Support Hate Crime Legislation - Senate Bill 11 on Wednesday (tomorrow).

Senate Bill (SB) 11, the Alaska Hate Crimes Bill, has been scheduled for its first hearing, before the Alaska Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday, February 16th (tomorrow). The full text of the bill can be found at: http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?llr=wgeha7bab&et=1104532789381&s=2431&e=001cM_R9Gfd-HQtY4HodEZbLzPuoG16tN08L2tc4iAoPdR92o5jW99Y8sNctUdt8i1shALek8h1jMyrJ372YtKfZSt-w2pUz7uYT6lgLcKH_IzFFBvSULgDN1MDC8zTXopDc9idX_1SmpfJyLF9LtNgiNm5GPp34l5ZMvd4LCmLKaLclxrQc_5YPnlmacOQNGWamqZ8Te0CXuc=

The Judiciary Committee meets at 1:30 p.m. and has several bills scheduled to be heard so testimony could be taken on SB 11 anytime between 1:30 and 4:00 p.m. We invite you to provide short testimony in support of SB 11 as written which includes sexual orientation and gender identity. Testimony can be given in person in Room 105 of the new Thomas Steward Building adjacent to the capitol, by teleconference from your local Legislative Information Office (see http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?llr=wgeha7bab&et=1104532789381&s=2431&e=001cM_R9Gfd-HS0cDnhpgQzgzH2zhE1EY_34Yi2XY2nd8onS9kXKyGcYOBYaNIi1yenvGNpFmxb2Z8h8eYLhXnOSo8jbVqRvPdAh7rA4PArD6-OZz07Uv-_VhTg92wvjqRqqMKf1LxZUb0= for the location of your LIO) or by calling toll free 877-763-5073.

If you are not able to testify tomorrow, please send a message to your own state senator and ask them to co-sponsor the bill and the members of the Senate Judiciary Committe plus the bill's sponsor, Sen. Davis.

The legislators are:

Senator Hollis French - Co-Sponsor

Senator_Hollis_French@legis.state.ak.us

Senator Bill Wielechowski

Senator_Bill_Wielechowski@legis.state.ak.us

Senator Joe Paskvan

Senator_Joe_Paskvan@legis.state.ak.us

Senator Lesil McGuire

Senator_Lesil_McGuire@legis.state.ak.us

Senator John Coghill

Senator_John_Coghill@legis.state.ak.us

Senator Bettye Davis - Sponsor

Senator_Bettye_Davis@legis.state.ak.us

If you are not able to send an email message, then your third option is a Public Opinion Message or POM, a short easy-to-send 50 word message that should be addressed specifically to the Senators listed above. Your POM could say something like: "I strongly support SB 11. Please pass this bill as written out of the Senate Judiciary Committee." To send a POM go to: http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?llr=wgeha7bab&et=1104532789381&s=2431&e=001cM_R9Gfd-HQ68iHvTBF-tOVEINNycrNAzKE3Vg3zEbavZxlh1PoqPcbJhlWB3R1lE_DzzKuG0nA9SKJX2FqdPhvp306Q0h7F7oWJolI9pJPVmbKP42Skm6-lR0pvZYoi  

As members of Alaskans Together for Equality, we look forward to hear your testimony on Wednesday during the Senate Judiciary Committee. If you have any questions or need any assistance preparing your testimony or written communication, please feel free to contact us at alaskanstogether@gmail.com.   

   

Sincerely,

Board of Directors

Alaskans Together for Equality Inc.

Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Coalition To Assess Discrimination

A new comprehensive survey will gather information about experiences of discrimination and bias in the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community in Anchorage, Alaska.  The Anchorage LGBT Discrimination Survey is the first survey of its kind in over 20 years, and also the first ever to gather information about the experiences of transgender Alaskans.

In the summer of 2009, the Anchorage Municipal Assembly passed Ordinance AO 2009-64(S-2), which would have protected LGBT residents of Anchorage from discrimination.  The Mayor vetoed its passage.  Despite existing data and reports documenting discrimination, opponents of equal rights, including Mayor Sullivan, stated that there was no evidence of discrimination against LGBT people in Anchorage, and thus protections were “not needed.”

“Having comprehensive, rigorous data about experiences of bias and discrimination among lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) Alaskans is crucial to understanding the needs of our community.  I look forward to being a part of this important project,” said Melissa Green, who will serve as one of the investigators for the survey.   

“This will be the first survey since the 1980’s to explore experiences of bias and discrimination in the lesbian, gay, and bisexual community in Anchorage, Alaska.  I believe the launch of this survey is a crucial moment in learning about and addressing the challenges that transgender Alaskans face,” stated Anja Gensel, a local activist for transgender rights.

Survey data collection will continue until February 28, 2011.  Responses are completely confidential.  All members of the LGBT community are encouraged to participate.  

