By Laura “Pinky” Reinsch, Political Director, One Colorado
A bill to continue the Colorado Civil Rights Division (CCRD), which protects ALL Coloradans from discrimination in housing, employment, and public spaces, will soon be voted on by every member of the Colorado House.
The CCRD speaks to Colorado’s long, proud history of standing up for civil rights. The General Assembly passed the Colorado Anti-Discrimination Act in 1951 – 13 years before the Civil Rights Act was passed – and just a few years later, we established the Colorado Civil Rights Division and Civil Rights Commission.
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In a season filled with fierce lip-sync battles, sickening runway looks and one of the most shocking eliminations in “Drag Race” history, Trixie Mattel was crowned the season three winner of VH1’s “RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars.” Trixie Mattel earned the title of “America’s Next Drag Superstar,” $100,000 cash and joined the coveted “Drag Race Hall of Fame.”
“ConDRAGulations to the unstoppable Trixie Mattel,” said executive producer and host RuPaul. “You have more than earned your place in the ‘Drag Race Hall of Fame.’ And to Kennedy, Shangela and Bebe, you have earned my deepest respect for giving your all and fighting your way to the top. You’re all winners, baby.”
“Thanks World of Wonder, VH1 and RuPaul for featuring us as artists AND as human beings,” said Trixie Mattel. “Thank you to my audience. Being Trixie Mattel for you gives my life a sparkly pink purpose. Thank you to my Grandpa Ed for teaching me to play guitar! And for teaching me that being a performer is 40% how good you are, 60% how good you look doing it. And to quote one of the greats, ‘NOW AVAILABLE ON ITUNES.’”
Fourteen new Queens ready to slay the competition will join RuPaul on Thursday, March 22 at 8:00 PM ET/PT for the milestone 10th season of “RuPaul’s Drag Race.” The season will consist of 90-minute episodes and will be followed by Emmy® Award-nominated after-show “RuPaul's Drag Race: Untucked” at 9:30 PM ET/PT. For a look at the new season, click HERE.
Beginning Friday, March 16 at 8:00 PM ET/PT, Logo will turn it up to ten with a seven-day, non-stop “RuPaul’s Drag Race” marathon, all leading up to the 10th season premiere on VH1 on Thursday, March 22nd at 8:00 PM ET/PT. In addition to fan-favorite “Drag Race” and “All Stars” seasons and specials, the week-long stunt will feature exclusive “Meet the Queens” interstitials to introduce fans to this season’s competitors.
St. Patrick’s Day is just a couple days away, and Barefoot wants to offer some fun cocktail alternatives that will add a little flavor to your St. Patty’s Day parade viewing or just celebrating the luck of the Irish with your friends:
Barefoot’s Pinch Me Prosecco – This is the perfect Bubbly cocktail to celebrate the holiday. Made up of chilled Barefoot Bubbly Prosecco, lime juice, simple syrup and a lime wheel as garnish, this sparkling delight make those that don’t have it green with envy. Find the full recipe here.
Lambda Literary is proud to announce open submissions for the 2nd Annual Lambda LitFest LA happening Saturday, September 29, 2018 through Saturday, October 6, 2018. Lambda LitFest is a Los Angeles County wide festival featuring readings, workshops, pop-up events, entertainment and timely discussions about LGBTQ literature and publishing.
Lambda Literary are currently seeking literary programming proposals for the Week of LitFest events. These events will be curated by the community and will take place between Sunday, September 30, 2018 and Friday, October 5, 2018. They will occur throughout the greater Los Angeles area at venues secured by proposed parties. All programming should embrace the racial, ethnic, gender, dis/ability, socioeconomic, and geographic diversity of our LGBTQ LA communities.
Your proposal can be for a reading, a workshop, a Literary Death Match type competition, etc. Get creative with it and have fun! To see a list of last year's Week of LitFest events click here.
Yesterday, the National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR) and GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders (GLAD) filed a friend-of-the-court brief urging the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit to find that sexual orientation discrimination violates Title VII of the 1964 federal Civil Rights Act because it is a form of sex discrimination.
The brief argues that earlier court decisions dating back to the 1970s, which barred lesbian and gay people from bringing employment discrimination claims under Title VII, have led to what the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals called a “confused hodge-podge of cases.” That exclusion has caused lower courts to reach inconsistent results and erected unique barriers to sex discrimination claims by lesbian, gay, and bisexual people that other employees do not face.
The case, titled Horton v. Midwest Geriatric Management, LLC, was brought by Mark Horton, who was offered a job as Vice President of Sales and Marketing, only to have the offer withdrawn after the company learned he had a same-sex partner. A U.S. district court in Missouri dismissed his Title VII claim based on a case from the 1980s stating that Title VII does not protect lesbian, gay, and bisexual people from discrimination. Horton is represented by Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund.
“It’s impossible to discriminate against someone based on their sexual orientation without also discriminating against them based on their sex,” said NCLR Senior Staff Attorney Christopher Stoll. “For too many years, courts have suffered through the artificial and ultimately pointless exercise of trying to determine whether the discrimination and harassment faced by lesbian, gay, and bisexual workers on the job was because of their sexual orientation or because of their sex. That outdated and unworkable approach leads to unfair and inconsistent treatment of workers and unpredictable results for employers. It should be replaced with a clear rule that is faithful to the clear language of Title VII, which is that sexual orientation discrimination always involves sex discrimination.”
"It's common sense that Title VII includes protections for lesbian, gay, and bisexual people when it forbids employment discrimination because of sex," said GLAD Legal Director Gary Buseck. "Title VII has long forbade discrimination based on gender stereotyping, and sexual orientation is the ultimate case of failure of conform to gender stereotypes about the proper roles of men and women. In addition, you simply can't define a person's sexual orientation without identifying their sex."
Within the past year, two federal courts of appeals, the New York-based Second Circuit and the Chicago-based Seventh Circuit, have overruled their previous precedent barring lesbian and gay people who experience workplace discrimination from bringing claims under Title VII. A favorable decision by the Eighth Circuit would extend federal sexual orientation nondiscrimination protections to workers in Arkansas, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota, joining workers in Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, New York, Connecticut, Vermont, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, who already enjoy those protections because of the recent decisions.
Next month, folks in Anchorage, Alaska will have the opportunity to reject discrimination against transgender and gender non-conforming people by keeping their non-discrimination law intact. Proposition 1 would strip away rights and protections from transgender and gender non-conforming residents in public spaces; but with your help, the people of Anchorage can stop this attack in its tracks
In 2015, fair-minded people in Anchorage worked tirelessly to make sure the City Council passed a law to treat LGBTQ people equally in employment, housing, public spaces and more. Now, those opposed to fairness want to bring discrimination back. The good news is, that you can help stop this attempt to roll back protections from the comfort of your own home!
Consider joining volunteers nationwide to make calls from home to connect with folks in Anchorage, answer their questions, share the harm that Prop 1 will cause if passed, and make sure supporters of fairness and equality turn out and vote. Once you sign up, our friends at Fair Anchorage and NEAT, the National Equality Action Team, will provide all the training and resources you need to be successful.
Colorado Greens express outrage over the indefinite postponement of HB 18-1067, the Colorado Right to Rest Act, yesterday in the State House Local Government committee, effectively killing the bill via procedural motion. House Democrats were split over the motion to indefinitely suspend the bill.
“The Colorado Democratic Party’s 2016 platform opposes criminalization of resting in public places,” stated state party co-chair Andrea Merida. “Too many Coloradans live one paycheck away from economic catastrophe and subsequent homelessness. How long must they wait until the Colorado Democratic Party prioritizes basic human rights and withholds nominations of electeds who repeatedly ignore this moral imperative?”
