Diversity Rules Magazine

5 Diversity Rules Magazine January 2020 of LGBTQ Americans; 8) Inmates must be housed as per their biological sex at birth; 9) Filed briefs with the Supreme Court sta ng its support for the firing of LGBTQ Americans from their jobs in prepara on of the Court's up- coming hearing on October 8th; 10) Trump's proposed budget calls for 2 billion in cuts from HIV spending; 11) Banned government-fund- ed stem cell research as it re- lates to finding a cure for HIV/ AIDS; 12) Removed sexual orienta on from the Department of the Inte- rior's non-discrimina on policy. 13) Recommended countless nomina- ons to the federal bench who are toxic to LGBTQ rights, and who have been confirmed by the Senate. Addi onally, it should be noted that the Democrat- ic-controlled House of Representa ves has passed a slew of pro-LGBTQ legisla on that has been sent to the GOP controlled US Senate for its considera on, namely the Equality Act that would explicitly ban LGBTQ discrimina on na onwide. These bills are in the Senate death chamber and will not see the light of day, unfortunately. If legisla ve persecu on by our own federal govern- ment isn't enough, how about that which emanates from various state legislatures. Let's take a look at some of the horrid and demeaning legisla ve ini a- ves that have come out of the states since Trump was elected, as well as in 2019, specifically. 1) Rollbacks of various non-discrimina on ordinanc- es; 2) Ballot measures that seek to do harm to our transgender community; 3) Legisla on to coin gay marriages as "parody mar- riages," that relegates gay unions to irrelevance; 4) A number of "No Promo Homo" laws that ban teaching LGBTQ history in schools; 5) A slew of proposed religious exemp on laws that would in effect ins tu onalize LGBTQ discrimina- on; 6) Laws that target gay adop ons by pro- viding for a religious exemp on to deny applica ons by LGBTQ parents; 7) Bathroom bills to discriminate against transgender people; 8) Legalizing conversion thera- py. I could go on and on with other legisla ve ini a ves that have been proposed and will be re- introduced in state legislatures across the na on this coming year that seek to do harm to LGBTQ ci - zens. We can take comfort in the knowledge that many of these ini a ves have not seen the light of day be- cause of the backlash from those of us who support equality, and have an intense distaste for legisla ng discrimina on. Many states, in fact, have also taken proac ve steps to support the LGBTQ community with laws that have banned conversion therapy and mandated the teaching of LGBTQ history in their educa onal curriculums. More must be done! We must all keep the faith and stand guard against these despicable ini a ves that seek to relegate LG- BTQ ci zens to second class or no class status. We have the power of the ballot box at our disposal. We must u lize it fiercely and not abdicate our duty to ensure all ci zens are treated fairly in this coun- try. Much of this move to discriminate against LGBTQ ci zens is directly related to Trump's Electoral Col- lege win. Donald Trump has empowered the worst elements of our society and has enabled them to express their vile hatred against those who they deem unfit to be "true" Americans. They have be- come quite open about their prejudice and bigotry, and seem to not care if their true colors shine Queer - Con't on page 16

• Cover