Celebrating 43 Years! Issue 46 Volume 45
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Seattle Gay News
DOJ to Seattle: Stop protecting Australia votes in favor immigrants; Jenny Durkan to of marriage equality in DOJ: Drop dead Nonbinding Postal Survey
Australian government needs to take action to ensure marriage equality becomes the law of the land
Jenny Durkan – Photo by Nate Gowdy
by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer The US Department of Justice (DOJ) has warned Seattle that its so-called “sanctuary city” policy may be in violation of federal law and could result in cancellation of federal grants that help pay for law
Jeff Sessions – Photo courtesy of AP
enforcement. In response, Mayor-elect Jenny Durkan issued a strongly worded statement vowing that “our City will fight Trump every step of the way” to defend City policy. King County Executive Dow Constantine and King County Council President
People with their bodies painted participate in an event supporting a “Yes” vote at Sydney’s Tamarama Beach in Australia – Photo courtesy of Reuters / Steven Saphore
see SANCTUARY page 4
Pride Foundation awards more than half a million dollars in grants bolstering LGBTQ communities across the Northwest
see AUSTRALIA page 5
UN member states maintain nondiscrimination based on sexual orientation in Olympic Truce Resolution
Awards $507,000 to organizations in Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington
SEATTLE – [On November 14], the Pride Foundation announced $507,000 in grants to 81 organizations in Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington – investing vital resources into local organizations working to ensure that lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) people and their families can live fully and
safely in their home communities. This year’s award amount is the highest community grants funding total in Pride Foundation history and comes at a time when LGBTQ communities are facing enormous challenges and opportunities at local, state, and federal levels.
see PRIDE GRANTS page 4
Freestyle skiier Gus Kenworthy, who publicly came out as Gay in 2015, hopes to compete as an openly Gay athlete for Team USA in the upcoming Olympic Games in Pyeongchang, South Korea. – Photo by Ezra Shaw / Getty Images
NEW YORK – [On November 13], all 193 United Nations member states adopted the Olympic Truce Resolution maintaining language protecting against discrimination based on sexual orientation. The resolution, which passed by consensus, included the contested reference to nondiscrimina-
tion on grounds of sexual orientation in the Olympic Charter. The nondiscrimination clause is housed in Principle 6 and prohibits discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation at the Olympic Games.
see OLYMPIC TRUCE page 12
2 Seattle Gay News
November 17, 2017
Celebrating 43 Years!
Seattle Gay News FOUNDED 1974 MEMBER
2017
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Deadlines Classifieds | Thursday at Noon Calendar | Tuesday at 6pm Display Ads Space Reservation | Monday at 5pm Ad Copy (non-camera ready) | Tuesday at 5pm Ad Copy (camera-ready) | Wednesday at 5pm Letters to the Editor | Tuesday at 5pm Obituaries | Call the SGN office All others | Tuesday at 5pm
Editor in Chief George Bakan Associate Editor Shaun Knittel Travel Editor George Bakan Copy Editor Rick McKinnon (since Dec 2013) Advertising George Bakan • Maggie Bloodstone MK Scott National Advertising Rep. Rivendell Media (212) 242-6863 Staff Writers Mike Andrew • Sara Michelle Fetters Miryam Gordon • Shaun Knittel Albert Rodriguez Contributing Writers Rev. Barbara Allen • Ron Anders Eric Andrews-Katz • Madelyn Arnold Alice Bloch • Maggie Bloodstone Beau Burriola • Sharon Cumberland Jessica Davis • Tina Gianoulis Anthony Greer • Milton W. Hamlin Nevin Jefferson • Richard Kennedy Liz Meyer • Jason A. Miller Jesse Monteagudo David Nguyen aka Teriyaki Temple Rod Parke • Don Paulson Jerry Peerson • Jessica Price Scott Rice • Leslie Robinson MK Scott • Gaysha Starr Paul Torres • Janice Van Cleve Ed Walsh • James Whitely Scott Wittet • Rex Wockner
Seattle Public Library presents “Carnal Knowledge” on Nov. 18
A performative journey through the history and practice of burlesque
Calendar Editors Mike Andrew • Rick McKinnon Classifieds Rick McKinnon Photographers Nate Gowdy • Joseph P. Herron Shaun Knittel • James Whitely Production Mike Pham Website Designer Barry Thorsness / Digital Team Works Seattle Gay News is published by Frogs and Ink, Inc. © 2017. Frogs and Ink, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Reprints by permission. Publication of names, photographs, or likeness of any person, organization, event or business in this publication cannot be taken as any indication of the sexual orientation of the person, organization, event or business. Opinions expressed in bylined articles, columns, and letters are those of the authors only and do not necessarily reflect the views of the staff or management of this paper. Seattle Gay News welcomes unsolicited material, including letters to the editor, but reserves the right to edit or reject material. All rights revert to authors upon publication. We assume no liability for loss or damage of materials, solicited or not. We invite feedback, please write. And please play safe. It is our policy that no money shall be refunded if you choose to cancel your ad. Credit will be given for the balance owed. No exceptions.
