Nevada Stonewall Statement on Today's Senate Votes

NSDC STATEMENT ON SB 180 FAILURE,

AND SB 331 & SB 368 PASSAGE

Contact: 

Andrew Davey, Secretary & Political Director

(702) 806-1340/ atdnext@gmail.com

Chris Miller, President

(702) 569-6744/ chrisisademocrat@gmail.com 

We at Nevada Stonewall Democratic Caucus (NSDC) were encouraged today by the passage of SB 331 and SB 368 in the Nevada State Senate today.  If these bills become law, they will represent significant progress in the fight for LGBTQ equality here in Nevada. SB 331 addresses and moves to remedy public accommodations discrimination against transgender Nevadans, and SB 368 addresses housing discrimination that is still allowed against any LGBTQ Nevadans.

However, we were disappointed by the painfully narrow failure of SB 180 today. If passed, this bill would have penalized dangerous and abhorrent hate crimes against transgender Nevadans. No one deserves to be violently attacked for who one is, but this regularly happens to far too many transgender Nevadans. And until our state hate crimes statute is revised to include anti-transgender hate crimes, far too many people in this state will still be vulnerable to such unjust brutal attacks.

As the 76th Session of the Nevada Legislature continues, NSDC will continue to watch what happens in Carson City, advocate for bills that advance LGBTQ equality, and work for a fair & sensible budget that works for all of Nevada’s working families. And despite today’s disappointing loss on SB 180, we are hopeful that Senate passage of SB 331 and SB 368 are the start of further progress on ending discrimination, advancing civil rights, and ensuring all in our community can access quality education & health care.

###

Nevada Stonewall Democratic Caucus was founded in 2005. Our membership consists of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer Nevadans and our straight allies. We will lobby and educate members of the Nevada State Legislature to protect the rights and advocate on behalf of Nevadans who are routinely discriminated against because of their sexuality and gender identity. 

@NVStonewallDems 

nvstonewalldems@gmail.com

Good Day for Equality: AB 211 Passed Assembly

(Also at Nevada Progressive)

Here's some actual good news to come out of Carson City today: AB 211 passed!

OK... So? So... This.



As of today, it's still "legal" to fire transgender people from work for no good reason. AB 211 will change that if passed and signed into law. We're now about 1/3 of the way there with Assembly passage, so now we need full Senate passage, then preferably a signature from The Governor. (If Sandoval vetoes, then we need at least 2/3 support from each house of The Legislature to override.)

So now is the perfect time to contact your State Senator and let them know you want AB 211 passed.

OFA's LGBTQ Equality Community Action Night

On Wednesday, NSDC President Chris Miller joined Southern Nevada Stonewall Chair Derek Washington, along with other local LGBTQ community activists and OFA activists, at OFA's weekly "Community Action Night". This week, it was all about LGBTQ equality. Here's Chris discussing pro-equality legislation pending in Carson City.



Of course, we'll keep you updated as the 76th session continues.

Andrew's Testimony for SB 180

(Also at Nevada Progressive)

Earlier this week, I testified to The Legislature, in this case The Senate Judiciary Committee, in support of SB 180.

So what exactly is SB 180? Click the above link, then come back to this page to read my testimony below, then please contact your legislators and ask them to support SB 180. Thanks.

---

When a violent crime is committed, it may seem like a no-brainer to call the police. But when the victim is transgender, the situation all too often becomes much more complicated. The victim might be treated as the criminal, or the victim's case is not taken seriously, or perhaps the victim is too afraid to even report the crime.

This is why SB 180 is needed, and this is why SB 180 should not considered some sort of "special treatment". Rather, it levels the playing field and ensures that everyone in our state is treated equally. Many local law enforcement have had past problems handling crimes against transgender victims, and perpetrators have used excuses like "gay panic defense" to seek leniency from the courts, so there is critical need for state guidance to ensure transgender people are no longer easy targets for violent crime.

Human Rights Campaign has recently analyzed FBI crime statistics and estimated that one of every 1,000 homicide victims in this country is transgender. At least 15 transgender people are killed in hate crimes each year in this country. Just in 2002 alone, 27 known transgender people were killed in hate motivated murders. Remember that these are not just statistics, but real people as well.

I know people who have survived attacks, and I have close friends who have lost friends to violence. This is certainly no laughing matter. The passage of SB 180 may very well mean the difference between life and death, so I urge you to pass SB 180 and help save many Nevadans' lives.

The Part Where You Come In

{Why exactly are schools and the state budget "LGBTQ issues"? Whether you are a student yourself, a parent of young ones in school, or just a concerned citizen hoping for a sustainable economy in Nevada's future, you are affected by the state budget and whether or not we allow Brian Sandoval and his far right "Tea Party, Inc." friends to abuse the budgetary process to destroy public education in this state. Already those of us in college are being hit by tuition
and other fee increases, and already K-12 students have to endure overcrowded classrooms and inadequate classroom resources. We can't take any more cuts... Now is the time to let our state heal and build a brighter future! Please consider joining us at Green Valley HS next Monday if you're in Southern Nevada, and stay tuned for more budget updates here!}

Do you really need me to restate the facts that we've covered extensively? And that our friends at The Nevada View, The Sausage Factory, and Desert Beacon have detailed?



Our state is in dire straits. There's no way to avoid the awful truth. Our unemployment rate is the highest in the nation. Our economy has suffered from extreme boom and bust cycles for decades. There's a growing chorus of economists and business leaders telling us we must have better schools to produce the better educated workforce our state so desperately needs to diversify the economy and thrive, but Governor Sandoval continues to blithely ignore them and hopes to proceed in cutting our schools (and our economic future) to death.

So what else can be done? What else can be said? Can anything be done to change this?

This is the part where we come in.





We MUST let our legislators, the public servants we elect to represent us in state government, know what direction we want our state to take. Are we the masters of our own fate? Or will we let some nebulous external force (insert Tea Party Inc link) make us into its ideological slaves?

What are you prepared to do to save our state? What are you planning to do to rescue your state? Go to Green Valey High School next Monday and speak some much needed truth to power? Ask Governor Sandoval and The Legislature to agree on a fair budget?

Whatever you can do, just do it. This is the part where you come in. What will you do to save our state?