Equality Magazine Winter 2016 by Human Rights Campaign

HRC ENDORSES HILLARY CLINTON H U M A N

R I G H T S

C A M P A I G N

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HER FIGHT IS OUR FIGHT! HRC HAILS CLINTON’S STRONG RECORD AND ROBUST LGBT AGENDA

GOP PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES PLEDGE TO DISCRIMINATE SUPPORTING A TRANSGENDER CHILD, REJECTING FEAR CITIES EXCEL AS THEIR STATES LAG ON EQUALITY LGBT ASYLUM SEEKERS FACE HUGE HURDLES IN U.S.

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BOARD OF DIRECTORS

n a chilly Sunday night in January, I joined Hillary Clinton and hundreds of our members, supporters and allies in Iowa as she accepted our official endorsement in the 2016 presidential election. It was one of the most exciting — and most important — moments in this organization’s history. That’s because the stakes couldn’t be higher for LGBT Americans this November. Over the last seven years under President Obama’s leadership, the nation has made substantial progress on LGBT equality — from the end of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” to his Executive Order protecting LGBT employees of federal contractors from discrimination, to his historic support for nationwide marriage equality, to signing landmark hate crimes legislation, to speaking out against so-called “conversion therapy” and to working to protect LGBT students. Despite the fact that a majority of Republican and Independent voters today support federal protections for LGBT Americans, the leading Republican candidates for president have threatened to halt progress as well as revoke, repeal and overturn the gains made during President Obama’s two terms. We cannot let that happen — and that’s why HRC is launching an unprecedented mobilization effort to register and organize the nation’s pro-equality majority and elect another champion for LGBT equality to the White House. We believe that champion is Hillary Clinton. In the U.S. Senate, Clinton helped lead on bills to protect LGBT workers from employment discrimination, and had a strong record on key votes and legislation that mattered to LGBT Americans. As Secretary of State, Clinton gave a historic and

EQUALITY

WINTER 2016

Thanks,

Chad Griffin, President

FOUNDATION BOARD OF DIRECTORS Gwen Baba CA, Bruce Bastian UT, Jay Biles NC, Scott Bishop NC, Todd Canon TX, Edie Cofrin GA, Bill Donius MO, Patty Ellis PA, Anne Fay TX, Charlie Frew GA, Suzanne Hamilton OH, Britt Kornmann TX, Tom Kovach NV, Joan Lau PA, Andy Linsky CA, Joshua Miller NV, Bryan Parsons CA, Cheryl Rose OH, John Ruffier FL, Cathi Scalise TX, Judy Shepard WY, Mol Simmons GA, Ashley Smith DC, Michael Smithson OH, Steve Sorenson CA, Deb Taft IL, Faye Tate CO, Paul Thompson CA, Rebecca Tillet PA, Robb Webb IL

BOARD OF GOVERNORS Marilyn Abalos NY, John Affuso MA, Jack Albers CA, Steve Amend NV, Tal Anderson MN, Debra Bacchi NY, Jennifer Bajorek TX, Greg Battaglia NY, Andrew Beaudoin FL, Christa Berry TX, Brittany Binler PA, Brooke Bishop OH, Angel Boord VA, Stefani Borg OH, Blake Brockway TN, Linda Brown OR, K Jason Bryan MN, Brian Buzby TX, Rory Cahn OH, Jeremy Carter NC, Blaise Caudill AZ, Steven Cayton GA, Angie Cottrell MO, Dolores Covrigaru NY, Thomas Cowley CA, June Crenshaw DC, Lynn Currie TX, Lance Demaline OH, Brad DiFiore GA, Cristina DiGoia NV, Jaime Duggan TX, Ann Dyste MN, Cate Eble NC, Cordy Elkins MA, Alex Ernst NY, Xavier Esters IL, Melanie Falls OH, Chris Fasser NY, Maria Fasulo NY, Michael Fifield UT, Gabe Fischer CO, Taylor Fiscus IL, Jenny Ford TN, Ashley Fowler IL, Sarah Garber MO, Matt Garrett GA, Ben Gibbs GA, Melinda Greene GA, Jon Groppe OH, Anne Groth AZ, Lisa Guillory LA, Erin Gurak TX, Randall Hance TX, Matt Hendry CA, Gary Hilbert NJ, Ann Hooper NC, Lon Hurst TN, Bob Jacobson AZ, Korrine Johnson FL, Alyssa Jones MA, Ann Kanner-Roth MN, Clayton Katz TX, Dean Keppler WA, Champ Knecht NY, Kevin Knoblock MA, Keith Laepple WA, David Lahti CA, Andrew Land GA, Jason Laney DC, Duane Lefevre MA, Christine Lehtonen CA, Luigi Lewin NY, Victor Lim IL, Alex Lindquist CO, Chris Lindsey TX, Anna Lineback NC, Michael Long OR, Thomas Macias CA, Lisa Marchbanks CA, Cody Martin CA, David Martinez III AZ, Dan Mauney NC, Colette Melancon LA, Rich Meyers CA, Michael Moore OH, Earnest Morgan MN, Karen Morgan OH, Missy Morgan NV, Chris New GA, Khoa Nguyen DC, Roger Nyhus WA, Derek Osterman MA, Tonya Pachetti-Perkins TX, Brandon Patterson GA, Byron Pelt MO, Angela Pisecco TX, Densil Porteous OH, Kaitlin Porter GA, Ron Quinn NV, Layne Rackley CA, Victor Ravago CA, Catherine Reid WA, Brandie Reiner AZ, Barry Robertson TX, Marvin Rocha PA, Geri Rochino CA, Mario Rodas MA, Liz Rodriguez TX, Christian Rogers LA, Andrea Rubin LA, Brigid Scarbrough GA, Paul Schiminsky NV, Elizabeth Schlesinger MO, Shelly Schoenfeld NC, Dustin Schrecengost UT, Alicia Schwarz MN, Candice Shapiro MA, Camron Shelton CA, Dan Slater CA, Matt Smith TX, Neil Smith NC, Michael Smithson OH, Greg Snow MA, Katherine Sprissler-Klein PA, Rick Straits OH, Jeff Strater TX, Rick Taylor OH, Julian Tovar TX, Bonnie Uphold CA, Sean VanGorder NV, Lauren Verrusio NY, Melissa Vivanco TX, Lou Weaver TX, Jamaul Webster NY, Aaron Weiner OH, Amy White WA, Andrew Winters MD, Phillip Wright TX

EMERITUS COUNCIL David Beckwith CA, Ken Britt GA, Lawrie Demorest GA, Tim Downing OH, Mike Holloman TX, Barry Karas DC, Joni Madison NC, Lucilo Peña TX, Dana Perlman CA, John Sullivan MN, Rebecca Tillet PA CURRENT AS OF FEB. 1, 2016

