News

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Transgender Law Center and Equality California Institute Launch Coalition to Educate Public on Transgender Issues

Transgender Law Center and Equality California Institute are launching a coalition to implement a statewide public education campaign to combat widespread public misunderstanding about transgender and gender nonconforming people and the issues they face. The coalition will include other LGBT and civil rights organizations as well as groups serving communities of color and the faith community. The effort is independent of work on any political or legislative campaign and exists solely to change attitudes towards transgender Californians through research and education. “These past few years have seen a tremendous increase in visibility for the transgender community that hasn’t necessarily been […]

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Greenland’s Parliament Has Unanimously Approved Same-sex Marriage and Adoption

MPs in the country, which has a population of 57,000, voted to adopt Danish legislation on the issue. Two MPs were absent, but none voted against the measure. The new measure will now scrap Greenland’s domestic partnership laws, adopted from Denmark in 1996. The bill to make the changes to bring Greenland in line with Denmark, which legalised same-sex marriage in 2012, was announced in February. Going into effect on 1 October 2015, the new law also grants adoption rights to same-sex couples, say reports. Greenland in 2008 introduced discrimination protection for gay people, and in 2010 held its first […]

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California Wants To Stop Crisis Pregnancy Centers From Lying To Women

  Elected officials in California — including the attorney general — are urging the passage of a statewide measure that will help patients make fully informed decisions about their reproductive health care. The proposed legislation would specifically crack down on unlicensed “crisis pregnancy centers” (CPCs) that present misleading health information designed to dissuade women from choosing abortion. At a press conference this week, Attorney General Kamala Harris pointed out that California prides itself on being a leader in the field of reproductive health policy. But she said the state could still do more to ensure that “women are empowered to […]

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California Assembly Passes Equal Protection for All Families Act with Unanimous Vote

The Equal Protection for All Families Act, authored by Assemblymember David Chiu and co-sponsored by Equality California, the National Center for Lesbian Rights, and Our Family Coalition, passed the California Assembly yesterday with unanimous support. The bill updates California assisted reproduction laws to help ensure that all families are protected equally under California law. AB 960, the Equal Protection For All Families Act, updates the state’s assisted reproduction laws to ensure all couples using assisted reproduction are fully recognized as parents as intended. Specifically, AB 960 would allow unmarried people using assisted reproduction to be fully recognized as parents on […]

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Assemblymembers Join EQCA in Urging FDA to Develop New Blood Donation Policies

On May 14, AJR 16, authored by Assemblymembers Richard Bloom, Eduardo Garcia and Evan Low and sponsored by Equality California, was introduced in the State Assembly in response to the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) new blood donor guidelines that continue to discriminate against gay and bisexual men. The new proposed FDA guidelines would continue to prohibit blood donation from all sexually active gay and bisexual men. Specifically, all men who have had sex with another man within the past 12 months would be prohibited from donating blood. The resolution calls on President Barack Obama to encourage the Secretary of […]

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Does the UK now Have the Most LGBT Elected MPs in the World?

According to new research, the number of LGBT MPs elected to the House of Commons today means the UK has the most in the world. The research makes the claim, although there are actually no out trans MPs in the UK. Research from the LGBT Representation and Rights Research Initiative from the University of North Carolina, found that one more LGBT MP was elected to the Commons today than before dissolution in March. The study from Professor Andrew Reynolds suggests the UK now technically has the most LGBT MPs in the world, although there are no openly trans members. Professor Reynolds […]

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Asm. Chiu’s Equal Protection for All Families Passes First Committee

Yesterday, AB 960, authored by Assemblymember David Chiu (D—San Francisco) and co-sponsored by Equality California, passed out of the Assembly Judiciary Committee. The committee voted unanimously to pass the bill, which now moves to the Assembly Floor for a vote at the end of May. The bill would update California’s assisted reproduction laws to help ensure that all families are equally protected by law. AB 960, the Equal Protection For All Families Act, co-sponsored by Equality California, the National Center for Lesbian Rights, and Our Family Coalition, ensures all couples using assisted reproduction are fully recognized as parents as intended. […]

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LGBT Disparities Reduction Act Passes First Committee

The Assembly Accountability and Administrative Review Committee on April 30 voted with bi-partisan support to pass Assemblymember David Chiu’s Assembly Bill 959, a bill that would move California public policy closer towards meeting the needs of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) communities. “Excluding LGBT communities from statewide collected data keeps these individuals and the health disparities they face invisible to the state,” said Assemblymember David Chiu. “AB 959 will ensure that our LGBT communities count.” AB 959, the LGBT Disparities Reduction Act, is sponsored by Equality California (EQCA) and requires specified state agencies relating to health and well-being […]

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The Occidental Community Choir Will Be “Riding the Waves” During May Concerts

The  Occidental  Community  Choir  presents  “Riding  the  Waves,”  an  eclectic  concert  of   lyrical,  heartfelt  songs  that  will  take  you  on  a  journey  from  the  silly  to  the  sublime.    The   Greek  philosopher  Heraclitus  wrote,  “the  only  thing  constant  is  change.”  Nearly  3000   years  later  it  is  still  true  that  we  must  all  ride  out  our  personal  storms.  The  human  heart   has  the  capacity  to  bear  great  joy,  sorrow  and  longing.     In  keeping  with  their  tradition  of  encouraging  and  presenting  original  works,  most  of  the   concert’s  songs  are  written  by  choir  members.  Steve  Fowler’s […]

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Fire, Floods, Flags: Sonoma County Pride LGBT History in the River

  As former President Richard Milhous Nixon so eloquently put it referring to Monte Rio’s Bohemian Grove “It is the most faggy goddamned thing you could ever imagine. It’s just terrible!” Yes Tricky Dick, the River runs full of us! The new Sonoma County Pride is about much more than just a fun-filled weekend. We want to be a resource for those that need assistance. We are working to make sure that all our Sonoma County residents live in Hate-Free communities. We are working with the county to raise our Human Rights Campaign Municipal Equality Index. We are also working […]

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