In Loving Memory Of Steve Foiles • Scott Roger Alpert Cookie Andrews-Hunt James Leland Moore Randy Peters • Lee Richeson Shaun Shelton • Jim Tully James Arnold
Watch a kaleidoscopic, performative journey through the history and practice of burlesque from 7pm to 8:30pm Saturday, Nov. 18 at the Timbre Room, 1809 Minor Ave. “Carnal Knowledge” is a burlesque show designed to educate and entertain about the art form of burlesque. The show will explore the forms and functions of the
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art, the local history of burlesque and the idea of audience/performer consent with titillating live performances. Hosted by DonnaTella Howe, performers will include Miss Kitty Baby, The Marquis Façade, Mx. Pucks A’Plenty and more! We’ll have a table where you can sign up for a Library card and check out books on burlesque. We’ll also display vintage
photos of burlesque performers from our Special Collections, featuring performers from Seattle’s World’s Fair. Library programs are free and open to the public. No tickets or RSVPs are required. This event is for ages 21 and over. For more information, call the Library at 206-386-4636 or Ask a Librarian at https://www.spl.org/
November 17, 2017
Seattle Gay News 3
Mayor-Elect Jenny Durkan’s Statement on DOJ’s Threats to Seattle SEATTLE – Following the Department of Justice’s letter from Attorney General Jeff Sessions to Seattle, Mayor-elect Jenny A. Durkan issued the following statement: “This action is both immoral and illegal. It
threatens the safety not just of our immigrant families but of all of Seattle which relies on the police resources they seek to cut. Unfortunately for the Trump administration, multiple federal judges have ruled
that the Department of Justice cannot withholding federal law enforcement aid to sanctuary cities. Seattle is and will continue to be a Sanctuary City, and our City will fight Trump every step of the way against
these illegal attempts to withhold funds. I’ll say it again: Jeff Sessions and Donald Trump keep your hands of Seattle.”
SANCTUARY
withhold federal law enforcement aid to sanctuary cities. Seattle is and will continue to be a Sanctuary City, and our City will fight Trump every step of the way against these illegal attempts to withhold funds. I’ll say it again: Jeff Sessions and Donald Trump, keep your hands off Seattle.” Durkan will take office once the recent election is formally certified on November 28. In the meantime, current mayor Tim Burgess also criticized the administration, noting that the “prevention specialists work with people throughout the city and give advice on how to avoid being a crime victim, how to report crimes that do occur, and how to take proactive steps to improve the physical environment to reduce crime.” “It’s ironic,” Burgess continued, “that a president who says he wants to reduce crime and help crime victims works to remove funding from programs that do exactly that.” “Sanctuary cities” instruct local police not to go out of their way to assist federal immigration authorities to find and detain undocumented immigrants. For example,
Seattle police do not ask people for proof of legal residence in the US even if they are detained for other crimes, and do not hold immigrants for federal authorities absent a specific warrant for their arrest. Seattle first became a sanctuary city in the 1980s to assist refugees fleeing the civil war in El Salvador. In 2003, the City Council passed legislation preventing city employees – including police officers – from asking about individuals’ immigration status.
preliminary injunction in favor of the city.” The ruling comes two weeks after Baylson declared from the bench that the City of Philadelphia substantially complied with the Trump administration’s conditions. “Both the federal government and the city of Philadelphia have important interests at stake here, and the court does not minimize either of their concerns,” the judge wrote. “In this case, given Philadelphia’s unique approach to meshing the legitimate needs of the federal government to remove criminal aliens with the City’s promotion of health and safety, there is no conflict of any significance.” At stake is a relatively small $1.5 million federal grant to a city with a $4.4 billion budget, but the legal principle is huge – whether the Trump administration can compel cities to help deport immigrants by withholding federal grant money. Philadelphia filed suit against Attorney General Jeff Sessions in August.