Online surveys are at http://alaskacommunity.org, and on the ACLU of Alaska website at http://www.akclu.org, by clicking the button marked “LGBT Survey.”  Respondents will need an individual PIN number to access the survey.  To obtain a PIN, or a print version of the survey, contact Shelby Carpenter of the ACLU of Alaska at (907) 263-2006 or at scarpenter@akclu.org. 

The Survey is a coalition effort by organizations that serve the Alaska LGBT community including Identity, Inc., Alaskan AIDS Assistance Association, Alaskans Together for Equality, Equality Works, and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Alaska.  

Accelerate 'DADT' Repeal says Defense Secretary Robert Gates

VICTORY! Don't Ask, Don't Tell has been repealed

Just over an hour ago the Senate by a vote of 65 to 31 repealed the discriminatory “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy. Today’s vote, allows lesbian, gay and bisexual people the ability to serve openly and honestly in our military. It’s a wonderful step forward in our fight for full civil equality. We are extremely pleased to report that both Sen. Murkowski and Sen. Begich voted in favor of the repeal!

Your efforts made a big difference! This repeal couldn’t have happened without you and your calls and emails.

Please take a moment in the next few days to call and email both Sen. Murkowski and Sen. Begich and thank them for their vote to repeal DADT. It is great to have two Senators that believe in fairness and equality in our military.

Senator Murkowski

Email: http://murkowski.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?p=EMailLisa

Phone: 202.224.6665

Senator Begich

Email: http://begich.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?p=EmailSenator

Phone: 202.224.3004

Please thank Sen. Murkowski and Sen. Begich for representing all Alaskans with their vote to repeal DADT today. Our military has become even stronger with today’s vote.

Also, be aware there is still work to be done for the implementation of a full repeal of DADT. There is a 60-day waiting period, during which soldiers can still be discharged under the policy. We will post on our blog in the coming days when we have more details.

With all of our continuing efforts we are confident that we will have more victories to celebrate in 2011 on our road to achieving full civil equality in Alaska.

Let’s enjoy today’s victory.

Call Senator Murkowski Today! DADT Will Be Held Tomorrow (Dec. 18).

You may have heard by now the bill that would repeal Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell (DADT) has passed the House of Representatives and is now in the Senate.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has scheduled a vote for cloture on the bill that would repeal DADT tomorrow.

This is the vote we have been waiting for and the outcome for this bill could still go either way.

We need your help! It is of critical importance that each of us reaches out to Sen. Murkowski today and ask her to honor her pledge and vote to repeal Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.

Here is a sample message:

“Hi, my name’s [NAME] and I live in [Town/City]. I support all our servicemembers, thank you for your support and we hope you honor your pledge and vote to repeal Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. Thank you.”

Senator Lisa Murkowski's Contact Information

Anchorage Office 877.829.6030
DC Office 202.224.6665

This may be our last chance to repeal this discriminatory law for years to come.

Sen. Murkowski's vote could make the difference between repeal or keeping this discriminatory law on the books.

Today, each one of our calls can have an impact in ending this discriminatory and unfair law against gay soldiers.

Is the repeal of the Don't Ask, Don't Tell dead?

Here is a great status update on the repeal of the Don't Ask, Don't Tell.

Murkowski votes "no" to debating bill that includes "don't ask, don't tell" repeal

From the Anchorage Daily News:

From Erika Bolstad in Washington D.C. -- 

Sen. Lisa Murkowski, who said Wednesday she supports the repeal of the "don't ask, don't tell" ban on gays in the military, voted against the underlying defense authorization bill that includes language to overturn the prohibition. 

The vote failed 57-40. Democrats needed 60 votes to proceed with debate on the bill, which includes language that would lead to the policy's reversal. Murkowski and several other Republicans who support the repeal of "don't ask, don't tell" had said they would vote to move the bill forward for debate -- but only if they were allowed additional time for debate and more leeway to propose amendments.

Wednesday, Murkowski said in a statement that America is "the loser when it denies those who are willing to make the great sacrifices demanded of our men and women in uniform the opportunity do so on grounds of sexual orientation."

But she also warned her support of the underlying legislation was conditional, and she wouldn't vote to move forward on debate of the defense bill unless Democrats gave the GOP additional time to debate and amend it. 

All 42 Republican senators said in a letter to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid last week that they wouldn't agree to let any legislation come to a vote until they had considered tax cuts and government spending bills.

Sen. Mark Begich, D-Alaska, supports repeal of the "don't ask, don't tell" policy, and voted to proceed with debate on the bill.

Please call Senator Lisa Murkowski today at 202.224.6665 and ask her to support starting the debate on the National Defense Authorization Act and voting in favor of the closure vote so that DADT can be repealed.

We are disappointed with today's vote and hope that both Senator Murkowski and Senator Begich will do the right thing in the coming days to do what it takes to repeal this law before the end of the year.

There is still time left to make this happen.