News in Brief

Hearing on N.H. marriage equality bill

On Thursday, Feb. 5 at 1:00 p.m. the Judiciary Committee of the New Hampshire legislature will hold a hearing on a marriage equality bill. Testimony will also be heard on a transgender rights bill. Co-sponsors of this bill are Representatives James Splaine, Barbara Richardson, Paul McEachern, and Edward Butler. New Hampshire has had a civil union law on the books since 2007 but this new bill proposes full marriage equality for same sex couples.

Splaine introduced a civil union bill in 2006 that passed in 2007. He offered an amendment to offer full equality for marriage but it was denied. In December Splaine commented that he believed people will see the fairness of full equality in New Hampshire, as the right to civil unions of same-sex couples has been mostly well received.

Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders (GLAD) is running regional campaigns with the goal of having same-sex marriage legalized by 2012 in all six New England states. GLAD and Mass Equality are collaborating in the "6 x 12" effort with Equality Maine, Marriage Equality Rhode Island, Vermont Freedom to Marry, and a variety of allies in New Hampshire. Same-sex marriage is already legal in Connecticut and Massachusetts.

The hearing will take place in room 208 of the Legislative Office Building, behind the State House at 107 N. Main Street in Concord, NH. Members of the community are invited to attend the hearing to listen or offer their testimony.

For more information, please contact [email protected].
-- Gary Grace

ACLU to hold panel on Prop 8 at Bay State conference

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Massachusetts will hold its annual conference Feb. 7 at UMass Boston, and national ACLU attorney Leslie Cooper will be on hand to discuss the current state of the lawsuit to overturn California's Proposition 8, which banned marriage equality for same-sex couples. The ACLU is one of the organizations suing to overturn Prop 8 in the California Supreme Court, and the court could hear arguments in the case as early as March.

"Because Prop 8 has been such a big issue in people's minds since last November we wanted to let people know what's going on in the work in California," said Chris Ott, communications manager for the ACLU of Massachusetts, who will be moderating the Prop 8 panel discussion at the conference.

Ott said the panel will also include Gavi Wolfe, legislative specialist for the ACLU of Massachusetts, and Ryan MacNeely, one of the organizers of the Join the Impact rally against Prop 8 last November.

"Gavi in particular is going to be talking about our work here in Massachusetts trying to get the transgender [non-discrimination and hate crimes] bill passed, and Ryan will be talking about the national work against Prop 8, these rallies taking place and some of the work on the local level," said Ott.

The overall theme of this year's conference is "Reclaiming our civil liberties" and it will focus on the efforts to bolster civil liberties in a range of areas, including LGBT rights, under President Barack Obama's new administration.

For more information on the ACLU of Massachusetts annual conference, or to register, visit www.aclum.org/2009.
-- Ethan Jacobs

AntiViolence Project to launch survey on transgender hate crimes

As LGBT advocates focus on passing a transgender non-discrimination and hate crimes bill in Massachusetts this legislative session, the Anti-Violence Project is working to collect data about hate crimes perpetrated against the trans community to help make the case for the legislation. Don Gorton, chair of the Anti-Violence Project, which advocates against LGBT hate crimes, said the organization is creating a survey instrument to document incidents of anti-trans hate crimes that took place over the last seven years that did not result in murder. Gorton said that he believes the media has provided coverage of anti-transgender murders, but he said there is little public awareness about other serious hate crimes directed at the community.

"My impression is there's been a great deal of attention in the press to transgender murder ... but there's been less attention to crimes that are short of murder. Often they involve serious bodily injury, but there's been little attention," said Gorton.

The Anti-Violence Project has reached out to other state LGBT organizations to seek their help in contacting transgender hate crime victims to convince them to take the survey, once it is ready. Gorton said he is recruiting survey participants through established organizations, rather than putting the survey online, because he wants to ensure that all participants are transgender hate crime victims.

Gorton said he also hopes to administer the survey in about four other states to show a larger range of anti-trans hate crimes. He has not yet selected those states, but he said he plans to administer the survey in states with an organized transgender community to facilitate recruiting survey participants.

