يحث المدافعون على الإبلاغ عن البيانات لتلبية احتياجات الشباب من مجتمع الميم في دور الرعاية بعد تغيير قواعد وزارة الصحة والخدمات الإنسانية الأمريكية التي أصدرها ترامب

يحث المدافعون عن الشباب في ماساتشوستس الدولة على اتخاذ إجراء لجمع بيانات التوجه الجنسي والهوية الجنسية (SOGI) والإبلاغ عنها من أجل معالجة احتياجات الشباب LGBTQ بشكل مناسب في نظام رعاية الطفل.

يأتي الدفع المتجدد لجمع بيانات SOGI على مستوى الولاية والإبلاغ عنها في الوقت الذي تعمل فيه وزارة الصحة والخدمات الإنسانية الفيدرالية (HHS) نشرت اليوم قاعدتها النهائية التي تزيل عناصر البيانات المتعلقة بالتوجه الجنسي في نظام تحليل وإعداد التقارير عن التبني والرعاية الحاضنة المطلوب (AFCARS)، وهو التقرير نصف السنوي المطلوب على المستوى الفيدرالي عن جميع الأطفال في الرعاية الحاضنة.

المنظمات التي يقع مقرها في ماساتشوستس المدافعون القانونيون عن المثليين ومزدوجي الميل الجنسي ومغايري الهوية الجنسية (GLAD)، ومواطنو العدالة الأحداث (CFJJ)، ولجنة ماساتشوستس للشباب المثليين ومزدوجي الميل الجنسي ومغايري الهوية الجنسية، وبرنامج BUILD التابع لمؤسسة Roxbury YouthWorks، ومركز قانون الأطفال في ماساتشوستس (CLCM)، وداعمو SWAGLY لشباب المثليين ومزدوجي الميل الجنسي ومغايري الهوية الجنسية في منطقة ووستر و أكثر من مجرد كلماتأصدرت ولاية إلينوي البيان التالي الذي أدان القاعدة الجديدة التي وضعتها وزارة الصحة والخدمات الإنسانية، ودعت إلى اتخاذ إجراءات فورية لضمان جمع البيانات والإبلاغ عنها على مستوى الولاية:

يُعدّ شباب مجتمع الميم من أكثر الفئات ضعفًا في نظام رعاية الطفل لدينا. وبحذف بيانات التوجه الجنسي من تقارير AFCARS المطلوبة، تتخلى الحكومة الفيدرالية عن مسؤوليتها في فهم وتلبية احتياجات هؤلاء الشباب.

ال تم نشر قاعدة وزارة الصحة والخدمات الإنسانية في 12 مايو هذه محاولة أخرى من إدارة ترامب لإخفاء حياة مجتمع الميم، بمن فيهم شبابه. بإمكان ماساتشوستس، بل يجب عليها، أن تفعل ما هو أفضل.

على الصعيد الوطني، يُمثل شباب مجتمع الميم، وخاصةً شباب مجتمع الميم من ذوي البشرة الملونة، نسبةً كبيرةً في أنظمة رعاية الطفل. ينبغي أن يُولّد تداخل تجارب رهاب المثلية ورهاب التحول الجنسي، والعنصرية، والإساءة والإهمال، أعلى مستويات الرعاية والاهتمام لهؤلاء الشباب، ويبدأ ذلك بجمع البيانات التي تُبيّن هويتهم ومكانهم. في ماساتشوستس، نعلم أن 11.3% من شباب المرحلة الثانوية يُعرّفون أنفسهم بأنهم من مجتمع الميم. يحتاج جميع الشباب ويستحقون رعاية وخدمات مُراعية للثقافة ومتفهمة. بدون بيانات شفافة، تُجمع بطريقة مُراعية للثقافة، يستحيل معرفة ما إذا كنا نُفي بمسؤوليتنا تجاه شباب مجتمع الميم في الرعاية الحكومية، ونُعرّض هؤلاء الشباب لخطر أكبر بكثير من العواقب السلبية.

