In 2000, in the days after the passage of California’s so-called “,” I remember getting an e-mail that included this quote: “Failure is just success that hasn’t happened yet.” I can’t remember who those words were attributed to, but I do remember, in the freshness of that defeat, that they didn’t make me feel particularly hopeful.
This year, even in defeat, I see a lot of reason for hope. Yes, our entire community is hurt and angered by the passage of . Add to it the defeats in , and , and it can feel like LGBT folk have been singled out as a kind of national punching bag. Even so, the poll numbers show that Americans’ recognition of our rights is growing. Just eight years ago, Californians denied our right to marry by a whopping 23 percentage points. This year, the margin was just five points. None of this year’s anti-LGBT initiatives even came close to the 70 and 80 percent approval we . American attitudes toward recognizing the civil rights of LGBT people are changing, even if we aren’t winning elections — yet.
Already our community has shown that we aren’t going to take these defeats lying down. Seeing LGBT people and our straight allies taking to the streets to protest — in California and across the country — is inspiring. Yet, there is still more work to do. After the protests are over, we need to get back to the work of building on the progress we’ve achieved, so that the lessons of this year’s failures ensure our future success.
Here are three things we can do — NEED to do — if we’re going to reverse the damage done by these initiatives:
1. Talk it up!
When it comes to LGBT rights, nothing changes people’s hearts and minds more effectively than an actual lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender person telling their own story in their own words. If a coworker, neighbor or acquaintance knows your story and the impact it will have on your life if they vote to take your rights away, they’re much less likely to do so.See the section for more information.
2. Join a campaign (or start one)!
Protests are a great way to draw attention to an issue, but once the post-election anger dies down, there’s more work to be done. Coalitions need to be built. Funds need to be raised. Envelopes need to be stuffed and voters need to be called. Use the Find Local Groups tool on our and contact your local LGBT rights group or ACLU affiliate to find out what’s going on in your area.
If there’s no campaign nearby, get a few people together and start one! The section of Get Busy, Get Equal has a detailed toolkit to help you get started. Whether you petition your local school district to pass an anti-discrimination policy, work with your city council to establish a domestic partnership registry, or push your legislators to extend partner benefits to state employees, a successful campaign in your community not only helps LGBT people now, but lays important stepping-stones to marriage equality.
3. Spread the word!
If there’s one deficit that this election did show, it’s this: we need more people in our movement. To secure legal recognition of LGBT rights, we’re going to need more of our supporters — gay and straight alike — to get involved and start taking action. Help us spread the word by letting your friends know about this website. If you’re on Facebook, and ask your friends to do the same. If you’ve got a blog, link to us. Heck, shout about us from a hilltop if you think it’ll get your neighbors moving.
Anyone and everyone who cares about LGBT equality — whether in California or Arkansas or Idaho or New York — needs to get to work if we’re going to recognize the goal of marriage equality in our lifetimes. So, wherever in the country you are, get busy and let’s get equal!
Learn More About the Issues on This Page
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Press ReleaseDec 2024
LGBTQ Rights
President Biden Must Veto Defense Bill Attacking Military Families with Transgender YouthPresident Biden Must Veto Defense Bill Attacking Military Families with Transgender Youth
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate today passed a version of the National Defense Authorization Act that would ban coverage for gender-affirming care for transgender youth whose parents are active-duty military personnel. The American Civil Liberties Union is opposing final passage of the defense bill over the inclusion of this health care ban and calling on President Joe Biden to veto the bill. Section 708 of the NDAA would prohibit insurance coverage for “medical interventions for the treatment of gender dysphoria” such as hormone therapy and puberty-suppressant medications, which Speaker Mike Johnson says would “permanently ban transgender medical treatment for minors.” The same treatments would be covered by TRICARE for any medical purpose other than treating gender dysphoria, the clinical diagnosis for the psychological distress experienced by transgender people related to their gender identity. “By passing this bill, the House and Senate are forcing thousands of active-duty service members to choose between their careers in the military and the future of their transgender children,” said Mike Zamore, national director of policy & government affairs at the ACLU. “This unconscionable and unjustifiable attack on those families stands in direct contrast to President Joe Biden’s legacy of defending the civil rights of transgender Americans — including when few in his own party showed the courage to do so. President Biden should cement his legacy by vetoing this bill and sending it back to Congress to pass without Speaker Johnson’s last minute health care ban for servicemembers’ kids.” If signed by President Biden, this health care ban would be the first new anti-LGBTQ provision enacted by Congress and signed into law by the president since the enactment of the military’s