HB 18-1067 would have established basic rights for persons experiencing homelessness, including the right to exist and rest in public spaces, to eat or accept food in any public space where food is not prohibited, to occupy a legally parked vehicle, and to have a reasonable expectation of privacy of one’s property. State Representatives Dan Pabon (D – HD 4), Paul Rosenthal (D – HD 9), Donald Valdez (D – HD 62) and Matt Gray (D – HD 33) chose to break with their party’s platform and vote with House Republicans to kill the bill in committee.
“Two hundred thirty seven people died on the streets in Denver in 2017, an increase of nearly 25 percent from 2016, and any deaths of homeless residents that die between now and the next hearing will to be on their hands. The legislature must act to guarantee basic human rights to all.” said Dave Bell, co-chair, Green Party of Colorado.
The Green Party of Colorado expresses gratitude and solidary with bill sponsors Jovan Melton (D – HD 41) and Joseph Salazar (D – HD 31) for their repeated advocacy on behalf of this proposed legislation, as well as Local Government committee members Tony Exum, Sr. (D – 17), James Coleman (D – HD 7) and Jonathan Singer (D – HD 11) for their votes against the bill’s indefinite postponement.
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While some politicians have made it clear they want to weaken the Division’s ability to defend civil rights – including a move by some Republicans to block its funding – our community has made our voices heard to defend the CCRD and ensure it continues as it was established in 1951.
Some lawmakers want to make changes or water down the Division. Your gift will show those in the Capitol that our community doesn’t want the CCRD to be changed, weakened, or watered down. I ask you: please stand up for civil rights and click the button below to chip in $19.51.
The first episode of Drag Babies is up and running! Produced in partnership with MAC Cosmetics at YouTube Space New York, the unscripted series follows three Instagram influencers as they learn what it takes to be a drag superstar. Guided by a MAC pro artist and their “Drag Mother”, each participant tucks, plucks and struts their way to discovering the glamorous queen inside each of them.
The video series features Bob the Drag Queen as the host; Miss Peppermint, Chi Chi DeVayne and Shuga Cain as the Drag Mothers; and Emerson, Pablo Hernandez and Johnny Sibilly as the “Drag Babies”. The series is created by Preston Sadleir and produced by Emerson, Robb Nanus and Taylor Orear.
NMAC has opened the eighth cycle of the Youth Initiative program to train future leaders in the fight against the HIV epidemic. The seven-month program is open to applicants ages 18-25. Youth living with HIV or on PrEP, LGBTQ, youth of color, and young cis & trans women are particularly encouraged to apply. For more information or to apply, visit the NMAC website. Applications are due by April 10.
The Youth Initiative provides unique leadership and learning opportunities through online webinars, peer-to-peer networking, and advocacy training. Youth Scholars will also have the opportunity to be paired with a mentor to support their success throughout the program and will be able to attend a special training session at the U.S. Conference on AIDS (USCA) in Orlando, FL, in September.
“NMAC is committed to building the new generation of leaders for the HIV movement,” said Paul Kawata, NMAC’s Executive Director. “The Youth Initiative identifies and trains 30 young scholars each year to engage in their local communities and work to address the epidemic and advocate for local people living with and impacted by HIV locally. That is how we make lasting and positive change: by engaging on the local level all across the country.”
“Young people are not only the next wave of leaders in the HIV movement, but are essential leaders today,” said Marc Meachem, Head of External Affairs at ViiV Healthcare. “The Youth Initiative helps young leaders sharpen their tools, learn from one another, and be supported as they take on bold new projects and roles in the fight against HIV. We are proud to support the Youth Initiative for the eighth year as young people continue to push the movement forward.”
“We’ve seen in recent weeks what energized activist youth can accomplish,” said Linda Scruggs, Director of NMAC’s Leadership Pipeline program, which operates the Youth Initiative. “The Youth Initiative taps engages up-and-coming leaders in the HIV movement and empowers them to take the reins as long-term leaders begin to step away from the field. We want to ensure that the next generation of HIV leaders has the tools they need to succeed.”