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Photo: Matt McClain / Getty Images Cover: Eleanor Skrzat

DEAR FRIENDS,

forceful speech to the United Nations making clear that LGBT rights are human rights. She helped lead the U.N. to pass the first-ever U.N. resolution on the human rights of LGBT people and created the Global Equality Fund to advance the human rights of LGBT people around the globe. She has also made LGBT equality a key pillar of her presidential campaign — and recently unveiled the most robust and ambitious LGBT agenda any candidate for president has ever laid out. She has vowed to fight for the Equality Act — a bill that would finally offer explicit, clear and permanent non-discrimination protections for LGBT people at the federal level — and her detailed LGBT policy platform specifically calls for dropping the ban on open transgender military service, outlawing dangerous “conversion therapy” for minors, ending the epidemic of transgender violence and supporting HIV prevention and affordable treatment, among other proposals that would advance equality and support the LGBT community. Make no mistake: Hillary Clinton is fighting to advance LGBT equality across our nation and throughout the world, and that’s why we’re proud to endorse her. We believe that she is the candidate we can count on in November — and every day she occupies the Oval Office. And in order to win the fight for full equality nationwide and ensure Hillary Clinton is elected president, we’ll need you — our members and supporters — more than ever before. As people who value equality and as voters, we need you to speak out for justice for all and against discrimination wherever it lives. Exit polls show that at least 6 million LGB Americans — they did not identify transgender voters — voted in the 2012 election, which was decided by fewer than 5 million votes. Today, in key states like Ohio, North Carolina and Florida, the population of LGBT adults is greater than the average margin of victory in the last three presidential elections in those states. This year, your vote could literally mean the difference between another four years of progress or a president ready and willing to roll back all the gains we’ve made. In 2015, the LGBT community showed the nation and the world what we can do when we work together. This year, let’s do it again.

Lacey All WA, Ian Barrett TX, Bruce Bastian UT, Vanessa Benavides TX, Michael Berman DC, Scott Bishop NC, Chris Boone CA, Paul Boskind TX, Ken Britt GA, Todd Canon TX, Chris Carolan NY, Bill Donius MO, Patty Ellis PA, Christopher Flynn MA, Kirk Hamill DC, Suzanne Hamilton OH, James Harrison TX, S. Kelly Herrick CA, Tom Knabel MN, Chris Labonte PA, Ryan Levy TX, DyShaun Muhammad MN, Robert Newhart IL, Bryan Parsons CA, Lester Perryman LA, Cat Reid WA, Cheryl Rose OH, Linda Scaparotti CA, Mol Simmons GA, Steve Sorenson CA, Meghan Stabler TX, Ben Waldman WA

The HRC Foundation’s Johanna Eager speaks at the local library in Mount Horeb, Wis., at the reading of I am Jazz, a book about growing up transgender.

HRC SENIOR STAFF Chad Griffin President Jay Brown Director, Research & Public Education Nicole Cozier Director of Diversity & Inclusion Ann Crowley Vice President of Membership & Online Strategy Olivia Alair Dalton Senior Vice President of Communications & Marketing Robert Falk General Counsel Andrea Green Finance Director Ellen Kahn Director, Programmatic Development & Training Initiatives

INSIDE FEATURES

Anastasia Khoo Chief Marketing Officer Don Kiser Creative Director

5 UPFRONT

Ana Ma Chief of Staff & Chief Operating Officer

Hat Trick … Islamic Values … PrEP … The Equality Act … Students at Risk … A “Conversion Therapy” Nightmare

Mary Beth Maxwell Senior Vice President of Programs, Research & Training Ben Needham Director, Project One America Cathy Nelson Senior Vice President of Development & Membership Jason Rahlan Communications Director

9 ON THE COVER ENDORSING HILLARY CLINTON HRC Launches Support for Clinton in Crucial White House Race

13 IN THE FIRST 100 DAYS? GOP Presidential Candidates Back Federal Bill That Would Discriminate Against LGBT People

Jim Rinefierd Vice President of Finance & Operations Becky Ross Human Resources Director

15 NICK OFFERMAN ON BIGOTRY “Religious Freedom” Laws Are Based on “Fear, Pure and Simple”

Photos (top to bottom): Kathy Pillsbury, Olivier Douliery, Rhys Harper, Ray Tamarra, Jamie Lee Curtis

Cover photo: Judy G. Rolfe

Marty Rouse National Field Director

16 SMALL TOWN, BIG HEART

Susanne Salkind Vice President of Human Resources & Leadership Development Christopher Speron Vice President of Development David Stacy Governmental Affairs Director Sarah Warbelow Legal Director JoDee Winterhof Senior Vice President of Policy & Political Affairs

HRC EQUALITY STAFF Janice Hughes Publications Director Robert Villaflor Design Director

WINTER 2016

HRC Partners with a Wisconsin Community to Read a Book in Support of a Transgender Youth

19 LGBT ASYLUM SEEKERS Facing High Hurdles after Coming to America

23 U.S. CITIES CONTINUE TO EXCEL Even in Absence of State Laws

25 DISPATCH FROM THE SOUTH Why a Bricks-And-Mortar Presence Really Matters

Sarah Streyle Associate Director of Design Jessie Sheffield Marketing Coordinator

SPECIAL CONTRIBUTORS Elizabeth Halloran, Erika Kehrer, Sara Winegardner

OTHER CONTRIBUTORS Jane Coaston, Ty Cobb, Liz Cooper, Olivia Alair Dalton, Steffan Declue, Johanna Eager, Ashley Fowler, Justin Giaquinto, Noel Gordon, Tari Hanneman, Anastasia Khoo, Don Kiser, Mollie Levin, Jason Lott, Adam Marquez, Roe Matias, Mike Mings, Cathy Nelson, Kate Oakley, Karin Quimby, Jason Rahlan, David Stacy, Adam Swaim, Michael Toumayan, JoDee Winterhof Equality is a publication of the Human Rights Campaign and the Human Rights Campaign Foundation. Equality (ISSN 10925791) is published quarterly by HRC, 1640 Rhode Island Ave., N.W., Washington, D.C. 20036. Copyright 2015. All rights reserved. Subscription rates: Free to members. Printed in the USA. The Human Rights Campaign and HRC Foundation names and Equality logos are trademarks of HRC and the HRC Foundation. To join HRC, call 800-727-4723, visit www.hrc.org or TTY at 202-216-1572. Are you an HRC member? Have a question? Email membership@hrc.org or call 800-727-4723. All advertisers in Equality magazine are HRC National Corporate Partners. Because of HRC’s commitment to improving the lives of LGBT Americans in the workplace, all of our National Corporate Partners must demonstrate their own dedication by achieving a score of 85 percent or greater on HRC’s Corporate Equality Index. See www.hrc.org/CEI.

32 TALKING WITH BILLY PORTER On His New Show, What “Lola” Taught Him and the Slow, Steady March of Civil Rights Work

WHY MEMBERSHIP MATTERS “Very real discrimination and even violence occurs every single day to LGBT people – in our country and around the world. Bigotry still exists and we have a lot more to do.” — Jamie Lee Curtis, actor, ally and 2016 HRC member. See www.hrc.org/hrc-story/our-victories for more.

Portions of the cover and pages 2, 9, 10, 11 and 13 are paid for by the Human Rights Campaign PAC and not authorized by any candidate or candidate’s committee.

Do more. Achieve more. At Microsoft, we want every individual to thrive. That means, as the communities we serve evolve, we evolve. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the business of inclusion. Microsoft continues to be a proud sponsor of the Human Rights Campaign. youatmicrosoft.com

up front SECTOR WATCH

WATCH WHAT YOU EAT While stocking your pantry, keep in mind that some products are more equal than others. See, below, how these food and beverage companies* scored in the HRC Foundation’s latest Buyer’s Guide. Remember: Support firms that support workplace equality. COMPANY

CORPORATE EQUALITY INDEX SCORE

Barilla 100 The Coca-Cola Company 100 · Honest Tea · Minute Maid · Odwalla · POWERADE PepsiCo 100 · Gatorade · Lipton Iced Tea · Naked Juice · Tropicana Dr Pepper Snapple 60 · 7UP · A&W Root Beer · Canada Dry · Mott’s · Nantucket Nectars · Orangina · Welch’s · Yoo-hoo Nestlé 20 · Buitoni [unofficial] · DiGiorno · Hot Pockets · Juicy Juice · Lean Cuisine · Nestea · Stouffer’s · Wonka *A partial list of companies’ affiliated brands

MORE AND MORE MUSLIMS AREN’T SIMPLY ENGAGING IN DIALOGUE AROUND LGBTQ EQUALITY, THEY’RE LEADING THE CONVERSATION. THEY DO THIS WORK NOT IN SPITE OF THEIR ISLAMIC BELIEF OR VALUES, BUT BECAUSE OF THEM.” From the HRC Foundation’s newly released Coming Home to Islam and to Self, a guide that draws on a range of personal stories and includes insights of scholars, LGBTQ Muslims of all ages and leaders in the movement toward a more inclusive understanding of the Qur’an and its teachings. It is the latest in a series of guides from the HRC Religion and Faith Program. See hrc.org/muslim for more.

ONE IN FOUR…

sexually active gay and bisexual men in the United States should be using Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP), a daily pill that has been shown to dramatically reduce the risk of infection, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced recently. The Human Rights Campaign continues to urge policymakers, insurance providers and others to expand access and coverage to the FDA-approved PrEP. HRC also recently partnered with the CDC on its new public service announcement, “Doing It,” urging people to get tested for HIV as a routine part of their healthcare.

30,000+

In 2015, the HRC Foundation’s Health & Aging team provided more than 30,000 hours of online training to healthcare providers across the country, including doctors, nurses and other frontline staff from the hundreds of hospitals that participate in the Healthcare Equality Index. Nearly 30 percent of those hours were focused exclusively on meeting the unique needs and challenges transgender people face in accessing healthcare, underlining a strong interest by providers to better serve the transgender population. More than 70 percent of transgender and gender non-conforming respondents have experienced serious healthcare discrimination, a major survey has found. WWW.HRC.ORG

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Celebrating the few who change the lives of many.

Citi recognizes the Human Rights Campaign and those who work together to build a better tomorrow.

up front

Photo: Thinkstock

“I LOOKED AT ALL THE BOOKS ON HER SHELVES. THERE WERE ABOUT A DOZEN COPIES OF NIGHT BY ELIE WIESEL AND TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD. A SQUARE BLUE BUMPER STICKER WITH A YELLOW EQUALS SIGN WAS ON A FILE CABINET THAT STOOD FRONT AND CENTER IN THE ROOM, WHERE ALL THE KIDS COULD SEE IT.” — From Saving Alex, a new book by Alex Cooper whose parents placed her in an unlicensed, residential “conversion therapy” program to “save” her from homosexuality, where she was physically and verbally abused. When allowed to attend high school, Alex, 15, found one teacher’s welcoming classroom. Saving Alex will be released March 1. For presale, see http://savingalex.net.

You can strike up some great conversations on the street, at the bar, in the ballpark or even on the links when you wear HRC’s new “Make America Gay Again” campaign cap — inspired by GOP candidate Donald Trump’s “Make America Great Again” cap. HRC’s new cap is already a bestseller. “It’s humor in the face of absurdity,” says Don Kiser, head of HRC’s Consumer Marketing team. True fact: Trump has compared his opposition to marriage equality to disliking extra-long putters in golf. Fore!

56 & RISING In an alarming trend, 56 colleges and universities, in 26 states across the country, have requested exemptions from federal civil rights laws in order to discriminate against LGBT students, a new HRC report says. In December, HRC urged the U.S. Department of Education for greater transparency. In January, the department announced plans to publish a searchable database of religious educational institutions who have sought or received such exemptions. In 2013, only one school asked for the exemption. By the end of 2015, that number had jumped to 56, according to Hidden Discrimination: Title IX Religious Exemptions Putting LGBT Students at Risk.

Photo: Kevin Wolf / AP

“CONGRESS MUST PASS THE EQUALITY ACT TO CLEARLY AND CONSISTENTLY PROHIBIT DISCRIMINATION AGAINST TRANSGENDER PEOPLE IN EVERY AREA OF THEIR LIVES: AT WORK AND AT SCHOOL, IN SEEKING HEALTHCARE AND WHEN ACCESSING CREDIT OR HOUSING. …”

— Testimony by HRC President Chad Griffin at the first-ever Congressional Forum on Violence Against the Transgender Community last fall. HRC also released, with the Trans People of Color Coalition, a joint report on the epidemic of violence against transgender people, especially transgender women of color. Passage of the Equality Act, a federal measure, would guarantee LGBT Americans the same rights and protections as other Americans in all core areas of day-to-day life.

WWW.HRC.ORG

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Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re proud of our differences. All 65,000 of them. We support The Human Rights Campaign in the fight for equality for everyone and applaud the amazing work that has been accomplished. Northrop Grumman â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Committed to providing a diverse and inclusive work environment.

Hillary Clinton accepts HRC’s endorsement at an event in Des Moines.