باعتبارنا منظمات تعمل على دعم رفاهية جميع الشباب، بما في ذلك شباب LGBTQ، في الكومنولث، فإننا ندعو المشرعين في الولاية، وإدارة بيكر، ووزارة الأطفال والأسر (DCF) إلى العمل لضمان جمع البيانات المتعلقة بحضور واحتياجات شباب LGBTQ في نظام رعاية الطفل في ولايتنا، والإبلاغ عنها، وتوظيفها لضمان البرامج والخدمات المناسبة.

يُعدّ جمع البيانات الحساسة والمراعية للاعتبارات الثقافية أمرًا بالغ الأهمية لفهم أعداد الشباب من مجتمع الميم المعرضين للخطر، وتوزعهم الجغرافي، واحتياجاتهم. فبدون فهم هوية هؤلاء الشباب المعرضين للخطر، ومكان وجودهم، لن نبذل كل ما في وسعنا لحمايتهم ودعمهم. ولا سيما في ضوء الفشل الذريع لإدارة ترامب، فإن ولاية ماساتشوستس تتمتع بالسلطة والالتزام اللازمين للتحرك.

على الصعيد المحلي، ورغم إعلان إدارة رعاية الأطفال والأسرة (DCF) التزامها بجمع هذه البيانات، إلا أنها لم تُجمع أو تُبلّغ عنها بشكل منهجي حتى الآن. ينبغي أن تشمل التشريعات المتعلقة بجمع بيانات إدارة رعاية الأطفال والأسرة (DCF) والإبلاغ عنها، بما في ذلك مشروع القانون H. 4163، المعروض حاليًا أمام لجنة الوسائل والطرق في مجلس نواب ماساتشوستس، التوجه الجنسي والهوية الجندرية، لضمان قدرة ماساتشوستس على فهم الفوارق بين الشباب من مجتمع الميم في نظام رعاية الطفل لدينا فهمًا كاملًا، ومن ثم معالجتها.

في يوم الاثنين، أرسلت GLAD وCFJJ خطابًا إلى رؤساء اللجان يحثون فيه على اعتماد التعديلات على H. 4163 إلزام DCF بجمع البيانات الديموغرافية حول التوجه الجنسي والهوية الجنسية. انقر هنا لعرض الرسالة.

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Statement of GLAD Executive Director Janson Wu on the Death of Ahmaud Arbery

GLAD joins in celebrating the life and mourning the death of Ahmaud Arbery.

As our hearts go out to Ahmaud’s family, friends and community, we also join in the collective outrage at the persistence of racist, hate-motivated violence that led to his untimely death. We join the call for accountability for a system that once again dismissed the death of a young black man and allowed the two white men who took his life to avoid responsibility until a public outcry made it impossible to do so.

GLAD joins in solidarity with all those working to uproot the racist and white supremacist rot that remains embedded in the structures of our society and manifests again and again in a coarse disregard for black life. Our work for true justice for all LGBTQ people and people living with HIV is not possible without our work for racial justice, today and every day.

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In response to the President Trump’s announcement of a planned Executive Order suspending immigration to the United States, Janson Wu, Executive Director of GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders, issued the following statement:

“We are grappling with a global health crisis that is resulting daily in the deaths of thousands. At a time when the president should be focused on bringing people together, he is instead choosing to exploit the crisis to push a racist, xenophobic political agenda. The attention and resources of our federal government need to be focused on ensuring we have adequate safety equipment to protect healthcare workers and others on the front lines; that we increase testing and support science and medical experts in developing treatments and a vaccine; and that we support those most vulnerable to the health and financial impacts of this pandemic while working towards a responsible path to economic recovery.

“We in the LGBTQ community continue to stand in solidarity with all immigrants, asylum seekers, and refugees, LGBTQ and non-LGBTQ. Immigrants, including foreign healthcare workers whose expertise is critical in this pandemic, will be part of what makes America stronger coming out of this crisis. Doubling down on divisive rhetoric about closing our country’s borders is not only cynical and un-American, it is a distraction from the real leadership we need from our government in this unprecedented moment.”

مدونة

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These last few weeks have challenged all of us in ways we never expected. So many of us are feeling anxious about our own health, and that of our families, loved ones, friends and community.

We are beginning to learn of people near and known to us getting sick, and watching the number of people affected by COVID-19 increase across the country. We are seeing the toll the pandemic is taking on frontline workers – from hospitals to grocery stores – and on our healthcare system overall.

