All About Equality Newsletter
Keeping you up to date about all things Equality in the great state of Arizona.
A New Chapter of Community to Celebrate Pride and Equality in Arizona
Welcome to the new Equality Arizona! We wanted to celebrate Pride Month by reintroducing Equality Arizona and sharing what our hopes are for the next chapter of this community advocacy organization.
Equality Arizona was founded more than three decades ago. Throughout those 30+ years we have had many chapters and phases as an organization. Before we focus on the future we wanted to take a moment to thank the many community members who have contributed to the decades that Equality Arizona has worked for LGBTQ equality in our state. There are far too many names to offer a comprehensive list, from the Bill’s that founded EQAZ (yes all of the founders of this organization were men named Bill!), to the first professional team in the early aughts including Barb Mccullough-Jones, Meta Goforth-Zinn, Julie Roberts, Sam Holdren, and Milo Neild, to the working board that worked to finish the fight for marriage equality and refocus the organization after that historic win including Nate Rhoton, Catherine Alonzo, Murphy Hebert, and Rebecca Wininger, to the last team that revived the organization led by Michael Soto, which included Christiana Hammond, Tanner Menard, Landon Phillips, and Onyekachi Ekeogu as staff members, and Dr. Daniel Lewis, Janey Pearl Starks and Rickie Taylor as board members. This is in no way a comprehensive list, but all of these individuals and so many more have contributed to the success of Equality Arizona. This organization and community, so much history - so many hours of work and sacrifice and struggle, and so many moments of joy and belonging. So it is our privilege to begin the next chapter for an organization that always strives, yet of course can never perfectly achieve, to create a space of belonging, of community, and effective advocacy for the hundreds of thousands of Arizonans who are LGBTQ people - plus our families, friends, and more.
At the beginning of 2024 a new chapter began for Equality Arizona. In this chapter the keywords that will be reflected in our work are community, belonging, democracy, and political change. As the first phase of the new board of directors we are thrilled to offer our service to this organization and community, and it is our hope that together, with you, we can build an organization where every LGBTQ Arizonan feels welcome, where our families and loved ones feel welcome, and where we can work together to ensure that Arizona, our home, is a place where our ability to live as free people without fear, hatred, or oppression.
In the coming months we will be introducing new programs, events, and media that are created to meet the needs and interests of the extremely diverse Arizona LGBTQ community. This new chapter will sometimes share our collective vision for this new chapter, but more often will invite you to share your vision, your ideas, your needs, and your hopes. A community organization’s top priority is to be with, in deep relationship with, the community it wants to work in collaboration with - in short there is no organization without community. So our first focus will be on community building. Over the summer and fall you will see the first fruits of our labor, and we hope you will take advantage of every opportunity to get involved.
We also hope that, for anyone that has time and interest, you will consider taking an active part in shaping this next chapter for EQAZ and the Arizona LGBTQ community. There are many ways to get involved, and the two we want to highlight today are about service:
Serve on the Board of Directors, a governing board responsible for stewardship.
Serve on the Community Advisory Board, a group of community advisors that represent the lived experience and needs of our community.
The board of directors is a big commitment and a truly fun one as well. We have an incredible new board of directors and we are looking for 4 to 6 additional members to join in 2024. If you would be interested in joining the board please fill out this form. After you fill out the form we will review your application and then contact you for an interview.
The community advisory board is a new way for community members to offer their talents, their lived experience, and their wisdom to EQAZ. We have 5 members today and hope to grow to at least 10 by the end of the year. If you are interested in serving on the community advisory board please fill out this form. After you fill out the form we will review your application and then contact you for an interview.
Everyone’s voice and experience is valued in this organization. We are looking for diversity in identity, experience, opinions, and more. We hope that you will join us to make the next chapter of Equality Arizona stronger than ever.
Thank you for the first 30+ years and many different iterations of this organization. We can’t wait to start on the next iteration and next 30 years, with you.
Happy Pride!
C.A. Griffith, Trey Jenkins, Monica Phillips, Dr. H.L.T. Quan, Michael Soto, and Dr. Sarah Suhail
Equality Arizona Board of Directors, 2024
Pride Month is Ending but Pride Lasts All Year
Pride month is coming to a close and it has been quite a month! The legislative session ended this month. With another embattled legislative session coming to a close we are hopeful that the 2024 elections will result in a legislature ready to move beyond partisan fights and get work done for all Arizonans. At the top of our list for next year is advocating for the Equality and Fairness for All Arizonans Act - the bipartisan non-discrimination law Equality Arizona has supported for years.
The election is of course top of mind as primary elections are just around the corner. Remember to register to vote by July 1, 2024 - the last day to register to vote in the Arizona primary election. You can register to vote online by using this link.
Equality Arizona is proud to be a partner in the Your Vote is Your Voice program. You can go to the Your Vote is Your Voice website for all of the information you need about voting in this election. We hope you will use this incredible resource to prepare yourself to vote in this incredibly important election.
Speaking of partnership, Equality Arizona participated in a presentation at ONE Community’s Point of Pride event this month. The presentation was a side-by-side comparison of the two non-discrimination bills introduced during the 2024 legislative session. It is our belief that the most important part of public policy advocacy is transparent engagement with the community and education that equips the community to read, understand, add to, and advocate for proposed policy. Over the next few months there will be more opportunities to learn about the Equality and Fairness for All Arizonans Act, the bill we have supported for years. We want to share this thoughtful bill, crafted to make real the promise of pluralism, with you and hear your thoughts and feedback!
We hope that you saw and felt the support of your neighbors this Pride month. There were pride events throughout the state - which is remarkable in Arizona since only some of our official pride festivals and marches take place in June. Organizations, companies, and different levels of government celebrated Pride month throughout our great state, including a visit from the First Lady at Pride in the Pines.
One of the most important Pride related activities for us is Governor Hobbs flying the Pride flag from the Executive building. Knowing that our Governor is working daily for an Arizona where everyone can live and thrive is invaluable to Equality Arizona and we hope it is for you as well.
We ended the month with an invitation to the nation’s capital for a special briefing at the White House for LGBTQ leaders. The briefing featured many incredible leaders working in the Biden/Harris administration for LGBTQ equality and safety, including Secretary Buttigieg. We left that briefing knowing that the administration has done and will continue to do great things for LGBTQ Americans, including the Respect for Marriage Act, legislation that our board President, Michael Soto, was proud to support and play a small role in passing, by coordinating LGBTQ families from around the country that traveled from their homes to DC to lobby for greater civil rights protections for all Americans during the summer of 2022.
We hope that you have enjoyed this Pride month and felt support from you fellow Arizonans and your fellow Americans. As Pride month comes to an end, remember and have gratitude for the decades of work that have made the equality and inclusion we experience today possible - and remember that there is still much work to be done to get to “a more perfect union” for every American. We are committed to that work and we hope you will join us!