since-repealed “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy for LGBTQ servicemembers and the since-repealed federal law barring recognition of same-sex marriages known as the Defense of Marriage Act. It is unknown how many transgender youth are currently enrolled in TRICARE or how many of those enrolled are currently receiving coverage for gender-affirming care. In one 2022 analysis, 2,500 minor patients sought care for gender dysphoria through TRICARE Prime insurance at military or civilian treatment facilities in 2017, and 900 received puberty suppressants or gender-affirming hormones. Earlier this month, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in a landmark case brought by the ACLU, the ACLU of Tennessee, Lambda Legal, and Akin Gump on behalf of three families and a medical provider challenging a Tennessee ban on gender-affirming hormonal therapies for transgender youth on the grounds the ban violates the Equal Protection Clause of the U.S. Constitution. -
Press ReleaseDec 2024
LGBTQ Rights
Montana Court Blocks State From Refusing to Correct Sex Markers on Transgender People's Birth Certificates and Driver's LicensesMontana Court Blocks State From Refusing to Correct Sex Markers on Transgender People's Birth Certificates and Driver's Licenses
HELENA, Mont. – A Montana court has granted a preliminary injunction preventing the state of Montana from enforcing policies that bar transgender people from obtaining accurate sex designations on their birth certificates and driver’s licenses. After a prior restriction on amendments of birth certificates was struck down by the courts, in early 2024 the state of Montana enacted a new rule that categorically bars transgender Montanans from correcting the sex designation on their birth certificates. Around the same time, the Montana Department of Justice adopted a policy similarly restricting amendment of driver’s licenses. The plaintiffs challenged these policies in state district court, arguing that they violate various constitutional provisions, including the right to equal protection of the law. In a recent Montana Supreme Court decision, two justices concluded that discrimination on the basis of transgender status – as the state is engaging in here – is a form of sex discrimination that violates the Montana Constitution’s equal protection clause. The plaintiffs, two transgender women, are represented by the American Civil Liberties Union, the ACLU of Montana, and Nixon Peabody LLP. Plaintiff Jessica Kalarchik, a veteran who served in the United States Army for 31 years, said: “After finally being able to live my life openly as the woman I know myself to be, I am frustrated that my birth state, Montana, wants me to carry around a birth certificate that incorrectly lists my sex as male. I live my life openly as a woman, I am treated as a woman in my daily life, and there is no reason I should be forced to carry a birth certificate that incorrectly identifies me as male. Fortunately, the court agrees that this ridiculous policy should not be in effect.” “Once again the State of Montana chose to adopt a draconian policy that is clearly intended to marginalize transgender Montanans, only for that discriminatory action to be blocked by the courts,” said Akilah Deernose, executive director for the ACLU of Montana. “Here in Montana we treasure our right to privacy and to live our lives free from governmental intrusion. The State of Montana clearly has not learned any lessons from the past few years, where courts have repeatedly struck down unconstitutional laws targeting transgender Montanans.” “Forcing anyone to carry documents that contradict their identity unjustly violates their rights to privacy, equal treatment, and not being compelled to convey a government message about their sex that they disagree with,” said Malita Picasso, staff attorney for the ACLU’s LGBTQ & HIV Project. “Such a policy marks transgender people for further mistreatment and discrimination, essentially requiring them to carry papers that out them as transgender any time they need to provide identity documents. Fortunately, the court has refused to allow the state of Montana to subvert the freedom of transgender Montanans to control their own identity as this case goes forward.” In granting the plaintiffs’ motion for a preliminary injunction, the court held, “[i]f the challenged state actions discriminate against transgender individuals on the basis of their transgender status, they also necessarily discriminate the basis of sex.” The state has the option of appealing the district court’s ruling to the Montana Supreme Court, but the underlying case will proceed in district court. A trial has not yet been scheduled. -
FloridaDec 2024
LGBTQ Rights
Keohane v. DixonKeohane v. Dixon
On September 30, 2024, the Florida Department of Corrections rescinded its policy regarding treatment of gender dysphoria, which allowed for hormone therapy when deemed medically necessary, as well as access to clothing and grooming standards that accord with one’s gender identity. Under this new policy, grooming and clothing accommodations have been stripped away, and hormone therapy is not permitted unless an exception is deemed constitutionally required. The ACLU brought a class action challenging the policy. -
IdahoDec 2024
LGBTQ Rights
Robinson v. LabradorRobinson v. Labrador
Two incarcerated transgender women have sued the state of Idaho alleging that HB 688, a 2024 law barring state funding for gender-affirming medical care for transgender people, denies them access to the health care their doctors have prescribed for them and is a violation of their Eighth Amendment right to be free from cruel and unusual punishment. They represent a class of all incarcerated folks within the state of Idaho who face the loss of hormone therapy due to HB 668.