HRC ENDORSES HILLARY CLINTON FOR PRESIDENT

he Human Rights Campaign has announced its endorsement of Hillary Clinton for president and its

launch of an unprecedented mobilization effort to register voters and turn out supporters for the 2016 elections.

It comes at a time when the stakes

couldn’t be higher for the lesbian, gay, bi-

The huge gains made for LGBT equality under President Obama’s leadership are under threat, said Griffin in announcing the endorsement. “All the progress we have made as a nation on LGBT equality — and all the progress we have yet to make — is at stake in November,” he said. “The leading Republican candidates for president have

vowed to halt progress as well as revoke, repeal and overturn the advances of the last eight years.” And those candidates, if elected, could block future progress as well. In most states, LGBT people are still at risk of being fired, evicted or denied services simply because of who they are or whom they love. Today, continued on p. 10

sexual and transgender community, said Photos: Conrad Schmidt / AP

HRC President Chad Griffin. Secretary Clinton formally received HRC’s endorsement during a Jan. 24 event in Des Moines, Iowa, with Griffin and hundreds of members and supporters. WWW.HRC.ORG

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Clinton cont’d from p. 9 63 percent of LGBT Americans report having experienced such discrimination. There is also an onslaught of state and local anti-LGBT measures, an epidemic of anti-transgender violence across the country, and backsliding on HIV/AIDS prevention and youth homelessness. “While they fight to take us backwards, Hillary Clinton is fighting to advance LGBT equality across our nation and throughout the world,” Griffin said. “Our work is far from over,” said Clinton in a statement after HRC’s announcement. “Too many LGBT Americans

In accepting HRC’s endorsement, Clinton vowed to fight for equality for all. “We all benefit when every one of our fellow human beings can live lives of purpose and meaning without being demeaned, without being discriminated against,” she said. “This is a fight for all Americans.” “I mean what I say, I know how to get results,” Clinton said amid cheers. “And I will not back down from standing up to [anti-LGBT leaders] and fighting for you and fighting for our country.” She vowed to protect and expand the LGBT rights gains made under the Obama administration and promised to push to end violence against transgender people. Already, HRC has begun organizing members and sup-

Photos: Conrad Schmidt / AP

“Our work is far from over,” said Clinton. “Too many LGBT Americans still face discrimination — in employment, in housing, in education, in healthcare — because of who they are or who they love.”

still face discrimination — in employment, in housing, in education, in healthcare — because of who they are or who they love.” HRC released a new video that includes a clip of Clinton speaking to nearly 800 grassroots HRC leaders from across the country. Other clips in the video show the GOP president candidates denouncing same-sex marriage and more. (See p.13.) At the Des Moines event in late January, Griffin introduced Clinton to a crowd of more than 900 people, formally announcing HRC’s endorsement. “Hillary Clinton is the one we can count on to lead us as president … and she’s the one we can count on to defeat” any of the Republican nominees, said Griffin at a packed hall of a local high school. “She has the experience and the determination and the skills that will allow her to make meaningful change from the moment she walks into the Oval Office.”

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porters in Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina ahead of the caucus and primary elections, where it has opened campaign field offices to help rally HRC members and supporters. HRC will be making announcements about campaign activities related to presidential, congressional and other races in additional states across the country. In 2016, the pro-equality vote will be larger, stronger and more energized than at any point in history. Exit polls show that in 2012 at least 6 million LGB Americans voted in an election decided by fewer than 5 million votes. HRC has nearly 2 million members and supporters nationwide. Clinton has made LGBT equality a pillar of her campaign, and recently unveiled the most robust and ambitious plan for advancing LGBT equality that any candidate for president has ever laid out. Not only has she vowed to fight for the Equality Act, a bill that would finally offer explicit, clear and permanent

non-discrimination protections for LGBT people at the federal level, but her detailed LGBT policy platform calls for dropping the ban on open transgender military service, outlawing dangerous “conversion therapy” for minors, ending the epidemic of transgender violence and supporting HIV prevention and affordable treatment, among other proposals. Clinton also has a long record as a champion for LGBT rights both in the U.S. and worldwide. As Secretary of State, she became the first in her position to robustly advocate for LGBT equality worldwide, including declaring in a speech at the United Nations that “gay rights are human rights.” In the U.S. Senate, she helped lead on bills to protect LGBT workers from

employment discrimination, and she had a strong record on key votes and legislation that mattered to LGBT Americans. HRC’s endorsement criteria include support for issues of concern to the community, demonstrated leadership on LGBT issues and viability. As part of that process, all of the presidential candidates were asked to fill out a candidate questionnaire. While Clinton, Sen. Bernie Sanders and Gov. Martin O’Malley provided answers, no GOP candidate returned HRC’s questionnaire. HRC endorsed Barack Obama for president in June 2008 and in May 2011, John Kerry for president in June 2004 and Al Gore for president in February 2000.

WHAT’S AT STAKE FOR THE LGBT COMMUNITY IN THE 2016 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION The rights and protections the LGBT community achieved under President Obama could be in jeopardy in 2016.

PROTECTIONS FOR LAWFULLY MARRIED SAME-SEX COUPLES

WORKERS COVERED BY EXECUTIVE ORDER PROTECTING FEDERAL CONTRACTORS FROM DISCRIMINATION

THE REPEAL OF “DON’T ASK, DON’T TELL”

WHITE HOUSE SUPPORT FOR THE EQUALITY ACT

ENFORCEMENT OF LANDMARK HATE CRIMES LEGISLATION

ENFORCEMENT OF PROTECTIONS FOR LGBT STUDENTS

ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT TO END THE ABUSIVE PRACTICE OF CONVERSION THERAPY

PROGRESS TOWARD OPEN TRANSMILITARY SERVICE

28 MILLION

HATE CRIMES

CONVERSION

THERAPY

WWW.HRC.ORG

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POWER AND PRIDE. PERFECT TOGETHER. Maytag Brand is part of the first appliance company to achieve a 100 score on the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index—an honor we’ve held for more than a decade. Because the only thing we value as much as dependability, is equality.

WHAT’S INSIDE MATTERS®

IN THE WHITE HOUSE?