continued from cover
Joe McDermott received the same warning from the DOJ. Since the Trump administration assumed power in January, it has been US government policy to arrest and deport as many undocumented immigrants as possible, and to threaten uncooperative cities with the loss of federal funds. In its latest letter, the DOJ expressed “concern” about Seattle’s policy and threatened to cancel federal funding for three civilian crime prevention specialists in Seattle’s police department. “This action is both immoral and illegal,” Durkan said in a November 15 statement. “It threatens the safety not just of our immigrant families but of all of Seattle, which relies on the police resources they seek to cut. Unfortunately for the Trump administration, multiple federal judges have ruled that the Department of Justice cannot
PRIDE GRANTS continued from cover
Here are a few highlights of the remarkable grant recipients: • Kachemak Bay Family Planning Clinic R.E.C. Room (Homer, Alaska): For addressing the needs of LGBTQ youth, adults, and families on the southern Kenai Peninsula, including strengthening their peer-taught sexual health and wellness programs for grades 7-12, both in-house and community-based youth programs. • North Idaho Pride Alliance (Post Falls, Idaho): For creating a resource referral network –especially for LGBTQ youth and seniors in North Idaho – including developing education and training programs for mental health services, health care, and senior services providers. • Salish Kootenai College (SKC) – Spirit of Many Colors Gay Straight Alliance (Pablo, Montana): For developing and implementing leadership training for LGBTQA and Two Spirit students to support them as they take on more visible roles on the SKC campus and across the Flathead Reservation. • Immigration Counseling Service (Portland and Hood River, Oregon): For the expansion of legal support for LGBTQ immigrants who are vulnerable to deportation and for expanding outreach for “immigration law 101” trainings within the
LGBTQ community in Oregon and southwestern Washington. • Blue Mountain Heart to Heart (Walla Walla, Washington): For HIV and hepatitis C prevention programs, outreach, and testing services stretching across Eastern and southeastern Washington, and into Oregon. • Queer the Land (Seattle, Washington): For strengthening the organization’s capacity, as it works to develop an LGBTQ people of color–led cooperative network, community center, and transitional housing space. Read a complete list of grantees [at https://www.pridefoundation.org/what-wedo/grants/grantees]. “The number of organizations engaged in critical life-saving and life-affirming work is truly inspiring,” said Kris Hermanns, the Pride Foundation’s chief executive officer. “Today, and since 1985, the Pride Foundation and its partners are committed to supporting and growing this movement – a grassroots movement based in love, courage, and empowering people to be their full selves.” In addition to these community grants, the Pride Foundation awarded a total of nearly $850,000 to impactful organizations and student leaders in Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington in 2017 through [its] scholarship program, sponsorships, Rapid Response Fund, and Donor Advised Grants. Since the foundation began in 1985, the Pride Foundation has awarded more than $70 million to promote the safety, health,
Federal judge blocks DOJ action in Philadelphia In an action that potentially has bearing on Seattle’s situation, a US district judge issued an injunction preventing the DOJ from withholding federal funds from the City of Philadelphia, also a sanctuary city. In a 128-page ruling issued November 15, Judge Michael Baylson wrote that after considering the probability that Philadelphia would win its lawsuit against the DOJ on the merits, and also taking into account the public interest, “the court will issue a
Courtesy of the Office of the Mayor-elect
Congratulations to Pride Foundation grant recipient Immigration Counseling Service (ICS) in Portland / Hood River, OR – Photo courtesy of ICS
and well-being of LGBTQ individuals and families across the Northwest region – with a focus on those who are most impacted by disparities and inequities. The press and members of the public can learn more about year-end events taking place around the region [at www.pridefoundation.org/2017yearendcelebrations]. [The Pride Foundation invites you to celebrate] their accomplishments and important work, which is sparking lasting change across our communities.
Founded in 1985, the Pride Foundation is a regional community foundation serving Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington. Its mission is to inspire giving to expand opportunities and advance full equality for LGBTQ people in the Northwest. Learn more at www.pridefoundation.org. Courtesy of the Pride Foundation
Gay Dodgeball coming to Seattle Hosted by the National Gay Dodgeball League
The National Gay Dodgeball League is hosting an introductory Gay Dodgeball PickUp Game in Seattle on Sunday, November 19 from 11am-1pm at the Yesler Community Center (917 E Yesler Way), ahead of their upcoming 8-week Sunday afternoon league play, which starts December 3. Keith London, Dodgeball Coordinator at GayDodgeball.com, writes: Welcome to Gay Dodgeball – Seattle. We are so excited to be opening a league in Seattle!
