MAPping the Movement

MAP (the Movement Advancement Project) is releasing its 2010 National LGBT Movement Report. This report examines revenue and expenses, fundraising and fundraising efficiency, and other indicators of financial health for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) social justice advocacy organizations.

Surprisingly, less than four percent of all LGBT adults in the U.S. donated $35 or more to these LGBT organizations. While organizations are generally effective at retaining smaller donors (those giving $35 or more) year over year, the number of larger donors (those giving $1,000 or more) is dropping and not easily replaced.

The staffs of participating organizations are diverse, roughly mirroring the broader U.S. population: 32 percent identify as people of color (12 percent African American, 12 percent Latino/a, 7 percent Asian/Pacific Islander and 1 percent Native American or other). Also, 46 percent are women and 6 percent identify as transgender.

While movement organizations overall experienced significant declines in revenue in 2009 compared with 2008, their financial health remains strong due to reduced expenses and efficient fundraising. Movement groups are highly efficient in their fundraising and programming operations, with all 39 participants exceeding the efficiency standards of both the American Institute of Philanthropy and the Better Business Bureau Wise Giving Alliance. An average of 79 percent of expenses is spent on programs and services, 9 percent on management and general expenses, and only 12 percent on fundraising.

The 2010 National LGBT Movement Report provides a comprehensive snapshot of the financial health of LGBT social justice advocacy organizations. The 39 organizations examined for the 2010 report collectively represent 69% of the budgets of all LGBT social justice advocacy organizations. Among the key findings:

Revenue and Expenses. Organizations are experiencing significant declines in revenue (down 20% from 2008 to 2009), a sign of the combined effects of the economic downturn and decreased giving in an off-election year (2009). Organizations are adjusting to revenue declines by cutting expenses; 2010 budget estimates are down 18% from 2009 to 2010.

Fundraising and Fundraising Efficiency. Organizations are faring relatively well at retaining smaller donors, but are losing larger donors who give $1,000 or more per year. Fewer donors are attending fundraising events and organizations show less income from these events as a result. However, despite recent fundraising challenges, LGBT social justice advocacy organizations continue to be quite efficient in their fundraising, with an average of 79% of expenses being spent on programs and services, 9% on management and general expenses, and only 12% on fundraising.

Other Indicators of Financial Health. Other indicators remain strong. Reduction of expense budgets has helped organizations maintain good average working capital, liquidity ratios, and cash and cash equivalents.

Participating Organizations:
ACLU LGBT & AIDS Project
CenterLink
COLAGE
Council for Global Equality
Empire State Pride Agenda
Equality California
Equality Federation
Equality Forum
Family Equality Council
Freedom to Marry
Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders (GLAD)
Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD)
Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund and Leadership Institute
Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN)
Gay-Straight Alliance Network
GroundSpark
Human Rights Campaign (HRC)
Immigration Equality & Immigration Equality Action Fund
In the Life Media
Lambda Legal
Log Cabin Republicans & Liberty Education Forum
MassEquality
National Black Justice Coalition
National Center for Lesbian Rights
National Center for Transgender Equality
National Gay and Lesbian Task Force
National Youth Advocacy Coalition
New York City Gay and Lesbian Anti-Violence Project
Out & Equal Workplace Advocates
The Palm Center
Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG)
Point Foundation
Servicemembers Legal Defense Network
Services & Advocacy for GLBT Elders (SAGE)
Soulforce
Sylvia Rivera Law Project
Transgender Law Center
The Trevor Project
(One organization wished to remain anonymous)

Protecting Marriage From ... Southern Conservative Christians!

In light of the proposed antigay marriage amendment, here's some interesting news on a true threat to this institution.

From The Daily Texan: According to the National Center for Health Statistics, the average divorce rate in the United States is 47.9 percent. A recent study conducted by University of Iowa sociology professor Jennifer Glass found that conservative Christians, especially those in the South, are among the groups most likely to divorce.

Presenting her findings at the University of Texas at Austin Glass said, “Politically and religiously conservative states, especially in the Deep South, exhibit higher divorce rates than politically and religiously liberal states in the Northeast and Midwest.”

Glass identified a number of factors contributing to this statistical reality. She suggested that the prohibition of sex before marriage among Christians leads to marriage at an earlier age, and compared that to lower divorce rates among residents in more liberal and less religious areas who are more likely to live together for extended periods of time.