PLEDGING TO DISCRIMINATE IN THE FIRST 100 DAYS By Erika Kehrer

n late 2015, the American Principles Project — working with two other anti-LGBT groups, the Heritage Action for America and the Family Research Council Action — asked all of the candidates running for the White House to pledge to push for the passage of the so-called First Amendment Defense Act, known as FADA, within their first 100 days in office. Six of the candidates did so. In signing, Ben Carson, Ted Cruz, Carly Fiorina, Mike Huckabee, Marco Rubio and Rick Santorum pledged to go even further than a similar pledge released by the National Organization for Marriage, another well-known anti-LGBT organization. And while Donald Trump did not sign the pledge, he did release a letter to the American Principles Project announcing his support for FADA, stating that he would sign legislation like Indiana Gov. Mike Pence’s infamous

right-to-discriminate bill in Indiana. In sum, all but three GOP presidential candidates (Jeb Bush, Chris Christie and John Kasich) have come out in support of a bill that would allow businesses and individuals to discriminate against LGBT people under the premise of religious belief. Not a single GOP presidential candidate has opposed the bill. “FADA will be a pivotal issue in 2016,” says Maggie Gallagher, a senior fellow at the American Principles Project and a co-founder of the National Organization for Marriage. “If you haven’t heard about the First Amendment Defense Act yet, you will soon,” she says. The bill is “rapidly becoming a signature issue that unifies the GOP.” “Real, concrete protections for gay marriage dissenters appear to be just one election victory away,” Gallagher adds.

WHAT IS THE FIRST AMENDMENT DEFENSE ACT? The First Amendment Defense Act (FADA) is tantamount to state-sanctioned discrimination. On its face, the federal bill would prohibit discrimination by the U.S. government based on individual beliefs about same-sex marriage. In reality, the bill would allow non-profit organizations and businesses contracting with the federal government to circumvent critical federal protections designed to protect same-sex couples and their families from harmful discrimination.

TAKE A LOOK AT WHAT THE CANDIDATES ARE SAYING

Photos: (top to bottom) Bill Clark, Charlie Neibergall, Jim Cole, Cliff Owen, Douliery Olivier

BEN CARSON: Asked if he thought LGBT Americans were discriminated against, after saying people don’t deserve “extra rights,” Carson said: “Everybody probably has somebody who discriminates against them.” [CNN, 6/11/2015]

TED CRUZ: “Religious liberty is not some fringe view. It is the basis of this country… . Because of [Democrats’ and LGBT activists’] partisan desire to mandate gay marriage everywhere in this country, they also want to persecute anyone who has a good faith religious belief that marriage is a holy sacrament, the union of one man and one woman and ordained as a covenant by God.” [The Dallas Morning News, 4/1/2015] CARLY FIORINA: “We need to invest our political capital and our leadership now in protecting religious liberty all across this nation, which means every state needs to enact a religious freedom protection act, as we have a national act…. And it also reminds us how important it is who’s on the Supreme Court. So, let’s focus our energies on making sure we have the right nominees and the right protections and liberties.” [Jan Mickelson Show, 9/28/2015] MARCO RUBIO: “Well, the executive orders would be to reverse the executive orders the president has made on things like gender equality in restrooms… . There are many government contractors and small companies who provide services to the government who are faith-based people, and they are being compelled to sin by government in their business conduct. That is not something we should be supporting.” [CBN, The Brody File, 12/5/2015]

DONALD TRUMP: “If Congress considers the First Amendment Defense Act a priority, then I will do all I can to make sure it comes to my desk for signatures and enactment.” [Washington Blade, 12/23/2015]

WWW.HRC.ORG

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It’s a celebration And everyone’s included

Employees of Bank of America are bringing the message of equality to people everywhere. Join us as we work to overcome every obstacle and celebrate every success. bankofamerica.com/diversity

Photo credit: Wayne White Photography

REGARDING “RELIGIOUS FREEDOM” LAWS…

RFRA

Photo: Ray Tamarra

Actor/writer/carpenter Nick Offerman has been a leading voice in the fight against the socalled “Religious Freedom Restoration Act” bills unleashed countrywide. Last year, to protest the anti-LGBT legislation introduced in Indiana, Offerman cancelled all of his scheduled shows in the state. Ultimately, he did a solo performance at Indiana University and donated his earnings to the Human Rights Campaign. Earlier, Offerman and actor/singer Megan Mullally, his wife, also made a video ad for HRC’s Americans for Marriage Equality campaign. Offerman grew up in rural Illinois, hailing from a long line of “farmer politicians.” A key theme of his most recent book, Gumption: Relighting the Torch of Freedom with America’s Gutsiest Troublemakers, he says, is about the real need to “treat people more decently,” including members of the LGBT community. Below is a piece he wrote for Equality magazine. Ok, gang, if we can all take a deep breath here and open our eyes and ear-holes, the arithmetic involved is not that hard to comprehend. There has recently been an astonishing amount of political hot air expended over the topic of so-called “religious freedom” and the subsequent protection of so-called “family values.” In most cases, it should be noted that this hollering refers only to the religion of Christianity, and the “freedom” in question can be boiled down to allowing some practitioners of said religion to publicly engage in homophobic discrimination with impunity. The “families” invoked, who purportedly need their “values” to be preserved, would be strictly heterosexual households. Loving American households that boast two parents of the same gender need not apply for these particular “family” rights, as they are not considered to be the “right” kind of family. Now. Is this behavior embarrassing and downright dastardly? It sure is. Is it socially harmful and an enormous waste of

AGAIN THIS YEAR, OPPONENTS OF EQUALITY ARE EXPECTED TO PUT THEIR MUSCLE behind a number of “religious refusal” bills at the state level. In 2015, antiLGBT lawmakers in dozens of states introduced legislation allowing businesses and individuals to use religion as a legally permissible reason to discriminate against LGBT people. Many of those bills, in fact, are still pending. Opponents could also unveil bills that would allow adoption and foster care agencies to discriminate against LGBT prospective parents, echoing similar efforts in Florida, Michigan and Mississippi.

political airspace? You bet your sweet bippy. But the thing is, it’s also pretty easy to see from whence this bigotry has sprung. The voters behind this movement haven’t been the victims of some sort of gay agenda. … This purely tribal attitude is not based upon human interaction or firsthand knowledge, and it is certainly not based upon Christian doctrine. It’s based upon fear, pure and simple. The fellow called Jesus of Nazareth of whom I have read would hang his head in abject shame at the backwards and cowardly attitude of these so-called Christians. What’s more, their loud discrimination is patently un-American. Our government, by design, holds no sway in our personal relationships. This was and is a very good idea, imperative to the continued survival of the American experiment. The government also holds no jurisdiction over the content offered within our churches. Therefore, one can proffer the silliest claptrap he or she would like to whilst in church (like this issue, for example), and there can be no continued on p. 29

“Our opponents have renewed vigor — in part, to push back against our success in marriage equality,” according to HRC Legal Director Sarah Warbelow, who leads a team of HRC attorneys and legal fellows in analyzing and drafting legislation at the state, municipal and federal levels. Warbelow speaks frequently to major TV and press outlets on the issue. The upcoming fights will require “all hands on deck,” Warbelow notes. “And the best way to change the hearts and minds of legislators is for them to hear from constituents.” WWW.HRC.ORG

WINTER 2016

SMALL TOWN, BIG HEART

SUPPORTING A TRANSGENDER CHILD,

obody really knew how the residents of Mount Horeb, Wis., would respond when a prominent anti-LGBT group shut down a local school’s plan to support a young transgender student by reading I Am Jazz, a book about growing up transgender. Not even Amy Lyle, a school parent so incensed by the legal bullying of Liberty Counsel that she decided to organize a public reading of the children’s book. What happened next in Mount Horeb, a town of just 7,000, is nothing short of extraordinary. When HRC got wind of Amy’s plan to read I Am Jazz — written by HRC Youth Ambassador Jazz Jennings — at the local library, HRC Foundation’s

Jazz Jennings reads from her book, I Am Jazz, during her TV show on TLC.