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November 17, 2017
Come to our WELCOME ALL PICK UP GAME on Sunday, November 19 from 11am-1pm to play and meet new friends. This will be a great way to try it out and to have fun. It’s only $5 cash per player to play on Sunday, November 19. If you would like to join the league, registration is OPEN at https://www. gaydodgeball.com/seattle.html We are a Sunday afternoon league. The season starts on Dec. 3 at 11am and runs for 8 weeks at the Yesler Community Center.
This event is hosted by the National Gay Dodgeball League, which is a league for the whole LGBTQ+ family. h t t p s : / / w w w. f a c e b o o k . c o m / events/142342439848261/?ti=icl Courtesy of the National Gay Dodgeball League
Celebrating 43 Years!
Faith in America and the Tyler Clementi Foundation join forces to end religious-based bullying Statement from Mitchell Gold, co-founder and co-chair, Faith in America NEW YORK – [On November 13], at The Tyler Clementi Foundation’s Upstander Legacy Celebration, Mitchell Gold, co-founder and co-chair of Faith in America, and Jane Clementi, co-founder and co-chair of the Tyler Clementi Foundation, announced that their organizations will be joining forces to work together to end religious-based bullying. The following is a statement from Mitchell Gold: “Faith in America was founded in 2006 to educate the public about the ongoing harm caused to LGBTQ people, especially youth, by faith-based discrimination. In the early years, leaders and funders in our own LGBTQ communities worked against us because they felt the truthful word ‘bigotry’ was too strident. Many thought we could achieve full equality by avoiding religious issues entirely. Despite this resistance, Faith in America grew through donors and supporters who shared heartbreaking experiences of faith-based discrimination, orga-
nized around the inspiring vision of a world where religious denominations no longer teach that homosexuality is a sin. “The Tyler Clementi Foundation has become a critical partner in achieving this vision. Jane Clementi has a powerful voice as a mother and person of deep faith. And now with Jason Cianciotto as its new executive director, the Tyler Clementi Foundation will become an even stronger and more impactful leader. Faith in America wants to be a part of that. By joining forces and using precious community resources more strategically and efficiently, we can hit the grand slam needed to end faith-based discrimination. “This is why I joined The Tyler Clementi Foundation board in September and, in partnership with Faith in America’s board, have begun the process of closing down our operations as a separate nonprofit. All of Faith in America’s programs, staff, and resources will be transferred to the Tyler
Clementi Foundation. These include the Save yOur Kids! Campaign, which informs anti-LGBTQ religious denominations and the general public about the immense harm and suffering caused to LGBTQ youth and adults, as well as our College Accreditation Project, which challenges religious institutions of higher learning that include antiLGBTQ teachings in their programs that graduate accredited mental health practitioners. “I want to thank Faith and America and the Tyler Clementi Foundation boards and staff for embracing this visionary plan to join forces. Now more than ever, as antiLGBTQ religious fundamentalists have taken over our highest political offices, we must protect LGBTQ youth from the lifetime of harm caused by faith-based discrimination and rejection from their families and faith communities. I want to be the first to welcome and invite Faith in America’s donors and supporters to
learn more about The Tyler Foundation’s programs and services by exploring TylerClementi.org. Please take the #Upstander Pledge, download and implement the #Day1 bullying-prevention program in your school, workplace, or faith community, and follow us on social media.” Faith in America is a nonprofit organization that seeks to end harmful anti-LGBT religious teachings by directly engaging and informing religious leaders about the real harm they cause. We are directly calling upon all religious denominations to once and for all end the practice of teaching that “homosexuality is a sin.” More information can be found at faithinamerica.org. Courtesy of Faith in America
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
Photo courtesy of HRC
AUSTRALIA
continued from cover WASHINGTON, DC — Today, the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the nation’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) civil rights organization, hailed the outcome of Australia’s Marriage Law Postal Survey, where results show that 61.6 percent of Australian voters who participated in the survey endorse marriage equality. Since the results of the postal survey are non-binding, it is now up to Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull’s government and the Australian Parliament to enact legislation ensuring marriage equality becomes a reality.