Glass also noted that teachings against abortion and birth control lead to “shotgun weddings,” which accelerate young conservative Protestants into adulthood and early marriages. She compared those teen marriages to the average age of marriage for American women, which is 27.



The study also noted that young married conservatives in southern states have higher divorce rates because of financial concerns and problems relating to lower degrees of education and increased unemployment.

Despite these findings, Equality NC remains committed to the ideal that all citizens in North Carolina deserve access to the same rights (even conservative Christians, though are focus is on the marginalized and commonly discriminated against LGBT community). To help us work to stop the current attempt to make LGBT North Carolinians into second-class citizens, click here.

Face[book]ing LGBT Relationships

Facebook has added "civil union" and "domestic partnership" to its "relationship status" options in user profiles, following an anti-bullying initiative called 'Network of Support' in consultation with LGBT groups that began last October.

GLAAD President Jarrett Barrios said, "Today, Facebook sent a clear message in support of gay and lesbian couples to users across the globe. By acknowledging the relationships of countless loving and committed same-sex couples in the U.S. and abroad, Facebook has set a new standard of inclusion for social media. As public support for marriage equality continues to grow, we will continue to work for the day when all couples have the opportunity to marry and have their relationship recognized by their community, both online and off."

LGBTs in Black History Month

February is Black History Month, which means it's also the month to celebrate black LGBT folks in history. Check out BlackedOUT History:

"LGBTQ Black folks have been major contributors to society and social justice movements for hundreds of years! From the famous scientist George Washington Carver to the legendary blues singer Ma Rainey – LGBTQ Black figures have made long-lasting contributions and have had a significant influence on U.S. culture. It is important for GSAs to celebrate the contributions of Black LGBTQ people and to advocate for the visibility of these important historical figures. Recognizing how interconnected our oppressions are makes our movements stronger.

One way GSA clubs do this is by celebrating Black History Month every February. If your school has no Black History Month celebration, organize with your GSA to start an official commemoration at your school. Work with administration and staff, student groups, and others to ensure the lives of LGBTQ Black historical figures are included in your school’s activities.

Here are some helpful ideas of activities you can do at your school during Black History Month:

Teach Your School!

• Create a PowerPoint presentation highlighting important Black LGBTQ leaders and present it to your classes. Make sure to include leaders that are not as well known. You can do your presentations in ALL of your classes because LGBTQ Black folks have made contributions in EVERY subject including music, literature, art, science, health and more.
• Train your social studies and English teachers on Black LGBTQ authors and historical figures and suggest ways they could incorporate them and their biographies into their lessons.
• Work with your school librarian or administration to make sure there is a Black History display board that includes LGBTQ people, as well as books by important authors like Langston Hughes and Lorraine Hansberry.
• Organize with other student clubs, such as the Black Student Union, to make sure the month’s activities include LGBTQ leaders. To learn more about building successful coalitions, see our resource Coalition Building.
• Invite speakers to your school who can talk about LGBTQ Black history.
• Organize discussions on the current events related to LGBTQ Black folks that demonstrate how homophobia, transphobia, and racism affect their lives today.
• Highlight local LGBTQ Black people who have given back to your community.
• Screen a film like Brother Outsider, which documents the life of Civil Rights leader Bayard Rustin.

Be Creative!

• Organize a poster art campaign or contest featuring LGBTQ Black historical figures. Create a display of pictures and biographies. You can find a list of some of these leaders at our BlackedOUT History page on GSA Network’s website.
• Create an LGBTQ Black History Timeline and display it in your school.
• Use your school’s public announcements to share stories! Play sound clips from legendary blues singers Ma Rainey and Bessie Smith. Read poetry from Audre Lorde and Countee Cullen, or read selections of important speeches by Bayard Rustin.

Use Social Media!

• Highlight important figures via your GSA’s social networking sites like Facebook, Myspace, and Twitter. Make videos, post photos, tweet, and even make a Facebook or Wiki page for your favorite icon.
• Learn about and celebrate the LGBTQ Black art of voguing! Host a workshop, watch videos online as a group, and research the history of this dance art.

Remember that having one month of commemoration of the lives of LGBTQ Black people is just the beginning! Have ongoing conversations with your GSA about why it’s important to acknowledge and celebrate the contributions of LGBTQ people of color to society and to social justice movements and why it’s important to build an anti-racist GSA. For more information, see our resource Building Anti Racist GSAs.