Welcoming Schools Director Johanna Eager immediately flew to Wisconsin to help. HRC also brought in the book co-author, Jessica Herthel, who, like Lyle, is a non-LGBT ally with no tolerance for intolerance — especially when it involves children.

Within 24 hours, Eager and Lyle pulled together a full program for the community event, and HRC provided 40 copies of I Am Jazz to give away. Jennings wrote an eloquent op-ed for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel about being a transgender kid. And, back in Washington, HRC raced to get the word out — to the media and to HRC’s members and supporters in southern Wisconsin, where Mount Horeb is located. Liberty Counsel is a force to be reckoned with. The anti-LGBT group — which threatened the school district with a lawsuit if the book was read, claiming that it was “a violation of parental rights” — is legal counsel to Kim Davis, the Kentucky clerk who

Photos: Kathy Pillsbury

More than 600 people packed into the local Mount Horeb, Wis., library for a reading of I Am Jazz. HRC’s Eager (at right) speaks at the community event.

EQUALITY

WINTER 2016

REJECTING FEARMONGERING infamously refused to issue marriage licenses to LGBT couples. Lyle figured that a couple dozen people would show up. More than 600 people, including many children, packed the library to support the 6-year-old transgender student and her family. Herthel read I Am Jazz, Eager spoke about how to create LGBT-inclusive schools, and Lyle relayed a statement from the transgender girl’s family. “We just want everyone to remember that at the center of this is a brave little girl who can now be who she really is,” the family wrote. “And you have all helped to make that happen in a positive way for her and her family.” Lyle, holding back tears, told a reporter that she always knew in

her heart that Mount Horeb was a loving, compassionate and inclusive place for children. “But you all have just shown that to be overwhelmingly true,” she said. And the library wasn’t the only packed place in town. That morning, 200 people showed up at a reading of I Am Jazz, organized by high school students. Days later, the school board adopted measures to fully accommodate transgender students. “We will not be intimidated, and we will teach tolerance and will be accepting to everyone,” one board member said. Inspired by Lyle and the people of Mount Horeb, the HRC Foundation in January organized a coast-to-coast reading of I Am Jazz in schools, com-

By Elizabeth Halloran

munity centers and churches. More than 20 different readings in eight states took place. Many of these readings were made possible in part by the work of the HRC Foundation’s Welcoming Schools consultants who have forged relationships with educators across the country. Meanwhile, the story of the support this small town gave to the transgender child and her parents was featured at the HRC Foundation’s third annual Time to THRIVE conference in February. “Reading a book in the classroom may seem light-hearted,” notes Eager, an educator for 20-plus years. “But it literally can make a child who feels alone and scared feel more secure.”

WWW.HRC.ORG

WINTER 2016

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COMING TO AMERICA

LGBT ASYLUM SEEKERS FACE YEARS OF ADDITIONAL HURDLES Beatings by a family member. Rape. Police harassment. Arrests. Imprisonment. Death. Every year, scores of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people make their way to the United States, seeking to escape horrific anti-LGBT persecution in their countries. It is estimated that 4,000 LGBT people apply annually for asylum in the U.S. For years, Temitope Oke faced incessant blackmail and extortion in Nigeria. Oke, who worked in LGBT health promotion, finally left his homeland for the U.S. after Nigerian lawmakers passed, and the president signed, a law criminalizing LGBT people and LGBT-related groups and allies, and levying prison terms of up to 14 years.

But like so many other asylum seekers, Oke faced a harsh reality upon arrival in America. It is illegal for new asylum seekers to get a job for the first six months after they apply for asylum. Even after those first six months, they are ineligible for government assistance, including healthcare, until they are granted asylum. Finding housing is also a major problem, Oke told Equality. “Many asylum seekers come with a single suitcase, at the most, and with no clothing for winter.” LGBT asylum seekers like Oke face additional hurdles that their straight counterparts do not. All too often, they cannot find refuge with family members, friends or others who have resettled in this country; anti-LGBT attitudes abound in many of those communities. Churches that usually open their arms to help new arrivals might turn their backs on their LGBT brothers and sisters. continued on p. 21

ASYLUM SEEKERS IN THE UNITED STATES…

Photo: Lapinski

May be held in immigration detention or under “supervised release.” Can move within the U.S. but must notify U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services of change of address, and consultation with legal counsel is recommended. Must apply for special permission to leave the U.S.

Permitted to apply for work authorization 150 days after filing asylum application as long as they have not caused any delays in the processing of their application. Then they are eligible to receive work authorization after waiting an additional 30-90 days. Authorization must be renewed annually.

Receive no financial support from the federal government.

From: Stronger Together: A Guide to Supporting LGBT Asylum Seekers in the United States [LGBT-FAN]

WWW.HRC.ORG

WINTER 2016

DIVERSITY. INCLUSION. EQUALITY. Ideals we truly live by.

Celebrating Life, Every Day, Everywhere. For Everyone.

Photo: Phil Humnicky

Asylum cont’d from p. 19 Further, some of the largest U.S. financial supporters of asylum seekers, which include faith-based groups as well as clinics, shelters and others, reject or ignore LGBT asylum seekers. Even many LGBT community centers and major foundations in this country do not lend a helping hand; some may know little or nothing about how to help out. HRC has started to take action. In an effort that could become a model for other U.S. cities, HRC has joined forces with Center Global, a program at the local LGBT community center in Washington, D.C., to lobby the city government for housing and food assistance for LGBT asylum seekers. The HRC Foundation is also trying to increase awareness about the issue. It has teamed up with the LGBT Freedom & Asylum Network (LGBT-FAN) and other groups to produce a new handbook, Stronger Together: A Guide to Supporting LGBT Asylum Seekers in the United States. It’s a comprehensive, best-practices guide about a range of issues, including housing, employment counseling, health and legal services and staff training. Over a hundred people contributed to the report, including LGBT asylum seekers and asylees, service providers, lawyers, researchers and activists. Oke, now an asylee living in the Washington, D.C., area, is one of the authors. “This guide sends an important message: The experience of LGBT asylum seekers in America matters,” said Ty Cobb, director of HRC Global. “It is not enough to simply open our doors, we must do so with respect, compassion and a desire to honor their experience.” The situation for LGBT people around the world varies widely. In up to 10 countries worldwide, same-sex activity is punishable by death, and 75 countries criminalize same-sex relationships. In addition, hundreds of transgender individuals have been brutally murdered in the last year. Further, in a growing number of countries, governments have sought to silence equality advocates and organizations with so-called “anti-propaganda” laws and legislation.