“We congratulate Australia’s LGBTQ advocates and allies who worked so hard to ensure a victory in this postal survey,” said Ty Cobb, director of HRC Global. “It’s crucial that loving, committed same-sex couples in Australia have the same rights and protections that come with marriage. We urge the Australian Parliament to take swift action ensuring marriage equality becomes the law of the land.” The voluntary postal survey was held between September 12 and November 7, with the results announced today. The postal survey came after years of stalled efforts to bring marriage equality to Australia. After the country’s governing party refused to allow a conscience vote on the issue in parliament, it took the contro-
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versial step to introduce this expensive, voluntary postal survey in an attempt to settle the issue. The survey was widely criticized for once again delaying the arrival of marriage equality, but today’s results are clear proof that the majority of Australians want marriage equality to become the law of the land. HRC is proud to support the efforts of Australian LGBTQ advocates and allies to achieve marriage equality in their country and has partnered with Australian Marriage Equality (AME) — a prominent national organization leading on the issue. HRC Global visited Australia in 2015 and 2016 to share strategic advice from the successful campaign for marriage equality here in the U.S.
The Human Rights Campaign is America’s largest civil rights organization working to achieve equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer people. HRC envisions a world where LGBTQ people are embraced as full members of society at home, at work, and in every community.
November 17, 2017
Seattle Gay News 5
Courtesy of HRC
HRC revokes Walmart’s perfect score after EEOC complaints by Transgender workers by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer The HRC announced on November 10 that it was revoking Walmart’s perfect corporate equality score in the wake of federal complaints of anti-Transgender discrimination. The retail giant was awarded its firstever 100 rating last year, in spite of a spotty record that featured several complaints of discrimination and harassment of LGBT employees. According to the HRC, they upgraded Walmart after the company agreed to add new policies to help protect Trans workers. However, two recent investigations by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency charged with enforcing nondiscrimination laws in the workplace, “pointed to significant enforcement gaps in Walmart’s nondiscrimination policy, specifically with regards to sex and gender identity,” according to the most recent HRC Corporate Equality Index (CEI) report. “Pending remedial steps by the company, the CEI rating is suspended,” HRC concluded. The EEOC complaints involved one case in Florida and another in North Carolina in which Trans workers complained that the company had failed to protect them from on-the-job harassment. Letters detailing the charges were also posted on the website for the Transgender Legal Defense & Education Fund. Walmart had no comment on the EEOC cases. “Walmart has previously received high marks on the CEI, but recent determinations by the EEOC about discrimination are cause for concern,” Deena Fidas, director of the HRC workplace equality program, said in a statement. “The CEI is not just focused on policy but on the daily workplace experience of LGBTQ employees. We have suspended
Photo courtesy of Walmart
Walmart’s score at this time as they address these concerns.” According to the HRC, a record-breaking 609 businesses earned the CEI’s top score of 100 this year, up from 517 in 2016. This represents a single-year increase of 18%, a new high in the 16-year history of the CEI. “The LGBTQ community is not explicitly protected by federal nondiscrimination law, but these companies are bridging that
gap for their employees and beyond,” the HRC added. The worldwide number of employees who come under a corporate nondiscrimination policy including sexual orientation and gender identity is now 14.5 million, the HRC said. More than 100 businesses are corporate supporters of the Equality Act, landmark federal legislation that would add protections for LGBT people to federal civil rights laws.
The EEOC complaints were filed under an Obama-era interpretation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, which said that the legal prohibition against discrimination on the basis of sex also covered discrimination on the basis of gender identity. The new Trump administration has revoked the Obama-era rules, but the issue is only now being litigated in federal courts.
More than 1,400 parents of Transgender young people sign National Declaration of Rights in response to sustained attacks on equality The groundbreaking statement calls for inclusive schools, employment opportunities and protections from violence for Transgender youth across the country
Members of HRC’s Parents for Transgender Equality Council – Photo courtesy of HRC
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WASHINGTON – In response to significant attacks on the rights of LGBTQ people, an unprecedented number of parents of transgender young people have come together to sign a declaration of rights seeking protections for their children and all transgender people from discrimination, violence, and harassment. The declaration, signed by 1,400-plus parents and organized by the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) Foundation, the educational arm of the nation’s largest LGBTQ civil rights organization, comes as the nation marks Transgender Awareness Week, and one year after HRC launched its groundbreaking national Parents for Transgender Equality Council in the wake of Donald Trump’s election. “What started as a council of 25 parents of transgender youth one year ago has grown into a movement of more than 1,400 parents demanding dignity and fairness for their children,” said HRC President
Celebrating 43 Years!
