion therapy But here’s the tough truth: We have a long way to go to ensure full protections in housing, public accommodations, education, and much more for our LGBTQ+ loved ones. We also have a lot of work ahead of us to undo the last four years of harm. We must return to our advocacy roots -- started with the single step of a fiercely driven mother -- to pass the Equality Act, and ensure that our LGBTQ+ loved ones will be safe, secure, and protected. And we must ensure that the PFLAG families on the front lines of changing hearts and minds through advocacy are resourced with everything they need as they share their stories with legislators. I’m confident we can do this -- PFLAG’s done it before -- but we need you to make it happen Honor the 100th birthday of our founder -- and the ally movement for LGBTQ+ equality -- by helping us get a head start on our $100,000 #GivingTuesday goal. | |
Thank you for considering an early gift -- I’m grateful to you. With thanks, Brian K. Bond Executive Director, PFLAG National | |