“I DO NOT REGRET SPEAKING OUT.” — Alagie Jammeh, nephew of Gambian President Yahya Jammeh who infamously threatened last spring to personally “slit the throats” of gay men in his country. While on scholarship in California, Alagie Jammeh posted on Facebook, “No one should be denied their fundamental basic human rights because of their sexuality.” Immediately, his scholarship was revoked. He was told to return home to “apologize” to his president. Gambian officials threatened his life. He also faced possible imprisonment. “Human rights belong to us by nature of being born,” Jammeh said at a Human Rights Day event sponsored by HRC and Human Rights First at the Newseum in Washington, D.C. “We have a right to demand them from our leaders, and to speak out when we see others being denied these rights.” Speaking out, Jammeh said, “has made me realize the importance of gathering together and committing as a community to the preservation of human rights for all.” Jammeh has applied for asylum in the United States.

Photo: Howard Wise

WHY MEMBERSHIP MATTERS “I tell everyone, ‘Love yourself and celebrate whatever makes you different.’ Unfortunately, we all still face discrimination in everyday life. Thankfully, HRC is there to change that.” — Ross Mathews, TV personality and 2016 HRC member See www.hrc.org/hrc-story/our-victories for more.

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WINTER 2016

THE BEST THING TO DRIVE IS CHANGE

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MUNICIPAL EQUALITY INDEX

CITIES KEEP EXCELLING EVEN IN ABSENCE OF STATE LAWS The Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s latest annual Municipal Equality Index (MEI) found that 19 cities scored 100 percent in spite of the absence of supportive state laws protecting lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people.

and Bloomington, Ind., according to the 2015 MEI. Notably, in those states where state-level protections are weak, cities are under additional competitive pressure to institute municipal protections that make up for the deficiencies at the state level. “Cities are in constant competition for residents, business and employees, and inclusiveness is an important factor that attracts all three,” according to Cathryn Oakley, who heads HRC’s MEI work. Unfortunately, there are many cities — in every state in the country — that

That’s a jump from two cities with that distinction in 2012 when HRC first began researching and evaluating municipal laws. Among the new top-scoring cities in 2015 were Louisville, Ky.; Detroit, Mich.;

fail to protect their LGBT residents and employees. Cities are rated on a scale of 0 —100, based on the city’s laws, policies, benefits and services. To earn a top score, cities must embrace comprehensive trans-inclusive laws and policies that often go beyond explicit protections offered by their state or the federal government. Progress on transgender equality has been especially notable, continuing a positive trend that the MEI has tracked each year. Full MEI scorecards are available at www.hrc.org/mei.

COLUMBUS 100

MISSOULA 100

CINCINNATI 100

EAST LANSING 100

DAYTON 98

DETROIT 100 FERNDALE 97 PITTSBURGH 95

INDIANAPOLIS 92

PHILADELPHIA 100

BLOOMINGTON 100

KANSAS CITY 100 ST. LOUIS 100

ALEXANDRIA 88 LOUISVILLE 100

ARLINGTON 87 ATLANTA 100

PHOENIX 100 TEMPE 100

TALLAHASSEE 88

TUCSON 100

ORLANDO 100 OAKLAND PARK 86 FORT WORTH 99 DALLAS 100 AUSTIN 100 SAN ANTONIO 90

NEW ORLEANS 91 TAMPA 95 ST. PETERSBURG 100

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WILTON MANORS 100

WINTER 2016

COMFORT FOR ALL WE INVITE YOU TO JOIN OUR QUEST TO MAKE THE WORLD A MORE COMFORTABLE PLACE: FOR EVERYONE

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KENDRA JOHNSON

BUILDING EQUALITY

Photos: Rhys Harper

or more than a year, Arkansas native Kendra Johnson has headed the Human Rights Campaign’s Project One America office in Little Rock. She’s thrilled, she says, to be able to fight for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender equality in her hometown. Johnson lived in Brazil for more than a decade and worked for two of the country’s top financial newspapers before returning to Little Rock to get a master’s degree in public administration and serve in leadership roles in the non-profit sector. Her passion for LGBT equality goes back to the 1990s when she founded the first lesbian and bisexual support student group at Spelman College in Atlanta. She was recently tapped for the Presidential Leadership Scholars program, a weekend training series led by former White House advisers from four different administrations. Johnson and her partner, Cristina Alves Oliveira, have two teens.

Looking back over your first year, what stands out the most for you? Building Project One America was really about elevating conversations about the lives of LGBT people living in the South, i.e., showcasing the contributions we make to society as a whole, talking about our families in all their myriad forms and highlighting the difficulties we face daily in schools, the workplace, healthcare institutions and public accommodations due to the lack of non-discrimination protections on a statewide level. What stood out the most for me is how many allies we have in the state and the true power that telling our stories has on creating a better Arkansas for LGBT people in this state. HRC has bricks-and-mortar space in Little Rock. How has that been? It makes all the difference in our work here. As a native Arkansan, I truly know how important it is for other natives to see that we are deeply invested in this

community. Having an office where we can meet community members, host social events and do community planning makes people feel that they have their own dedicated arm of HRC working hard on their behalf. It creates a sense of ownership in our work and invites community engagement. It also helps that our neighbors (in the building) are some of the best non-profits working for the greater good of many Arkansans, from hunger relief to advocacy for children. Our building also has Americans for Prosperity, the Koch brothers’ organization. We invited them to our open house last year, but they didn’t show up. What has been the business response to our work? Walmart and Tyson — both based in Arkansas — have stepped up to the plate a bit, I understand. Fortunately, the business community gets it. Issues of diversity and inclusion continued on p. 27 WWW.HRC.ORG

WINTER 2016

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WHY MEMBERSHIP MATTERS “Still, today, in 2016, some tough battles loom for LGBT equality, especially in the South. HRC is leading the charge to change that.” — Yeardley Smith, actor/philanthropist and 2016 HRC member See www.hrc.org/hrc-story/our-victories for more.