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Chad Griffin. “These courageous parents our progress, we see our children growing ity was launched in November of 2016 to brance, a time when the community comes represent tens of thousands more across up in a world where equality for all is not amplify the voices of parents of transgen- together at vigils across the country to the nation, and the challenges facingCLIENT their COMCAST yet guaranteed. We seek universal respect, der youth. Increasingly, the political attacks honor those lost in the past year. FILE NAME: CMCIN17011M7_10x11.75_LGBTQ_CorpAd_v02.indd APPROVAL families must be addressed by our policy- CMCIN17011M7 dignity, and the promise of safety for our CORP. facing [Visit http://hrc-assets.s3-websiteJOB NUMBER DESCRIPTION: Q4 LGBTQ AD transgender people target the youngmakers and public officials. BILL From buildchildren, and for all transgender people.” est in the community. Earlier this year, us-east-1.amazonaws.com//files/assets/ TO NUMBER CMCIN17013 COLORS: CMYK PROOFREADER ing welcoming schools to ending violence “Our children are not political when the Trump-Pence administration resources/DeclarationOfTransRights.pdf] GRAPHIC ARTIST Sean Devlin NOTES: NONEpawns,” STUDIO DIRECTOR against transgender women of color,DATE our 9-18-2017 said Peter Tchoryk, parentFONTS: of a transgender rescinded life-saving to read the declaration. To learn more about XFINITY Standard TT (Regular, Bold, Light, Bold Italic) guidance promot11:56 AM work will not be complete until every child 2 youth and a member of HRC’s for ing the protection of 86.37%, transgender HRC’s Parents for Transgender Equality TRAFFIC IMAGES:Parents CST276_bkgnd_240NP.tif (CMYK; 347 ppi, 662 ppi; 45.25%), students, REVISION in America and around the globe is afford“They are HRC’s Parents for Transgender Council, visit https://www.hrc.org/resourcCMCIN17011_103318_Rainbow_Woman_Q4_UI_EXT_FLAT_4C.tif (CMYK; 754 ppi; EqualPAGE 1 Transgender Equality Council. PRODUCTION ed the opportunity, safety, and respect PUB that SEATTLE young simply hoping toComcast_M_4C_COLOR_BLK.eps learn and ity Council sent a letter to the administra- es/parents-for-transgender-equality-nation39.78%), (6.83%), XFINITY_tag_v_r.ai (67.66%), GAYpeople NEWS ART DIRECTOR everyone deserves.” live productive lives. ButCMCIN17011_Pride_LGBTQ_TECH_L_TV_T_Remote.psd because politi- tion from more than a thousand parents, al-council. (CMYK; 389 ppi; 38.51%) BLEED None The 1,400 signatories represent all TRIM fifty 10”cians like Donald Trump and Mike Pence demanding that the Obama-era guidance The Human Rights Campaign FoundaCOPYWRITER x 11.75” states and Washington, DC, demonstrating have chosen to target them for discrimi- be preserved. tion is the educational arm of America’s LIVE 9.25” x 11” CREATIVE DIR the breadth and diversity of the community nation, our families have been called to Throughout Transgender AwarenessASSOClargest civil rights organization working to SCALE 100% DIRECTOR of parents of transgender young people. defend ourselves from their vicious attacks. Week, HRC will discuss many of the urgentCREATIVE achieve lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, PRINTOUT 100% Among the goals articulated by the brave Our country has been here before. This and important issues facing the transgenderACCOUNT andMANAGER queer equality. HRC envisions a world and dedicated parents are the need for declaration demonstrates that our families community – including support for youth where LGBT people are embraced as full nationwide, comprehensive protections exist in communities across the country and families, workplace equality, military members of society at home, at work, and from discrimination, inclusive school poli- and that we won’t relent until our children service, and combatting violence against in every community. cies, criminal justice reforms, and access to are safe from discrimination, harassment members of the transgender community. affirming health care. and violence.” The week concludes on Monday, November Courtesy of the Human Rights Campaign The declaration reads, in part: “Despite HRC’s Parents for Transgender Equal- 20, with the Transgender Day of Remem-
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November 17, 2017
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The Leadership Conference letter on Attorney General Sessions’ House Judiciary Committee testimony November 13, 2017 Recipient: House Judiciary Committee Dear House Judiciary Committee Member, On behalf of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, a coalition of more than 200 national organizations committed to promoting and protecting the civil and human rights of all persons in the United States, I am writing in advance of tomorrow’s US Department of Justice oversight hearing to raise serious concerns about the department’s record under President Trump on issues that are critically important to the civil and human rights community. Nine months ago, members of the Senate Judiciary Committee narrowly voted to advance the nomination of Sen. Jeff Sessions to be the nation’s 84th attorney general. This Tuesday marks the first time Sessions will testify before this committee, and he must be held accountable for the actions he has taken since his confirmation in February. Members must take seriously their oversight responsibility