Addressing the intersection of HIV/AIDS, violence against women and girls, and gender-related health disparities

From the Office of National AIDS Policy: Today we are proud to announce the release of the report by the President’s Working Group on the Intersection of HIV/AIDS, Violence against Women and Girls, and Gender-Related Health Disparities. We have had the honor of serving as co-chairs of the interagency Federal Working Group since March 2012,…

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All legal same-sex marriages will be recognized for federal tax purposes

WASHINGTON – Today the U.S. Department of the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced a ruling that will ensure all legally-married same-sex couples, regardless of where they live, will be recognized for federal tax purposes.  Recently the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a key provision of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which…

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ADL calls for ‘A New Jackson-Vanik’ in response to anti-gay bigotry and harassment in Russia

NEW YORK — In response to a new national law in Russia prohibiting “propaganda of nontraditional sexual relations,” and fallout from the law’s passage that has brought about an upsurge in violence targeting gays and lesbians, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) called on the United States to impose penalties if the Russian government does not “step backward on this issue…

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Immigration reform and the LGBT community

In the gloam of the Senate immigration debate, despite conservative Florida Republican Sen. Marco Rubio’s religious harrumphing about how any measure that included allowing bi-national LGBT couples the same opportunities as heterosexual ones have to apply for citizenship would derail reform, he, and many others, could not have possibly imagined what would happen Wednesday, June…

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Bayard Rustin to be posthumously awarded Presidential Medal of Freedom

WASHINGTON – The White House has announced Bayard Rustin, the late civil and human rights advocate will be posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian award in the United States.  An aide and confidant to Dr. Martin Luther King, Rustin was the main organizer of the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs…

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LGBTQ organizations urge New York City Council to override Mayor Bloomberg’s opposition to historic bill to ban discriminatory profiling by NYPD

NEW YORK – Today, national and international LGBT organizations – including the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, Lambda Legal, the National Black Justice Coalition, the National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs, the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission, and GLAAD – joined with local LGBTQ organizations to urge New York City legislators to defend…

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Settlement reached with Arcadia Unified School District in transgender student discrimination case

WASHINGTON – The United States entered into a settlement agreement with the Arcadia Unified School District in Arcadia, Calif., to resolve an investigation into allegations of discrimination against a transgender student based on the student’s sex.  Under the agreement, approved by the district’s school board unanimously last night, the school district will take a number…

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