Johnson cont’d from p. 25 have been central to business success for decades. These companies understand that attracting the best and brightest employees means having open and diverse workplaces where individuals can bring their whole selves. Proof of this was the very vocal position taken by Walmart and Acxiom, two Arkansas companies, during the battle over the Religious Freedom Restoration Act in 2015. Walmart spoke out publicly for the very first time on an LGBT issue, extolling the values of diversity and inclusion, and Acxiom not only issued a statement condemning the legislation that would have legalized discrimination

but stood on the steps alongside Chad Griffin and me in a rally to demand that our legislators do the very best for our state. After all of this, Tyson, which is also based here, worked to increase its score on the Corporate Equality Index from 35 to 85. The lessons learned from the battle over the “religious liberty” measure in the GOP-run legislature? The explicit legislative attacks on LGBT Arkansans taught me that public education and community organizing are the way to move Arkansas. HRC Arkansas worked behind the scenes to educate legislators on the bills, but our

secret weapon was the masses. When we partnered with our allies and were able to translate the potentially devastating impacts of the anti-LGBT legislation, the people responded beautifully and masterfully. Some 2,000 people in total lined the stairs of the Capitol up to the house chambers to let legislators know this was not the Arkansas we knew and loved and that discrimination would not be tolerated. Legislators commented that the four days of consecutive protests were the largest mass mobilization at the Capitol since then-Gov. Bill Clinton introduced teacher testing in the 1980s. The amazing thing is that people were there for what had been billed an LGBT issue. It was incredible.

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HRC Quarterly Aug 2015 4C final.indd 1

8/14/15 12:57 PM

Offerman cont’d from p. 15 legal repercussions. … Freedoms of this stripe are the backbone of this nation, and without them we could never claim to be the home of the brave, nor the land of the free. What nobility we can claim as Americans is not derived from exclusion, but quite conversely from the inclusive tradition of giving a fair shake to every man or woman or other person. … Now on the other hand, when misguided folks begin to grouse that their particular religious beliefs should have sway over the government, as is currently happening, that’s when we have to gently but firmly invite them to examine the basic tenets of our human rights as protected by the Constitution. Here is what I would like to say to them: •

The Bible is full of very good lessons, and also some antiquated twaddle (like 1 Timothy 2:12, “I permit no woman to teach or have authority over a man. She is to keep silent.”) but in any case, it must hold zero sway in determining our nation’s laws. Or, if you prefer, it should hold as much sway as the Koran and the Talmud and the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and The Onion’s Our Dumb Century.

•

I understand that within your religion, it might seem like your judgment of same-sex marriage makes sense, or is at least rational, but please remember that many of your fellow Americans do not subscribe to your beliefs. … If you can equate discrimination against gay people with behavior that is remotely Christ-like, I say you are powerfully deluded.

•

As [author] Wendell Berry so eloquently points out in his essay Caught in the Middle, we desperately need as many loving households in this country as we can rack up, regardless of the gender or sexual orientation of the participants. If a couple of adults want to exist together as part of the community we call America, and contribute to said community as a coalition of two people who love one another, that seems like a good addition to the greater team.

•

The amazing thing about the United States is the idea that everybody gets an equal turn at bat, without discrimination based on color, creed or lovemaking techniques. That means that even dum-dums like yourself can enjoy equal rights, despite your penchant for persecuting people you fear. Seems like a pretty good deal.

FREEDOMS OF THIS STRIPE ARE THE BACKBONE OF THIS NATION, AND WITHOUT THEM WE COULD NEVER CLAIM TO BE THE HOME OF THE BRAVE, NOR THE LAND OF THE FREE.

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Pictured are PepsiCo EQUAL Employee Resource Group members and allies.

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4 Questions for

BILLY PORTER T

his spring, Tony Award-winning Billy Porter will hit the Broadway stage again in a musical based on a groundbreaking but largely forgotten hit, Shuffle Along, from the early 1920s which featured Josephine Baker, Paul Robeson and others — one of the first plays on Broadway featuring an African-American cast. Porter is teaming up with Broadway luminaries Audra McDonald, Brian Stokes Mitchell and director George C. Wolfe for the revival, Shuffle Along, or, the Making of the Musical Sensation of 1921 and All That Followed. He originated the role of “Lola,” a drag queen (or “gender illusionist,” as Porter says) in Broadway’s smash hit Kinky Boots and returned to his hometown of Pittsburgh last fall in the role, briefly joining the show on tour. It sold out the city’s 2,800-seat theater in two days. Porter, who is openly gay, recently spoke to Equality magazine. Excerpts follow.

You grew up gay in the Pentecostal Church — a member of a very tightknit religious community. And you first came out to your mother when you were 16. Can you talk about that a little? My mom didn’t know anything else but Leviticus, and it wasn’t easy for us two. It was a good 15-year period where there was a fracture because she didn’t get it, she didn’t understand it. But she did the true Christian work, which is to love me anyway. Unconditionally. There was never a rejection. There was never an, “I’m going to put you out of my house because you’re gay.” … I think there’s an empathy that exists in her because she’s a handicapped woman who has been handicapped all her life. The analogy that I used and the argument I used with her, part of that argument was, “It’s not a choice.” Did your role as “Lola,” a drag queen, in Kinky Boots, affect your perspective on life at all? It enabled me to embrace and own and believe in my masculinity as a gay man. I think we have masculine shaming, sissy shaming, in our culture, that is really, really detrimental to the psyche. Playing Lola helped me deal with those issues, being a recipient of it, as well as maybe someone who participated in it unconsciously. … It’s actually still more important, I find, for us as gay men, to appear “masculine” to straight people. If you

EQUALITY

WINTER 2016

can pass as masculine to straight people, then you’re “better.” Then you’ve “won.” That is the change that Lola gave to me. Why is your new show, Shuffle Along, so important? All of our stories, from all different cultures, need to be told. Once again, when you see it, it cracks open your empathy. It’s like, “Oh, right, that person breathes like I breathe, that person bleeds red blood like mine, we actually really are the same. So what am I doing, with this hate in me? Just because I don’t understand them?” Shuffle Along is that. It’s 1921. It’s all these black people that were fighting even then for a place at the table, who were fighting even then to be heard. Are you optimistic that one of the biggest divides in our country — racism — will be bridged in the years ahead? I think we are on the precipice of the type of discrimination that’s going to be obsolete. Eventually. Change takes time. It took 200 years for the Emancipation Proclamation to actually take hold. And even now, racism is institutional in very many ways. I look at the gay civil rights movement, and I remember in 1985 when I came out, never, ever, ever, in a billion years did I ever think that there would ever be such a thing as marriage equality. That wasn’t even an option! It wasn’t even on the table. It’s so encouraging to me. And inspiring to me.

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