The past weeks have been incredibly hard for the LGBTQ and allied community. Pride celebrations were joined by vigils and protests. As I drove to Portland, Maine to see GLAD attorney Mary Bonauto as Pride Grand Marshall in her hometown I didn’t know what to expect. But I did know I needed community that day. I knew I needed to show up. And I’m so happy I did.

Thousands and thousands of us showed up. It was the LGBTQ community at its best: displaying courage instead of fear, expressing defiance in the face of opposition, and most importantly, sharing the love and pride that is the only antidote to hatred and bigotry.

This is what our movement has done so well. We did this with marriage equality. And it’s what we will continue to do. We’ll stand together for our youth and elders, for racial and economic justice, for transgender rights, and more.

At GLAD we are honoring those we have lost– those who danced at Pulse, the alarming number of transgender women of color who’ve been murdered this year – by recommitting ourselves to the fight for justice. We are working even harder to create a future of true equality.

Work like:

  • Our successful partnership with the ACLU to ensure a Virginia transgender teen’s right to access the boys’ restroom in his public high school—a case in federal district court that sets precedent for schools everywhere.
  • Our representation of Black, transgender student in Connecticut who was bullied because of her race and gender identity while the school cast a blind eye. ·
  • Our first-of-its-kind victory against a Catholic school that fired its food services manager for being married to his husband
  • Our key role in the Massachusetts coalition to secure protections for transgender residents in public spaces.

You have stood with GLAD as we achieved groundbreaking victories that reverberated across the country.

GLAD is there in good times and in bad, when the whole world is watching, and when no one is watching. We celebrated on the steps of the Supreme Court one year ago today. And then we rolled up our sleeves and went right back to work because we knew our opponents were not resting either. I invite you to stand with us now, at this critical moment in our movement, by making a gift to GLAD.

Thank you for being with us then, now, and going forward. Your support is changing lives and creating a better world for us all.

Towards Justice,

Janson