and publicly explore his troubling record of rolling back the civil and human rights of our nation’s most vulnerable communities. Sessions’ hostility to civil rights is longstanding. Over three decades ago, when he was nominated for a federal judgeship in Alabama, Coretta Scott King sent a letter to this committee about the damage Sessions would do if confirmed to the federal bench. “I believe his confirmation would have a devastating effect on not only the judicial system in Alabama but also on the progress we have made everywhere toward fulfilling my husband’s dream that he envisioned over twenty years ago.” As a senator for two decades, Sessions had a record of consistently opposing civil and human rights legislation, bearing out the concerns expressed by Mrs. King. Based on his anti–civil rights record, our coalition opposed Sessions’ nomination to be attorney general. Unfortunately, our concerns have been realized. Since his confirmation in February, Sessions has advanced an anti–civil rights agenda and has failed to be an attorney general for all people and communities. Despite testifying during his confirmation hearing that “we must continue to move forward and never back,” Sessions has stood on the wrong side of history and has moved our nation backward on a number of core civil and human rights issues. In particular, we are concerned about his actions to undermine voting rights, sentencing reform, policing, and LGBTQ rights. On these issues, some of the department’s most egregious actions have included [the following]: Voting rights • On February 27, the Department of Justice dropped the federal government’s claim that a Texas voter ID law under legal challenge was intentionally racially discriminatory, despite having successfully advanced that argument in multiple federal courts. The district court subsequently rejected the position of the Sessions Justice Department and concluded the law was passed with discriminatory intent. • On June 28, the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division sent a letter to 44 states demanding extensive information on how they maintain their voter rolls. This request was made on the same day that President Trump’s so-called Commis-
sion on Election Integrity sent letters to all 50 states demanding intrusive and highly sensitive personal data about all registered voters. • On August 7, the Justice Department filed a brief in the Supreme Court in Husted v. A. Philip Randolph Institute arguing that it should be easier for states to purge registered voters from their rolls – reversing not only its longstanding legal interpretation but also the position it had taken in the lower courts in that case. Criminal justice • On February 23, Sessions withdrew an earlier Justice Department memo that set a goal of reducing and ultimately ending the department’s use of private prisons. • In a March 31 memo, Sessions ordered a sweeping review of consent decrees with law enforcement agencies relating to police conduct – a crucial tool in the Justice Department’s efforts to ensure constitutional and accountable policing. The department also tried – unsuccessfully – to block a federal court in Baltimore from approving the department’s own proposed consent decree with the city on police practices, arguing that there were “grave concerns” with an agreement that the department itself had negotiated over a multi-year period. • On May 12, Sessions announced in a two-page memo that the Department of Justice was abandoning its Smart on Crime initiative by overturning the criminal charging policy put in place by the previous administration. • On August 28, Sessions lifted the Obama administration’s ban on the transfer of some military surplus items to domestic law enforcement. The guidelines rescinded by Sessions were created in the wake of [the events in] Ferguson. • On September 15, the department ended the Community Oriented Policing Services’ Collaborative Reform Initiative, a Justice Department program that aimed to help build trust between police officers and the communities they serve. LGBTQ rights • On February 22, the Civil Rights Division and the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights jointly rescinded Title IX guidance clarifying protections under the law for transgender students. • On July 26, the Department of Justice filed a legal brief arguing that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 does not prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation – a decision that contravened recent court decisions and Equal Employment Opportunity Commission guidance. • On September 7, the Department of Justice filed a brief with the Supreme Court in Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission arguing that businesses have a right to discriminate against LGBTQ customers. • On October 4, the Department of Justice filed a brief in the US District Court for the District of Columbia asking the court to dismiss a lawsuit against the President’s transgender military ban. • On October 5, Sessions reversed a Justice Department policy which clarified that transgender workers are protected from discrimination under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. • On October 6, the Department of Justice issued sweeping religious liberty guidance to federal agencies, which will create a license to discriminate against LGBTQ individuals and others.
