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TRANS HISTORY IN THE U.S. SENATE!
[link removed] [[link removed]]This week, the U.S. Senate voted to confirm Dr. Rachel Levine as Assistant Secretary for Health [[link removed]] ! Dr. Levine makes history as the first out trans person ever confirmed by the Senate [[link removed]] .
Upon her confirmation, Dr. Levine issued the following statement, writing a special message to America’s trans youth. You can read her full statement here [[link removed]] .
As Victory Institute’s Executive Director Ruben Gonzales said to Harrisburg’s CBS 21 , we know this historic moment is just the beginning. Watch the full interview here [[link removed]] !
THE BATTLE FOR EQUALITY
The Equality Act has now reached the U.S. Senate, where the Judiciary Committee held their first hearing. U.S. Senate Tammy Baldwin testified during the hearing and urged the Senate to pass the Equality Act [[link removed]] .
Other LGBTQ leaders, including U.S. Congressman Mark Pocan [[link removed]] , U.S. Congressman Mark Takano [[link removed]] and Delaware state Senator Sarah McBride [[link removed]] celebrated as Stella Keating, a young trans woman, testified in front of the Committee.
U.S. Congressman Ritchie Torres reiterated the need to protect millions of LGBTQ Americans from housing and education discrimination – and how passing the Equality Act would do that [[link removed]] .
After U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville attempted to attach an anti-trans amendment to the COVID-19 relief bill, our out trans state legislators celebrated the amendment’s defeat. Read statements from Virginia Delegate Danica Roem [[link removed]] , Colorado Representative Brianna Titone [[link removed]] , Kansas state Representative Stephanie Byers [[link removed]] , New Hampshire state Representative Gerri Cannon [[link removed]] and Vermont state Representative Taylor Small [[link removed]] .
In Georgia, state Senator Kim Jackson spoke out against the legislature’s efforts to ban transgender student athletes [[link removed]] .
VICTORY AROUND THE WORLD
Gahela Cari , only the second out transgender woman to run for Congress in Peru, spoke with International Programs Manager Mateo de la Torre about her historic campaign, co-founding a political party, and the continued fight for trans liberation. Read their full conversation here [[link removed]] .
Mexico is also taking steps forward in increasing trans representation: two trans activists have been nominated for Governor of Zacatecas and Federal Deputy positions [[link removed]] .
Victory Institute is proud to partner with the Global Equality Caucus for “Lawmakers for LGBTQ+ Equality: North America and the Caribbean” . Presented by the Global Equality Caucus and supported by Google, it is an online digital series where elected representatives connect with civil society and members of the LGBTQ community to discuss the issues that matter. Not only do they give LGBTQ people a voice during uncertain times, but these events also mobilize legislators to take action and report the issues to their national governments, parliaments and in international conferences. Register today and join us on March 31st at 7PM ET [[link removed]] !
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REPRESENTATION IS POWER
U.S. Representative Sharice Davids sat down with President Joe Biden to discuss America’s infrastructure and potential legislation to improve America’s highways and byways [[link removed]] .
California state Senator Scott Wiener has introduced legislation to repeal the state’s “Walking While Trans” ban [[link removed]] , stating “it’s really a law that has no reason to exist.” [[link removed]]
Florida state Senator Shevrin Jones is pushing for legislation to address urban violence and rising gun violence, passing his first piece of legislation on the matter through committee [[link removed]] .
Delaware State Senator Sarah McBride chaired her first committee - Senate Health and Social Services [[link removed]] – and passed her first Senate bill this month [[link removed]] !
Nebraska state Senator Megan Hunt has designated three priority bills for upcoming floor debate. Learn which three bills she’ll be fighting for in the upcoming session [[link removed]] !
We couldn’t agree more with this headline from Denver CBS Local : state Representative Leslie Herod is a force of nature at the state capitol [[link removed]] .
Colorado state Representative David Ortiz is wasting no time, introducing legislation to prohibit discrimination in decisions regarding eligibility and coverage for organ transplant patients, adopt Title II of the federal ADA law and bring the state in compliance with the federal law [[link removed]] AND enshrine equality in Colorado’s marijuana industry [[link removed]] .
Kansas state Representatives Brandon Woodard, Susan Ruiz and Stephanie Byer introduced legislation to repeal the legal bans on marriage equality in the state [[link removed]] .
Pennsylvania state Representative Malcolm Kenyatta has introduced legislation to combat gun violence – and is urging his fellow lawmakers to pass the bill [[link removed]] .
Legislating as a member of the minority is never easy, but Arizona state Representative Andrés Cano is still finding ways to lead. Read his full interview with The Advocate here [[link removed]] !
Vermont state Representative Taylor Small is leading the charge to repeal the state’s LGBTQ panic defense [[link removed]] .
THE NEXT GENERATION
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LGBTQ Victory Institute is a tax-exempt organization as described in Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code; EIN 52-1835268.
Victory Institute is a global organization dedicated to elevating openly LGBTQ leaders who can further equality at all levels of government. Through our international [[link removed]] and domestic [[link removed]] trainings, professional development programs [[link removed]] and yearly conferences [[link removed]] , Victory Institute prepares hundreds of out individuals to launch an influential careers in politics, government, business and advocacy. Many of our trainees join the more than 1,000 openly LGBTQ elected and appointed officials [[link removed]] now serving around the world. You can power our work and the next Rainbow Wave with a donation today [[link removed]] !
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