WE WON’T BE ERASED – EQAZ WILL FIGHT IN ARIZONA FOR TRANS & GENDER NON-CONFORMING PEOPLE
Phoenix, AZ, October 23, 2018–Gender identity and the right to freely and safely live that gender identity is one of the most fundamental forms of individual freedom and expression that exists in society. Just like sexual orientation, gender identity is a part of who we are, and we have a right to claim both the sexual orientation and gender identity that are true for each of us as individuals.
The Trump administration is trying, once again to attack this fundamental right to individual liberty and freedom. A memo leaked to the New York Times on October 21st, 2018 detailed how the administration is trying to narrowly redefine sex and gender in an attempt to rob trans and gender non-conforming people of legal recognition and status. These changes come in direct opposition to decades of judicial decisions defining legal protections in regard to sex and gender, and decades of medical and scientific advances recognizing gender and sex are much more than genitalia and are not determined by the sex assigned at birth.
“Equality Arizona will fight every effort of this administration to restrict the liberty, freedom, and expression of LGBTQ people in Arizona,” said Michael Soto, Executive Director of Equality Arizona.
“Equality Arizona will fight every effort of this administration to restrict the liberty, freedom, and expression of LGBTQ people in Arizona,” said Michael Soto, Executive Director of Equality Arizona. “This awful attempt to re-define sex and gender in ways that contradict the current legal, medical, and scientific understanding is an expression of hate and denial of the right of trans and gender non-conforming people to live with the same expectations of freedom and safety that cisgender people take for granted,” said Soto, “You cannot deny our humanity with the stroke of a pen and if you try, we will fight until we win.”
Trans and gender non-conforming people are valuable members of our society, our workplaces, of our schools, our communities, and our families. If you believe this too, we need you to step up, to voice the ways that you value trans and gender non-conforming people, and most of all we need you to vote on November 6th, 2018. Participation in our civic process is how we create the laws and regulation that shape our society. A truly inclusive society begins with you and your vote.
Please join us on November 2nd, 2018 for the We Exist and We Voterally at the Arizona state capitol, from 1:00pm to 3:00pm. We join with a large statewide coalition of organizations and groups that will fight for the dignity and freedom of transgender and gender non-conforming people in Arizona.
To trans folks living in Arizona, Equality Arizona understands and believes in the words of the great civil rights leader Fannie Lou Hamer, “nobody’s free until everybody’s free.” The LGBTQ movement in Arizona is only complete when it includes the trans and gender non-conforming community. It is time for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and queer community of Arizona to stand unequivocally with the trans and gender non-conforming community. Please know that we value you and see the many ways you contribute to and make our state and society better. If you need support during this time, please reach out to those closest to you or to resources like the Trans Lifeline: 1-877-565-8860.
Download the PDF of this statement here:
We are also proud to announce our support of the We Exist, We Vote, and We Won’t Be Erased Rally at the Arizona State Capitol on November 2nd from 1pm to 3pm.
Read the full details here: