| | | | | | | | Senate Judiciary Committee holds confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominee Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson; vote expected week of April 4th. The Judiciary Committee held confirmation hearings for Judge Jackson the week of March 21 and has announced that a vote to report Judge Jackson’s nomination to the Senate floor will be held on Monday, April 4. Justice Thomas pressured to recuse himself from election cases. It was recently revealed through text messages that Justice Thomas’s wife, Ginni, sent to former White House Chief of Staff, Mark Meadows, that Ginni supported overturning the 2020 election. This revelation has led to calls from lawmakers that Justice Thomas should recuse himself from future cases involving the 2020 election or the January 6th insurrection. Lawsuit Filed in Federal Court challenging constitutionality of Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” law. Three families with LGBTQ+ kids are plaintiffs in the lawsuit, represented by the National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR) and the law firm Kaplan Hecker & Fink, and joined by LGBTQ+ advocacy groups Equality Florida and Family Equality as organizational plaintiffs. Federal Judge rules that clerk who denied marriage licenses to same-sex couples violated Constitution. In 2015, former Rowan County, Kentucky Clerk Kim Davis refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples based on her religious beliefs. A federal judge recently ruled that this violated the couples’ constitutional rights. Supreme Court refuses to hear LGBTQ+ hiring discrimination case. The Supreme Court will not review a case from 2017 in which the Washington Supreme Court ruled in support of a bisexual lawyer who sued Seattle’s Union Gospel Mission for declining to hire her. This means that, for now, religious organizations cannot discriminate against LGBTQ+ applicants when hiring. Texas Court of Appeals reinstates injunction against investigations of parents of trans children. The American Civil Liberties Union and Lambda Legal filed a motion to reinstate the earlier injunction based on a lawsuit from the families of transgender teens. The Texas Third District Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the motion, supporting the earlier ruling that the the directive from Governor Abbott to investigate the parents of transgender children for child abuse was unconstitutional. | | | |  | | | White House celebrates Trans Day of Visibility by hosting trans kids and their families, including PFLAG families. Yesterday, March 31st, in recognition of Transgender Day of Visibility, Vice President Kamala Harris, Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff, and Admiral Rachel Levine welcomed six transgender and non-binary youth and their families to the White House. The families were joined by advocates from transgender and LGBTQ+ rights groups, including Diego Sanchez, PFLAG National Director of Advocacy, Policy, and Partnerships, and surprise guests including Jeopardy! champ Amy Schneider. The afternoon of celebration was the first time a Presidential administration has hosted an official event to mark this day of awareness and celebration of transgender and non-binary people. For more information about this historic event, including photos of the families, please read PFLAG National’s press release. Biden administration releases proclamation of upcoming pro-LGBTQ+ executive actions in honor of Trans Day of Visibility. These measures include adding a new “X” gender marker on passports and making it easier to change gender markers for social security and other government documents. President Biden signs Emmett Till Anti-Lynching Act into law. Lynching is now a federal crime, after several attempts to pass similar legislation since Reconstruction failed. Vice President Harris remarked at the signing ceremony that "Racial acts of terror still occur in our nation. And when they do, we must all have the courage to name them and hold the perpetrators to account.” PFLAGers advocated strongly for this bill. Representatives from the Biden administration meet with LGBTQ+ students and families from Florida. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona and Assistant Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine met with Florida LGBTQ+ students and their families to reassure them of the Biden administration’s support in the wake of the state’s passage of the “Don’t Say Gay” bill. U.S. provides support to LGBTQ+ groups in Eastern Europe. Jessica Stern, U.S. Special Envoy to Advance the Human Rights of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer and Intersex (LGBTQI+) Persons, stated that her office will continue providing support for LGBTQ+ people in Ukraine and from surrounding countries as well. Almost 80% of Americans support laws protecting LGBTQ+ people from discrimination. According to a recent poll conducted by the Public Religious Research Institute, about 80% of Americans support laws that would protect LGBTQ+ people from discrimination in employment, public accomodations, and housing. Around 41% strongly support these nondiscrimination laws. There is also widespread support amongst most major religious groups in the US. | | | | | In the last year, we’ve seen a marked rise in anti-LGBTQ+ action in state and local governments. Many states are introducing legislation targeting trans youth, and local schools and libraries are being pressured into censoring LGBTQ+ history and stories. Visit pflag.org/protecttranskids to take action against anti-trans bills in your state today. We also encourage you to join our #ReadWithLove campaign and fight censorship by: Want to take action and not sure where to start? Please contact Patrick Cochran, Advocacy and Policy Engagement Senior Coordinator. Alabama - New bill would criminalize gender-affirming care for minors. SB184, also known as the “Alabama Vulnerable Child Compassion and Protection Act,” would