It's Veto Season
As the handful of anti-LGBTQ bills left standing get sent to Governor Hobbs to be vetoed, we're working to make sure community involvement can extend to proactive policymaking
Weekly Roundup
Monday: with a last-minute committee swap, SB 1001 managed to snag a hearing in House Appropriations before the deadline. The bill, which would ban teachers from using the pronouns and name requested by a trans or non-binary student, unless they obtain written parental permission, was met with strong community opposition and received no public testimony in its defense. Representative Lorena Austin, a member of the Appropriations Committee, shared their own experience as a non-binary person in a powerful vote explanation, prompting Governor Hobbs to pledge to veto the bill.
Tuesday: In a busy week for anti-LGBTQ+ legislation, SB 1698 passed the House Committee of the Whole, clearing its final hurdle before a floor vote.
Wednesday: SB 1026, a bill targeting drag story time events, made it through the House Committee of the Whole the next day. Also on Wednesday, SB 1005 was transmitted to the Governor, kicking off a five day countdown for Governor Hobbs to veto the bill, which bars courts from awarding damages to a government entity when sued for a violation of the parental bill of rights, and could be used as a way to put pressure on teachers and schools to avoid perfectly legal ways of supporting the LGBTQ+ community out of fear that it may expose them to costly legal action.
Saturday: we held our first Civic Advocacy Jam for the month of April at the downtown branch of the Mesa Public Library. We host these events to give community members the tools to design their own legislation and to engage in the policy-making process as an active contributor.
Civic Advocacy
LGBT Lobby Day
10:00 am - 2:00 pm April 18, 2023 | register
LGBTQ+ community involvement needs to be an ongoing part of the legislative session, so we’re partnering with NARAL for an LGBT lobby day on April 18! We’ll meet up at the capitol to advocate on LGBTQ+ issues and reproductive rights. A light breakfast and lunch will be provided. If you want an inside look at how the legislature works (and an opportunity to meet with your legislators), you should come out and join us!
Political Power
Political Power Team Meeting
6:30 pm - 8:00 pm April 13, 2023 | register
Want to help organize the queer community in Arizona to build our political power for the long term? Join our Political Power volunteer team at Valley Coffee Company for our monthly meeting. If you can't make it to Phoenix, you can call in through our Discord server instead!
We also want to share an event hosted by some of our friends! Check out their description below.
Voter Registration Party
Hosted by DADDY SATAN and Of Eden | 2:30pm April 16, Boycott Bar
Join us Sunday April 16th 2:30pm at Boycott bar for an event of activism and fun! Want to register to vote? We got you! Not sure if you’re registered and want to check? We got you! We will be having demonstrations for easy actions you can take against anti-LGBTQ+ bills. There will be outstanding drag numbers and entertainment. Speeches from esteemed community members. And awesome raffle prizes! Each item you bring for donation for our unhoused neighbors will get you an entry to the raffle + more ways to enter in person! Donation items can be tents, tarps, blankets, and bicycle lights with batteries. Items will go to benefit @radicalcommunitycare to be distributed to friends in need.
Media & Events
We’ve got some great interviews lined up for the Arizona Equals Conversation over the next few weeks, featuring three Tucson residents. If you’re interested in sharing your story, get in touch! We are especially interested to hear from LGBTQ+ people living outside of the Metro Phoenix area, but anyone in the community is welcome!
Ask Smart People Smart Questions: School Governance
6:30 pm - 7:30 pm April 26, 2023 | register
With each installment of Ask Smart People Smart Questions, Equality Arizona convenes a panel of experts to talk about the bigger picture of the big issues that affect the LGBTQ+ community in Arizona. With LGBTQ inclusion and support becoming an increasingly incendiary topic in school board meetings across the state, it’s important not to let those debates happen in a vacuum. Over the course of an hour, we’ll cover four big questions about school boards with the goal of adding important context to the conversation.
How is governance distributed in our public education system?
What has been the history of dialogue and debate around public education in Arizona?
Where is the current trend of extremism coming from, and what form does it take?
In what ways does this trend rely on the structure of governance in public education?
Location: Tempe Library Ironwood Classroom