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OutFront Minnesota E-news Thursday, January 13th,
2005 Contents 1.
Anti-Marriage Amendment Reintroduced... plus, Senator Bachmann's
press conference. Anti-Marriage Constitutional Amendment Reintroduced in House We’re in for a long fight, folks! We knew it would happen. Last week, Representative Mary Liz Holberg reintroduced her Anti-Marriage Constitutional Amendment. House File 0006 (HF0006) is the first step in the relentless effort by our opponents to legalize discrimination in our state constitution. Predictably, Senator Michele Bachmann has announced her intention to introduce her amendment bill in the Senate once again this session. Senator Bachmann has already enlisted eager voices to help her in her quest for discrimination. She has planned a press conference for today with the Reverend Bob Battle, in "honor" of the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr., purportedly to claim that he would not have stood with us in this fight. Yet Rev. King's support of openly gay civil rights activist Bayard Rustin, the organizer of the 1963 March on Washington, suggests otherwise. In November, Rev. King's widow, Coretta Scott King, was quoted as saying, "Freedom from discrimination based on sexual orientation is surely a fundamental human right in any great democracy, as much as freedom from racial, religious, gender or ethnic discrimination." Tying discrimination against GLBT people to Rev. King undermines the legacy and lessons of one of America's greatest heroes. This is the third year in a row that our opponents and their friends in the Minnesota Legislature will attempt to prevent our community from ever achieving our dream of full equality. The word at the Capitol is that our friends from the last two years are wearing down from the pressure and that passage of the amendment is inevitable. It's down to us: we must be the ones telling them that it is not at all inevitable, and that we will be there to support them when they vote NO. By now you know what to do: contact your legislators, write letters to the Editor, engage your family and friends, volunteer and attend the justFair Lobby Day on April 7th. We're going to ask you to do all of these things and more in the coming weeks and months. Here at OutFront, we are moving forward pro-actively. We're working with legislators to draft legislation to protect our relationships and our families. We will keep you posted on these developments.We’re also looking for personal stories we can share (anonymously or not) with the press and legislators about hardships GLBT Minnesotans have faced because their relationships are not legally recognized. If you have a story to share, please contact our Public Policy Director, Monica Meyer, at mmeyer@outfront.org. Learn How to Effectively Talk about GLBT Issues OFM Effective Educator Training in February OutFront Minnesota is pleased to announce that February 4th and 5th are the dates of the first OutFront Minnesota Effective Educator Training for 2005. We have partnered with Fairview Health Systems to offer this very popular community education forum in the south metro area for the first time. OutFront Minnesota Senior Director Scott Fearing will lead this session of the class he created six years ago. The Effective Educator Training has helped people to develop new, or improve existing, skills for educating about GLBT issues. Allies (parents, family and friends) and GLBT community members, workplace managers, faith community leaders, social service providers and others have found the class to be professionally and personally beneficial. The information offered is valuable to anyone and everyone who cares about GLBT people or issues. Following a recent Effective Educator Class, a participant sent the following note:“..as a gay man, I used to be ignorant about bisexual and transgender people - I said things about them that were untrue. After learning the components of sexual identity my eyes were opened. I understand how I’m put together, more importantly; I understand how others are put together. I feel as a weight has been lifted off me, I will now be able to celebrate our community with great pride for ALL.” A detailed class description, agenda, further schedule information and registration is available online.We need YOU - to Volunteer at OutFront Minnesota's justFair Lobby Day! Sign up for the justFair Lobby Day volunteer force! OutFront Minnesota's justFair Lobby Day requires the work of over 100 volunteers. It is our biggest single effort of the year. Start planning for our big day on the Capitol right now. Recruit friends and make a day of it. Get your school group, workplace group, and/or church group to sign up and have fun working and supporting the thousands of our community members, friends and allies who will be in attendance to rally for our equal rights. Sign up and be a part of the justFair Lobby Day volunteer information loop! Let's make this year's OutFront Minnesota justFair Lobby Day the best, most effective yet! We’re just getting started… Because of people like you, OutFront Minnesota and its allies were successful in keeping an anti-marriage amendment off the ballot in 2004. But our state government is still overrun with elected officials who want to permanently deem GLBT Minnesotans as second-class citizens. We say to them, we’re just getting started. If you’re outraged about the attacks on GLBT Minnesotans in the Legislature, if you share OutFront Minnesota’s commitment to building fairness in our state, if you care deeply about the value of equality, now is the time to make a gift to OutFront Minnesota. Now is the time to join the movement. Next week you’ll receive a letter asking for your support. Please make a contribution to OutFront Minnesota. The success of the movement depends on the investment of individuals. You can also make a gift through our secure online donation page.
...inside
OutFront OutFront Minnesota’s Anti-Violence Program has long provided a variety of advocacy and support services to GLBT victims/survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault and hate or bias crimes. Our advocacy services include a 24-hour crisis line and providing assistance with getting Orders for Protection and Harassment Orders. We also provide short-term crisis support counseling and in-person assistance at hospitals and police stations. Our advocacy includes training other service providers, community members and systems professionals about the unique dynamics of victimization within the GLBT communities. We recently received a call from a lesbian who was considering ending her relationship with her partner of ten years. Mary (not her real name) was “a little bit concerned about Abby’s (not her real name) temper when things didn’t go her way". Indeed, Abby had threatened to kill Mary if she ever left. OutFront Minnesota helped Mary understand that what was happening was not her fault, that this was domestic violence and that Mary had a right to be safe from harm. We helped Mary successfully file for an Order for Protection. We have worked together to develop a safety plan and identify resources and counseling options as well as legal options. For the first time in years, Mary wakes up each day and feels safer and happier than she did the day before. From direct service to trainings at shelters, colleges and other venues, OutFront Minnesota's Anti-Violence Program stands as the only agency dedicated to ensuring the safety of our state's GLBT citizens. Rebecca Waggoner Kloek is our Anti-Violence Program Coordinator. She can be reached at 612/822-0127 x101, toll free 800/800-0350 x101. Rebecca's email address is rwkloek@outfront.org.
Looking for Something to Do? Check it out each week for more events! If you received this edition of OutFront
Minnesota E-News as a forwarded message and would like to be added to
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sign-up
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largest GLBT political advocacy and direct service organization.
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