Most of all, have fun learning, teaching and celebrating some of our most important LGBTQ leaders and community members in history!

LGBTQ Black Historical Figures

Name	Date-of-Birth Date-of-Death	Profession	Quote
Alvin Ailey Jr.	Jan. 5, 1931 Dec. 1, 1989	Choreographer	“I am trying to show the world that we are all human beings and that color is not important. What is important is the quality of our work.”
John Amaechi	Nov. 26, 1970	Pro Basketball Player	“I am gay, black, British…and I am now asserting my activism.”
James Baldwin	Aug. 2, 1924 Nov. 30, 1987	Author	"I love America more than any other country in the world and, exactly for this reason, I insist on the right to criticize her perpetually."
Josephine Baker	June 3, 1906 Apr. 12, 1975	Singer and Dancer	“Surely the day will come when color means nothing more than the skin tone, when religion is seen uniquely as a way to speak one's soul; when birth places have the weight of a throw of the dice and all men are born free, when understanding breeds love and brotherhood.”
Jean-Michel Basquiat	Dec. 22, 1960 Aug. 12, 1988	Graffiti Artist	"SAMO© as an end to mindwash religion, nowhere politics, and bogus philosophy"
Gladys Bentley	Aug. 12, 1907 Jan. 18, 1960	Blues Singer
Octavia Butler	June 22, 1947 Feb. 26, 2006	Author	"People have the right to call themselves whatever they like. That doesn't bother me. It's other people doing the calling that bothers me."
George Washington Carver	July 12, 1864 Jan. 5, 1943	Scientist	“Where there is no vision, there is no hope.”
RuPaul Andre Charles	Nov. 17, 1960	Actor, Dancer and TV Show Host	“What other people think of me is not my business. What I do is what I do. How people see me doesn’t change what I decide to do. I don’t choose projects so people don’t see me as one thing or another. I choose projects that excite me. I think the problem is that people refuse to understand what drag is outside of their own belief system.”
Countee Cullen	May 30, 1903 Jan. 9, 1946	Poet	“My poetry, I think, has become the way of my giving out what music is within me.”
Lee Daniels	Dec. 24, 1959	Film Director
Angela Davis	Jan. 26, 1944	Civil Rights Activist	“Revolution is a serious thing, the most serious thing about a revolutionary's life. When one commits oneself to the struggle, it must be for a lifetime.”
Ruth Ellis	July 23, 1899 Oct. 5, 2000	Activist	“I never expected I’d be 100 years old. It didn’t even come to my mind.”
Sharon Farmer	June 10, 1951	White House Photographer	“Never turn down a chance to show what you can do.”
Peter Gomes	May 22, 1942	Theologian	“There can be no light without the darkness out of which it shines.”
Mabel Hampton	May 2, 1902 Oct. 26, 1989	Lesbian Pioneer	"I, Mabel Hampton, have been a lesbian all my life, for eighty-two years, and I am proud of myself and my people. I would like all my people to be free in this country and all over the world, my gay people and my black people."
Lorraine Hansberry	May 19, 1930 Jan. 12, 1965	Author and Playwright	“All real and lasting change starts first on the inside and works it way through to the outside. Politically speaking, each person being the change we wish to see in the world is the only stance that can make a lasting difference. Indeed, it's the only thing that ever has.”
E.Lynn Harris	June 20, 1955 July 23, 2009	Author	“I want people to know they don’t have to live their lives in a permanent ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ existence. Truth is a powerful tool.”
Sherry Harris	Feb. 27, 1965	Politician	“All real and lasting change starts first on the inside and works it way through to the outside. Politically speaking, each person being the change we wish to see in the world is the only stance that can make a lasting difference. Indeed, it's the only thing that ever has.”
Billie Holiday	Apr. 7, 1915 July 17, 1959	Singer	"A kiss that is never tasted, is forever and ever wasted."
Langston Hughes	Feb. 1, 1902 May 22, 1967	Poet	“Hold fast to dreams, For if dreams die, Life is a broken-winged bird that cannot fly, Hold fast to dreams, For if dreams go, Life is a barren field, Frozen with snow."
Zora Neale Hurston	Jan. 7, 1891 Jan. 28, 1960	Author and Folklorist	“Mama exhorted her children at every opportunity to ‘jump at de sun.’ We might not land on the sun, but at least we would get off the ground.”
Bill T. Jones	Feb. 15, 1952	Dancer and Choreographer	"Living and dying is not the big issue. The big issue is what you’re going to do with your time while you are here."
Representative Barbara Jordan (D-Texas)	Feb. 21, 1936 Jan. 17, 1996	Politician	"My faith in the Constitution is whole, it is complete, it is total. I am not going to sit here and be an idle spectator to the diminution, the subversion, the destruction of the Constitution."
Audre Lorde	Feb. 18, 1934 Nov. 17, 1992	Author	“When I dare to be powerful, to use my strength in the service of my vision, then it becomes less and less important whether I am afraid.”
Marsha P. Johnson	1945 July 6, 1992	Transgender Activist and co-founder of S.T.A.R.	When asked what the P stood for in her name, she replied "Pay it No Mind."
June Jordan	July 9, 1936 June 14, 2002	Activist, Poet, Teacher	"Bisexuality means I am free and I am as likely to want to love a woman as I am likely to want to love a man, and what about that? Isn't that what freedom implies?"
Miss Major	Unknown	Transgender, Public Health and Prison Activist
Gertrude "Ma" Rainey	Apr. 26, 1886 Dec. 22, 1939	Singer	"Went out last night with a crowd of my friends, They must have been women, 'cause I don't like no men. Wear my clothes just like a fan, Talk to gals just like any old man 'Cause they say I do it, ain't nobody caught me, Sure got to prove it on me."
Bayard Rustin	Mar. 17, 1910 Aug. 24, 1987	Civil Rights Activist	"We are all one. And if we don't know it, we will learn it the hard way."
Bessie Smith	Unknown July 1892 Sept. 26, 1937	Singer	“It's a long old road, but I know I'm gonna find the end.”
Sheryl Swoopes	Mar. 25, 1971	WNBA Player	"No matter how far life pushes you down, no matter how much you hurt, you can always bounce back."
Wanda Sykes	Mar. 7, 1964	Comedian	"If you feel like there's something out there that you're supposed to be doing, if you have a passion for it, then stop wishing and just do it."
André Leon Talley	Oct. 16,1949	Fashion Editor	“It's not about canceling shows, but initiating things on an individual level. When much is given to you, much is expected. If you're an honest American, you can't wake up and not be affected by the neglect of the government after Katrina. You can't be an honest American and not think about it every day.”
Alice Walker	Feb. 9, 1944	Author and Feminist	“The truest and most enduring impulse I have is simply to write.”
Phill Wilson	Apr. 29, 1956	AIDS Activist	"The price of the ticket for life is to leave the world in a different place than you found it, to leave the world a better place than you found it."
Jacqueline Woodson	Feb. 12, 1963	Author	“I think it's important that everyday we think about the work we need to do to make this world a better place. I mean, we should wake up thinking about it and go to bed thinking about tomorrow's tasks. There's an awful lot of change needing to be made around here.”