I hope in this time you are finding ways to take care of your physical and mental wellbeing, which is more important than ever in times of extreme stress.

It’s clear now that the situation we are in will take months, not weeks, to resolve. We’re all going to need to prepare ourselves for uncertainty, and learn to remain resilient in the face of fear.

It’s not an easy task, but I’ve already seen our community step up in countless ways, to do what needs to be done to protect each other.

In the challenge of this moment, GLAD is adapting to make sure we can continue our critical mission uninterrupted. We are finding new and creative ways to work together, even as we are physically separated.

I’m grateful to GLAD’s team of staff, volunteers, and supporters who are pulling together to ensure that we are up to the challenge. Because now, more than ever, I understand how our community needs GLAD’s vital work.

Our community needs GLAD to share resources to navigate this pandemic, especially the most vulnerable among us.

Our community needs a place to call for help when they face discrimination, or need help navigating challenging systems. Our إجابات GLAD legal information and referral line remains open for business.

Our community needs GLAD to keep fighting for everyone who wants to serve our country during this national crisis, including transgender individuals seeking to serve in the military, which is already playing a critical role in providing food, health care, and other essential services.

Our community needs GLAD to protect LGBTQ people from being wrongly fired from their jobs, and as a result losing not only income but health care.

Our community needs GLAD to advocate for the release of as many people held in detention as is safe and possible, not just to protect their individual health, but also the collective health of the public.

Our community needs GLAD to ensure that families facing medical crises do not also have to fight to have their relationships recognized in emergency rooms.

And our community needs GLAD to remind policymakers the lessons from the HIV epidemic, that especially in the face of political pressure and fear, we must protect victims of COVID-19 from stigma and discrimination and ensure their medical privacy.

That is our mission in the weeks, months, and year ahead.

I want to share some personal thoughts about what we face moving forward.

Of course, like you, I am worried about loved ones, like my 74 year-old mother, who is far away and isolated in the basement of my sister’s home in Michigan to protect her health. It is my greatest hope that my family and yours stay safe and healthy.

But I have broader worries as well.

I worry that fear might cause us to turn away or against each other, instead of caring for the sick.

That panic will cause more harm to our public health systems than the disease itself.

That economic devastation will destroy the lives of vulnerable people who already don’t have enough of a safety net to count on.

That we will start to see our livelihoods and survival as a zero-sum game, instead of seeing our fates as tied to each other.

There is no such thing as a risk-free world, and we will all have to make personal decisions about what level of risk we are willing to make in order to protect and care for our fellow humans, in the months to come.

But we all also have an opportunity to ask ourselves, what more can I be doing to protect and care for my fellow humans?

That is what we will be called upon to answer, over and over again in the year to come, and I know that GLAD, and our community, will continue to do so, without pause.

Now, more than ever, our mission is critical and vital, and we must and we will do everything we can to protect our communities.

مدونة

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[UPDATE: 3/23/2020] Our COVID-19 resource page is live.

Dear Friends,

I wanted to share an update on how we at GLAD are responding to the situation regarding COVID-19.

Our highest priorities in this moment are the safety and wellbeing of our staff, interns, volunteers, and community members, as well as our collective responsibility to do all we can to lessen the risks to those who are most vulnerable to critical health impacts from this virus.

While our daily work for LGBTQ equality continues on, we, like so many, are temporarily adjusting the way we do our work according to the best public health recommendations and information available. Most GLAD staff are working from home whenever possible. This evolving situation may result in some disruptions or delayed communication, and I want to let you know about two particular areas that may impact our community during this time:

Our GLAD Answers legal information line remains available to support anyone experiencing discrimination or needing information about your legal rights. However, we may experience delays in responding to phone calls, to allow us to prioritize the most urgent needs. The fastest way to receive a response from GLAD Answers is to contact us at www.GLADAnswers.org.

We have cancelled all GLAD events scheduled over the next month, and will continue to assess the status of future events on a case by case basis as the situation evolves. We will reach out with information regarding specific events, as well as other ways to connect. You can also check GLAD.org for updates on the status of event.

Rest assured, though, our work won’t stop. GLAD will continue to be available, and I invite you to connect with us online or to contact GLAD Answers.

While best practice at the moment is to limit in-person social contact, taking those precautions does not mean turning away from one another.