outlaw doctors from providing any gender-affirming services to minors under the age of 19. The bill was approved by the Senate and the House Judiciary Committee, and now awaits a full House vote. Arizona - Two bills intended to curb transgender rights signed by Governor. One bill (SB 1138) prohibits gender reassignment surgery on minors and the other (SB 1165) bans transgender athletes from playing on girls’ sports teams. California - Lawmakers to introduce bill that would provide legal refuge to displaced transgender youth. Democratic legislators in California intend to introduce a bill that would prevent the enforcement of out-of-state judgments removing trans youth from their parents who allow them to receive gender-affirming healthcare. Georgia - LGBTQ advisory committee formed in Fulton County. The Fulton County DA’s office has created an LGBTQ+ advisory committee intended to make the LGBTQ+ community feel safer reporting crime to law enforcement. Indiana - Republican Governor Eric Holcomb vetoes trans athlete ban. The governor vetoed the bill (HEA 1041) that would have banned transgender girls from playing school sports, claiming it would likely be challenged in court and also questioning whether it was a solution in search of a problem. Iowa - Iowa City Schools oppose trans sports ban with a resolution. The Iowa City school board passed the resolution, saying that the law is an attack on civil rights. The district says that it will continue to support and protect its LGBTQ+ students. Kansas - Senate passes anti-trans sports bill. SB 484 would prevent transgender students from participating in gendered school sports that match their gender identity. The Kansas Senate also passed a similar bill, SB208, earlier this session. Both bills are now in the House awaiting hearings. Louisiana - Louisiana version of “Don’t Say Gay” bill would ban discussion of sexual orientation or gender identity in K-8 classrooms. HB837 would completely ban discussions of sexual orientation or gender identity in classrooms from kindergarten through eighth grade. Massachusetts - Boston establishes Office of LGBTQ Advancement. Mayor Michelle Wu announced the creation of the office, intended to empower and protect LGBTQ+ residents of Boston. The Mayor is currently searching for an executive director for the new office. New Jersey - Passaic students stage walkout over Pride flag. The walkout was in protest of a new board of education policy prohibiting the display of the LGBTQ+ Pride flag for Pride month. New York - Mayor Eric Adams removes recent appointee over anti-LGBTQ+ writings. Although he has refused to remove his other three controversial appointees, Adams has removed Rev. Kathlyn Barrett-Layne from the Panel for Educational Policy after learning of a book she wrote in which she called homosexuality a sin, equating it to pedophilia, stealing, and lying. Texas - Superintendent removes 130 books with LGBTQ+ content from school libraries. The superintendent of the Granbury Independent School District reportedly met with librarians earlier in the year about concerns over LGBTQ+ books, echoing anti-LGBTQ+ talking points against them, and explicitly instructing them to remove books related to transgender, LGBTQ people, and sexuality. After an online petition from students, the school board instead voted to change a policy requiring that contested books stay available during review by committee so that officials can now remove the books from circulation while they assess their appropriateness for students. Utah - Lawmakers vote to override Governor’s veto of trans sports ban. The legislature had the necessary two-thirds of its members supporting the veto override. The law will ban transgender athletes from plaing on girls’ sports teams. | | | | | | | | | | PFLAG National partners with Have A Gay Day on national billboard campaign, spreading messages of love nationwide. So far, over 200 billboards are up in states across the country, with messages such as “You are Loved” and “Be careful who you hate, it could be someone you love.” These messages have now been placed over 150,000 times. The campaign is in response to the various anti-LGBTQ+ sentiments currently influencing American politics, and includes PFLAG National state-specific websites that direct viewers to local chapters, support resources, and partner organizations. Ariana DeBose becomes the first Afro Latina and openly queer actor of color to win an Oscar. DeBose won the award for Best Supporting Actress for her revival of the role of Anita in the recent adaptation of West Side Story. Elliot Page reveals Umbrella Academy character will come out as transgender. Since Page came out as transgender, there has been speculation about what would happen with his character on the hit show. It has been revealed that the new season of The Umbrella Academy will introduce Viktor Hargreeves as a transgender character, allowing Page to play a character of his own gender on the show. ESPN announcers have moment of silence in protest of Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill. Two announcers during the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament stayed silent for two minutes to stand in solidarity with their colleagues protesting Florida’s discriminatory bill. Seattle Pride will no longer keep Amazon as a sponsor. The nonprofit group, which organizes the Seattle Pride Parade, issued a statement expressing concern over Amazon’s donations to anti-LGBTQ+ politicians and its fundraising for anti-LGBTQ+ groups. | | | | | | The PFLAG National Advocacy, Policy, and Partnerships Team is always here to support you with your work, so please don't ever hesitate to reach out to us for assistance. Yours in PFLAG power, | | | |  | Diego M. Sanchez, APR
Director of Advocacy, Policy & Partnerships
Pronouns: He, Him, His
Email: [email protected] | | |  | Patrick Cochran
Advocacy and Policy Engagement Senior Coordinator
Pronouns: He, Him, His
Email: [email protected] | | | | | | | |