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Black LGBTQI History Timeline

by In Our Own Words Project

1782: Deborah Sampson disguises herself as a male and enlists in the Continental forces under the name of Robert Shurtleff. Sampson’s gender is discovered when she is hospitalized for wounds suffered in battle near Tarrytown, NY. Some historians believe that Deborah Sampson was African American.

1790: George Middleton, leader of The Bucks of America, an all-black Revolutionary War regiment, and Louis Clapion, a French mulatto hairdresser build and live together in the oldest standing house on Beacon Hill, at 5 Pinckney St.

1860: Edmonia Lewis, African American/Native American sculptor, known for her masculine dress, studies and works in Boston. It was in Boston that she meets the group of feminists and artists, headed by actress Charlotte Cushman, with whom she is to live for several years in Rome.

1880: Angelina Weld Grimke, (often confused with her famous aunt, the white abolitionist Angelina Grimke Weld), is born in Boston into a distinguished biracial family. Grimke becomes a teacher and a poet of the Harlem Renaissance. Her love poems are written to women. “…Oh Mamie, if you only knew how my heart beats when I think of you, and it yearns and pants to gaze– if only for one second– upon your lovely face.”

1920: An artistic movement in New York that becomes known as the Harlem Renaissance...

To see a full timeline, visit In Our Own Words by the Metropolitan Community Churches.

