|
WINDY CITY TIMES
|
|
|
Mississippi police: Illegal to be openly gay
From a news release
2012-03-01
|
|
This article shared 3397 times since Thu Mar 1, 2012
|
|
JACKSON, MS -- Gay Mississippians tried to rally in Jackson this morning to draw attention to the need for equality under the law for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) residents of the state, but were turned away by the police. Despite having applied for a permit for a march in the city to highlight LGBT discrimination, organizers were informed shortly before the event that their permit had been denied and they had no right to rally in the city.
The primary organizer of the march, Bob Gilchrist, had organized the event on Facebook, and was expecting a large crowd for the march. The permit was denied even though event organizers were finalizing details to secure required liability insurance. When informed by police that the permit had been denied, those assembled for the march quickly changed plans under the threat of arrest if they were to proceed.
"Mississippi is notorious for basic human rights violations," said Bob Gilchrist, the event organizer. "It's a shame that, in 2012, the state is still maintaining that reputation."
Zach Magee, a Mississippi native who helped with the organizing behind the march, said, "I can't believe the state is still maintaining a campaign of fear and intimidation to oppress state residents. Mississippians organized this march and Mississippians were going to attend this march -- if the police can't maintain safety while also permitting gay Mississippians' freedom of speech, then I don't know why they're in the business of law enforcement."
"As a Mississippian forced to flee my home state to seek equality elsewhere, this decision by the Jackson police is reprehensible," said Robin McGehee, GetEQUAL's executive director and a Jackson native. "Despite Mississippi's long history of racial, gender, and economic discrimination, the state continues to use deceptive tactics like insurance requirements to prevent people from simply walking down the street as openly gay. You would think that Mississippi would have learned its lesson and would try to shake off the chains of its discriminatory past, but this action by Jackson police will simply cement the state's reputation as the leader of bigotry and discrimination."
Event organizers partnered with an existing rally at the Capitol building this morning to get their message out, and are currently exploring ways to take action publicly in the future.
Founded in 2010, GetEQUAL is a national grassroots organization whose mission is to empower the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) community and our allies to take bold action to demand full legal and social equality, and to hold accountable those who stand in the way. For more information, go to www.getequal.org, www.facebook.com/getequal, or www.twitter.com/getequal.
|
|
|
|
This article shared 3397 times since Thu Mar 1, 2012
|
ARTICLES YOU MIGHT LIKE |
---|
|
| | New Title IX rules protect LGBTQ+ students...to a point 2024-04-19 New Title IX guidelines finalized April 19 will protect the rights of LGBTQ+ students by federal law and further safeguards of victims of campus sexual assault, according to ABC News. But those protections don't extend to ...
|
| | WORLD Nigeria arrest, Chilean murderer, trans ban, Olivier Awards, marriage items 2024-04-19 Nigeria's Economic and Financial Crimes Commission's (EFCC's) decision to arrest well-known transgender woman Idris Okuneye (also known as Bobrisky) over the practice of flaunting money has sparked questions among several ...
|
| | NATIONAL Ohio law blocked, Trevor Project, Rev. Troy Perry, ICE suit, Elon Musk 2024-04-19 In Ohio, Franklin County Court of Common Pleas Judge Michael Holbrook temporarily blocked a Republican-backed state law banning gender-affirming care (such as puberty blockers and hormones) for transgender minors from ...
|
| | Supreme Court allows Idaho ban on gender-affirming care for minors 2024-04-18 The U.S. Supreme Court has granted a request by Republican Idaho Attorney General Raul Labrador to lift a lower court's temporary injunction preventing the state from enforcing its felony ban on gender-affirming care for minors, The ...
|
| | Appeals court overturns W. Va. trans sports ban 2024-04-17 On April 16, the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals sided with teen trans runner Becky Pepper-Jackson and overturned a West Virginia law that banned transgender athletes from competing on girls' and women's sports teams in ...
|
| | Fed appeals panel ruling helps trans athlete 2024-04-17 A three-judge federal appeals court panel ruled Tuesday (April 16) that West Virginia's law barring transgender female students from participating on female student sports teams violates federal law. In a 2 to 1 decision, the panel ...
|
| | WORLD Ugandan law, Japan, Cass report, Tegan and Sara, Varadkar done 2024-04-12 Ugandan LGBTQ+-rights activists asked the international community to mount more pressure on Uganda's government to repeal an anti-gay law that the country's Constitutional Court refused to nullify, PBS reported. Activist ...
|
| | NATIONAL Trans woman killed, Tenn. law, S. Carolina coach, Evan Low, Idaho schools 2024-04-12 Twenty-four-year-old Latina trans woman and makeup artist Meraxes Medina was fatally shot in Los Angeles, according to the website them, citing The Los Angeles Times. Authorities told the Times they found Medina's broken fingernail and a ...
|
| | LPAC, Arizona LGBTQ officials denounce Arizona Supreme Court ruling on abortion 2024-04-10 --From a press release - Washington, DC — Yesterday, in a decision that starkly undermines reproductive freedoms, the Arizona Supreme Court ruled to enforce a 160-year-old law that criminalizes abortion and penalizes healthcare providers who ...
|
| | Black LGBTQIA leaders applaud U of South Carolina head coach Staley for standing up for trans athlete inclusion 2024-04-08 --From a press release - WASHINGTON — On Sunday, April 7, the University of South Carolina's women's basketball team won the NCAA National Championship. Ahead of the championship game, South Carolina's head coach Dawn Staley made comments in support of transgend ...
|
| | NAIA bans trans athletes from women's sports 2024-04-08 The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) announced on April 8 that athletes will only be allowed to compete in women's sports if they were assigned female at birth, CBS Sports reported. The NAIA's Council of ...
|
| | Lambda Legal: NAIA proposed transgender sports ban disappointing, harmful reversal 2024-04-08 Lambda Legal: NAIA Proposed Transgender Sports Ban a Disappointing and Harmful Reversal "The NAIA announcement sends a dangerous message, is inconsistent with the law and science, and undercuts the organization's ...
|
| | For Deb Robertson, the end-of-life issue is very real 2024-04-07 For just about everyone, life is hard enough. However, talking about ending that life—especially when one is terminally ill—is just as difficult. Ten states have authorized medical aid in dying, although Illinois is not one of ...
|
| | KFF survey shows extent of LGBT-related discrimination 2024-04-07 KFF—an independent source of health policy research, polling and journalism—released "LGBT Adults' Experiences with Discrimination and Health Care Disparities: Findings from the KFF Survey of Racism, Discrimination, and Health." This ...
|
| | Lightfoot may be hired to investigate Dolton mayor, trustees 2024-04-06 A group of Dolton trustees is aiming to hire former Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfootwho is also an ex-federal prosecutorto investigate Mayor Tiffany Henyard, media outlets reported. The group wants Lightfoot ...
| |
|
|
|
|
| New Title IX rules protect LGBTQ+ students...to a point | | NATIONAL Ohio law blocked, Trevor Project, Rev. Troy Perry, ICE suit, Elon Musk | | SHOWBIZ Celine Dion, 'The People's Joker,' Billy Porter, Patti LuPone, 'Strange Way' | | LGBTQ+ Intergenerational Dialogue Project set to hold its second annual exhibition | | WORLD Nigeria arrest, Chilean murderer, trans ban, Olivier Awards, marriage items | |
|
|
|
|