One side effect of limiting public, workplace, and school gatherings may be isolation that can be particularly difficult for members of our LGBTQ community. And we know, too, there are those among us who are being particularly hard hit, including those most at risk for serious complications of COVID-19, communities who are being targeted with xenophobia and racism, and those without a sufficient safety net to withstand the economic impacts. We can all take this opportunity to reach out, to look for new ways to connect and support one another, and to remember that we are all in this together.

Our community is no stranger to a public health crisis, and we know from experience that the best way through is to work together, to stay focused on evidence-based information, and to treat one another with respect, care, and compassion.

That is how we will get through this moment, and that is how we will continue our fight for justice.

Be well, and take care of yourself and each other,

جانسون وو

المدير التنفيذي

P.S. We’ll be publishing resources shortly that we’re finding helpful to cope with the isolation from social distancing, and for additional support for those of us most vulnerable to the effects of this virus.

Doe v. Esper

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Defending a U.S. Naval officer من has served two extended tours of duty over nine years و is now facing involuntary discharge because she is transgender.

District Court for the District of Massachusetts
Filed on March 17, 2020

GLAD and NCLR filed suit on behalf of Jane Doe (plaintiff is proceeding anonymously to minimize risk to her), أn officer in the U.S. Navy من has served two extended tours of duty over nine years و is now facing involuntary discharge because she is transgender.

Doe v. Esper, filed in federal district court in Massachusetts, is the first challenge to the transgender military ban since it went into effect in April 2019. Doe, a dedicated, highly qualified and successful officer, is seeking emergency relief so she can continue to serve.

Doe came out as transgender after the ban went into effect in April 2019. She is not protected by the “grandfather clause” that permits continued military service by transgender troops من came out before the ban. The current policy mandates the discharge of any service member who comes out as transgender and seeks to undergo a gender transition.

New Challenge to Transgender Military Ban Filed by Naval Officer

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March 18, 2020

اتصال:
Amanda Johnston, GLAD | ajohnston@glad.org | (617) 417-7769
Christopher Vasquez, NCLR | cvasquez@nclrights.org | (415) 365 -1337

Naval Officer Files New Challenge to Trump’s Transgender Military Ban

Doe v. Esper is the first challenge to be filed since the transgender military ban went into effect

BOSTON, MA — Jane Doe, an officer in the U.S. Navy who has served two extended tours of duty over nine years and is now facing involuntary discharge because she is transgender, has filed suit challenging the transgender military ban. The case, Doe v. Esper, filed in federal district court in Massachusetts, is the first challenge to the ban since it went into effect in April 2019. Doe, a dedicated, highly qualified and successful officer, is seeking emergency relief so she can continue to serve. Four other cases seeking to overturn the transgender military ban broadly are currently pending in federal court.

“Our plaintiff is the first transgender service member to seek emergency relief since the ban went into effect,” said Jennifer Levi, Transgender Rights Project Director at GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders (GLAD). “As an experienced officer, all she seeks is the ability to continue serving her country on the same terms as others. The Navy has invested nearly a decade in her training, and she is committed to serving for years to come. It destabilizes and debases our military to discharge Doe and other highly qualified people under a politically motivated policy that has no basis in anything other than bias. Our current national emergency is a reminder, if we needed any, how critically important it is that the institutions upon which we all rely make decisions based on evidence and competency.”

“Our plaintiff’s situation highlights the serious harms the ban is causing to dedicated service members and to the military,” said Shannon Minter, Legal Director at the National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR). “The current policy mandates the discharge of any transgender service member, without regard for their fitness or value to the military, and even when replacing them would be extremely costly and disruptive. We are asking the court to prevent this senseless result for our client, so that she can continue to use her years of training and expertise to benefit our country.”

Doe came out as transgender after the ban went into effect in April 2019. She is not protected by the “grandfather clause” that permits continued military service by transgender troops who came out before the ban. The current policy mandates the discharge of any service member who comes out as transgender and seeks to undergo a gender transition.