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More Resources!

• More Black LGBTQ Historical Figures courtesy of the University of Delaware.
• More Black LGBTQ Current and Historical Figures courtesy of AOL.
• Black LGBTQ History Timeline.
• Equality Forum also has a website, called The GLBT History Month, which highlights LGBTQ figures.
• Build coalitions in your school.
• Make your GSA an anti-racist GSA.
• Have a visibility campaign at your school.

Photo of Bayard Rustin with School Children: Courtesy of Getty Images

Photo of Bayard Rustin Teaching: Courtesy of Bayard Rustin Film Project"

Valentiny Activism

GetEQUAL and Marriage Equality USA are staging protests across the country to show the inequality in our nation's marriage laws.

"Over the weekend and this afternoon, LGBT activists across the country took action at marriage counters and city halls across the country, drawing attention to the fact that loving couples – some of whom have been together for decades – are still living as second-class citizens without the right to marry."

One of those protests is occurring right here in Asheville, NC.

“Today, we're so proud of all the people taking actions across the country,” said Robin McGehee, director of GetEQUAL. “We're thrilled with how many people across the country have decided that enough is enough, and have committed to organizing in their own communities in order to draw attention to their desire to marry the person they love.”

Molly McKay, media director of Marriage Equality USA, said, “The actions that have taken place across the country are just one more way that we are bringing discrimination out of the shadows and into the light, highlighting the loving relationships that are thriving throughout the country despite government-sanctioned discrimination.”

GetEQUAL will be posting photos and video on its Facebook page throughout the day.

CBS Sports Honors Late Out Pro Hockey Player

Last year we had this blog:

Hockey, Homophobia, and A Father's Love for His Gay Son

This year, CBS featured a retrospective on this aforementioned gay son, who was an out pro hockey player when he died.

From www.towleroad.com

In a touching CBS Sports segment, Miami University hockey players and coaches remember Brendan Burke, who made international news with his coming out story, and died a year ago in an apparently weather-related car accident in Indiana.

83% of Kentuckians Support Fairness for LGBT Families!

From the Kentucky Fairness Alliance

Today, the Kentucky Fairness Alliance is pleased to announce that a statewide survey commissioned by the Fairness Coalition shows that Kentuckians continue to believe that everyone should be afforded the opportunity to earn a living, put a roof over their heads, and have dinner at their favorite restaurant without being turned away just because someone doesn’t like who they are.

83% of registered Kentucky voters agree that gay and transgender people should be protected from discrimination in the workplace, in housing, and in restaurants or other forms of public accommodations.

Public opinion has come a long way since the last available data in 2004, when only 65% of voters supported these same non-discrimination protections. And while providing the same legal protections for gay couples as straight couples lags in the polls – currently 70% support compared to 63% in 2004 – Kentuckians believe in fairness for hardworking gay and transgender employees who simply want to earn a living and provide for their families, just like everybody else.

Read the survey results (including Congressional district breakdowns) here.

I Do - Making Marriage Mine

We (LGBT people) want to get married for the same reasons everyone else does: to make a lifetime commitment to the person we love and to protect our families.

Freedom To Marry provides a ton of resources to help make this dream of equality into one of reality.

Here's some basic info they provide:

• Why Marriage Matters
• Marriage 101 - FAQs
• Who Supports Freedom to Marry?
• Talking about Freedom to Marry
• Resources for Marriage Equality

Elected Officials Guide: How to Support the Freedom to Marry

Moving Marriage Forward (pdf)

Why the UnAmerican Attacks on So-Called Activist Judges Must Stop (pdf)

One final note ... what do these celebrities have in common:

• Barbara Bush (daughter of George W. Bush)
• Cindy McCain(wife of John McCain)
  
• Nelly Furtado
• Rev. Jesse Jackson
• Antonio Cromartie (of the New York Jets)
• Betty White
• Alec Baldwin
• John Mellencamp
• Christina Ricci
• Kyra Sedgwick
• Jason Ritter
• Sally Field
• Angela Lansbury
• Peter, Paul & Mary
• Miss Universe 2010, Ximena Navarrete
• Roger Ebert
• Fergie
• Kylie Minogue
• Eminem
• Jeff Probst
• Jason Mraz
• Pink
• Idina Menzel

They are a fraction of famous folks who support marriage equality!