Pursuing Opportunity in the States as Federal Rights Unravel

August 22, 2019

Transgender people lose critical protections at the federal level when a ban on serving in the military is reinstated and school guidance on protecting transgender students is rescinded. Despite these setbacks, grantees hold the line in the states and make progress in challenging environments.

Governors in North Carolina and Virginia sign executive orders protecting LGBT state employees from discrimination. After years of public education investments, Jacksonville, FL, passes LGBT nondiscrimination protections. For the first time ever, non-binary people have the option to update the gender marker on their driver’s license in California, Oregon, and Washington, DC.

In Colorado, the Gill Foundation donates $400,000 to build K-12 STEM labs in Englewood to create pathways and apprenticeship opportunities in these fields, especially for underserved and underrepresented students.