Jane Doe is represented by GLAD and NCLR, which have been at the center of the legal fight challenging the transgender military ban since filing دو ضد ترامب, the first of four initial cases filed against the ban, on August 9, 2017. بالإضافة إلى Doe v. Esper و دو ضد ترامب, GLAD and NCLR also represent plaintiffs in a third case challenging the ban, ستوكمان ضد ترامب. For more information visit www.notransmilitaryban.org

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We are deeply dismayed to learn of the recent death of 19-year-old Yampi Mendez Arocho, a transgender man killed in Puerto Rico.

Arocho’s death is the third known violent death of a member of the transgender community this year. We must all do more to end this epidemic of violence and to combat the discrimination, misunderstanding, and hate that fuel it.

GLAD rises in solidarity with Arocho’s loved ones and friends, and with our transgender community everywhere. We will continue working for a world in which all of us are safe, are valued, and can thrive no matter who we are.

As always, for those needing additional support, we encourage you to reach out to resources like Trans LifeLine و ال مشروع تريفور. For those in the New England area, GLAD’s legal information line, إجابات GLAD, is available to provide information and resources regarding discrimination.

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WASHINGTON — Today, a coalition of organizations, including the Human Rights Campaign, National Center for Transgender Equality, GLBTQ Legal Advocates and Defenders (GLAD), Modern Military Association of America, National Center for Lesbian Rights, Lambda Legal, American Civil Liberties Union, and Palm Center, expressed disappointment that the final FY20 National Defense Authorization bill does not include the Speier/Brown amendment, which was previously approved by the House of Representatives in a strong bipartisan vote of 242 to 187. The language would have codified non-discrimination in our Armed Forces and ended the Trump Administration’s ban on transgender service members. They released the following joint statement:

We are profoundly disappointed that this bipartisan amendment to end the ban on bravely serving transgender service members was not included in the final version of the FY20 National Defense Authorization Act.

Transgender troops served openly and honorably without incident for three years before this reckless ban on their service was put into place by the Trump-Pence Administration. Military leadership, medical experts, and defense budget experts have all provided evidence that the ban is without merit, costs the taxpayer, and is damaging to military readiness.

Although House and Senate Democratic leaders fought to retain this provision to end the ban, the White House, House Armed Services Chairman Mac Thornberry (R-TX), Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman James Inhofe (R-OK), and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) fought vigorously to remove it, and ultimately prevailed.

It is unconscionable that thousands of honorably serving transgender service members and their families will continue to live under the threat of discharge simply because of who they are. This ban is based on bias, not evidence, and is opposed by the American people, military experts, and elected officials across the political spectrum.

We are deeply grateful to House Armed Services Committee Chairman Adam Smith (D-WA), Senate Armed Services Committee Ranking Member Jack Reed (D-RI) and Rep. Jackie Speier (D-CA) for their ongoing leadership on this important issue of military readiness.”

Currently, thousands of service member face discharge if they come out as transgender, while others see their careers at risk because they already have. The Trump Administration has refused to disclose any data on discharge proceedings under the ban.

A Gallup poll in June found that 71% of Americans support the open service of transgender people in the military, including a clear majority of the nation’s veterans.

This year, the الجمعية الطبية الأمريكية، ال الجمعية الأمريكية لعلم النفس، و American Psychiatric Association all released statements asserting that there is no medically valid reason to exclude transgender people from military service. Through the Palm Center, former military surgeons general released a report unequivocally dismantling the erroneous claim that transgender service members are medically unfit to serve.

Last year, under oath before the Senate Armed Services Committee, the highest-ranking officers of each branch of the military stated there is no threat to military readiness or unit cohesion by the inclusion of trans service members, nor were there any reports that the three years in which trans service members were permitted to openly serve presented any problems.

Ninth Circuit Amicus Brief in Contraceptive Coverage Litigation

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On November 18, 2018, the Departments of Health and Human Services, Labor, and Treasury published two final rules that will deprive thousands of people from meaningful access to contraceptive health care services. The Religious Exemption Rule broadly exempt nearly every employer or university with a religious or moral objection from complying with the Affordable Care Act’s requirement to provide coverage for comprehensive preventative health services, including no-cost coverage for contraceptive services.

GLAD has participated in a friend-of-the-court brief to ensure that our federal government is held accountable to two basic constitutional obligations: It must afford all people equal treatment under the law and it cannot impose laws that disfavor individuals who seek to exercise their fundamental constitutional rights.

Read the full brief here.