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Vanita Gupta – Photo courtesy of the US Government
In addition to these concrete actions, the department in May published a revised list of priorities for the Civil Rights Division that excluded all mention of the need for constitutional policing, combatting discrimination against the LGBTQ community, or protecting people with disabilities. The same budget document called for cutting 121 positions from the Civil Rights Division. This is especially troubling, as this year marks the 60th anniversary of the Civil Rights Division, which was created by passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1957. In August, the New York Times reported that the “Trump administration is preparing to redirect resources of the Justice Department’s civil rights division toward investigating and suing universities over affirmative action admissions policies deemed to discriminate against white applicants.” This investigation and enforcement effort was planned to be run out of the Civil Rights Division’s front office by political appointees, instead of by experienced career staff in the division’s educational opportunities section. Sessions testified at his confirmation hearing that “the Department of Justice must never falter in its obligation to protect the civil rights of every American, particularly those who are most vulnerable.” The Leadership Conference agrees with that statement but – time and again – Sessions’ actions as attorney general, as outlined
above, have failed to live up to that rhetoric. Today, nearly three months after horrifying acts of white supremacy, violent extremism, and domestic terrorism in Charlottesville, Va. – at a time when the United States has a leader whose presidency has emboldened and enabled forces of hate and division in this country – our nation deserves an attorney general who will vigorously enforce federal civil rights laws and stand with our most vulnerable communities. Sessions is failing in that regard, and I urge you to hold him accountable during tomorrow’s Department of Justice oversight hearing. Thank you for your consideration of our views. If you have any questions or would like to discuss this further, please contact Mike Zubrensky, Chief Counsel and Legal Director, or Sakira Cook, Senior Counsel, at [phone number redacted].
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Sincerely, Vanita Gupta President & CEO This letter is also available at: civilrights.org/leadership-conference-letterattorney-general-sessions-house-judiciarycommittee-hearing. Courtesy of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach – Photo courtesy of IOC slash Greg Martin
OLYMPIC TRUCE continued from cover
The Truce is negotiated every two years ahead of the Olympics, and promotes “civility among nations” during the Olympics and the one week preceding and one week following the game. This year, a reference to Principle 6 came under attack, with Egypt and Russia trying to remove reference to the principle in the Truce. These efforts, however, failed, due to crossregional state support for the inclusion of Principle 6 in the Truce. Jessica Stern, executive director of OutRight Action International, commented on the outcome saying, “While Egypt and Russia tried to export and sanction discrimination against lesbian, gay, and bisexual Olympians, they failed. States decided to send a clear message that there is no place for discrimination at the Olympics. We’re thankful for civil society and for the mobilization that took place to ensure that reference to Principle 6 stayed in the Truce. Today, we were victorious.” In a joint campaign by OutRight Action International and Athlete Ally, professional athletes all around the world came out in support of the inclusion of Principle 6, releasing a letter calling on states to respect nondiscrimination based on sexual orientation. In a press release circulated last week US Olympian and WNBA star Breanna Stewart stated, “Sport and society thrive when we embrace the diversity of our world. The Olympic spirit is grounded in inclusion, fair play, and solidarity, and the explicit mention of Principle 6 within the Olympic Truce Resolution sends a clear message that we take these values seriously.” Hudson Taylor, founder and executive director of Athlete Ally, commented on the favorable resolution, saying, “Today, we’re thankful for UN member states around the world who stood up for universal values such as diversity, respect, inclusion, and fair play. The decision to keep an explicit reference of Principle 6 within the Olympic Truce Resolution is an important step for the full dignity and protection of the LGBTQ community around the world. We thank the athletes who spoke out in the lead up to such an important vote.”
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About OutRight Action International Every day around the world, LGBTIQ people’s human rights and dignity are abused in ways that shock the conscience. The stories of their struggles and their resilience are astounding, yet remain unknown – or willfully ignored – by those with the power to make change. OutRight Action International, founded in 1990 as the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission, works alongside LGBTIQ people in the Global South, with offices in six countries, to help identify community-focused solutions to promote policy for lasting change. We vigilantly monitor and document human rights abuses to spur action when they occur. We train
partners to expose abuses and advocate for themselves. Headquartered in New York City, OutRight is the only global LGBTIQspecific organization with a permanent presence at the United Nations in New York that advocates for human rights progress for LGBTIQ people. About Athlete Ally Athlete Ally’s mission is to educate and activate athletic communities to eliminate homophobia and transphobia in sports and to exercise their leadership to champion LGBT equality. Since its founding in 2011, Athlete Ally has attracted more than 150 professional athletes and Olympians, and teams at more than 50 US colleges
and universities to fight for LGBT equality. Athlete Ally worked with both the NBA and ACC on their historic moves out of North Carolina, as well as helped the NCAA develop its survey that guides the selection of championship cities based on their inclusive policies toward the LGBT community. It was one of the leading organizations that campaigned for Principle 6 to be adopted within the Olympic Charter in 2014 with the P6 effort. Courtesy of OutRight Action International
The resolution will be in place for seven days before the Olympics until a week after the Paralympic Games – Photo courtesy of Getty Images
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Celebrating 43 Years!
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