Gorton said he hopes to have results from the survey ready to present to the public by the end of the year.
- Ethan Jacobs

GLAD announces new board officers and members

Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders (GLAD) has made some major changes to its board of directors. On December 15 the board of directors held elections for its 2009 board officers, nabbing Rick McCarthy as president, Dianne R. Philips as vice president, Sandy Anderson as treasurer and Renda Mott as clerk, all of whom have been instrumental in helping secure funding for GLAD's groundbreaking legal work, according to GLAD's Executive Director Lee Swizlow.

GLAD is New England's leading legal rights organization dedicated to ending discrimination based on sexual orientation, HIV status, and gender identity and expression. GLAD helped bring the lawsuits that resulted in marriage equality in Massachusetts and Connecticut.

Rick McCarthy has a wealth of experience; he previously served as the Board's vice president and is a senior vice president at Bank of America in their global financial services sales organization. He has over 25 years of banking experience.

GLAD Executive Director Lee Swislow is confident that the board will flourish under McCarthy's direction.

"Rick McCarthy combines his long history with the GLAD Board with his professional experience in the private sector," said Swislow. "He is focused on outcomes and results, challenging both the board and staff to say what we want to achieve and then find a way to get there. Rick will bring an unlimited amount of energy and excitement to the board, inspiring everyone to match his enthusiasm."

Vice President Dianne R. Philips is a partner in the Boston office of Holland & Knight, where she practices regulatory, energy, and environmental law. She also co-chairs the firm's GLBT Workgroup, whose mission is to develop and promote GLBT lawyers. The group participated in GLBT-focused activities such as pro bono representation of HIV positive asylum seekers and led the firm to sponsor the annual Gay, Lesbian, Straight Education Network's "Respect Awards." Phillips also previously served as co-chair for the 2008 Annual Spirit of Justice Award dinner.

Treasurer Sandy Anderson is a vice president and director of marketing at GE Healthcare in Boston. She is responsible for strategies centered on growth of revenue and market share through marketing operations, strategic marketing, and channel management. Clerk Ronda Mott is a principal consultant and implementation manager at Eagle Investment Systems, a subsidiary of the bank of New York Mellon. She is a past co-chair of GLAD's Spirit of Justice Dinner, and previously served on the Board of Governors of the Human Rights Campaign and Fenway Community Health Clinic.

The board of directors also made two new additions to the board, Marianne F. Monte and Richard J. Yurko.

Johanna Schulman, GLAD's outgoing president, said she is proud to have been a part of the organization's success.

"GLAD's victories belong to our incredible staff, our courageous plaintiffs, and our generous donors whose ongoing commitment to GLAD allows us to pursue our work," she said.

GLAD's Executive Director Lee Swislow spoke glowingly of Schulman's commitment to GLAD.

"She has consistently provided incredible vision and leadership, ensuring that the GLAD Board provides the support and oversight the organization needs to continue our work to achieve our mission," said Swislow.

The new appointees will look to continue GLAD's good work in rallying for equal rights for members of the GLBT community.
- Gary Grace

Fenway Health, new location and logo

Fenway Community Health Center has made changes to its name and logo, and will move its Boston headquarters from 7 Haviland Street to 1340 Boylston Street in the coming weeks. The organization will now be operating under the name Fenway Health and hopes to open its new location on Monday, March 30.

The mission of Fenway Health is to enhance the physical and mental health of its community, which includes those who are gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender. If all goes to plan, the move will occur by the end of March.

Dr. Stephen Boswell, CEO of Fenway Health explained the symbolism in the new logo. According to the organization's website, the bars represent the "F" and "H" in Fenway Health, symbolizing "equals health," because improving the health of LGBT people, people living with HIV/AIDS, neighborhood residents, and the larger community is at the core of everything done at Fenway Health.

Fenway Health is also home to the Fenway Institute, an interdisciplinary center for research, training, education and policy development on national and international health issues. The organization's mission is to ensure access to high-quality, culturally competent care and to reduce health disparities for traditionally underserved communities, including LGBT community members and those affected by HIV/AIDS.

For more information visit www.fenwayhealth.org.
- Gary Grace