Family Equality Council

Last updated
Family Equality
Formation1979/10/14
Type501(c)(3) nonprofit
PurposeAdvance LGBTQ+ rights and freedoms
HeadquartersNew York, NY
CEO
Stacey Stevenson
Website www.familyequality.org

Family Equality (formerly Family Pride and Family Equality Council) is a national American nonprofit organization whose mission is to advance legal and lived equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) families, and for those who wish to form them, through building community, changing hearts and minds, and driving policy change. [1]

Contents

History

In 1979 a group of gay fathers formed the group that would eventually become Family Equality. [2] Originally called the Gay Fathers Coalition, in 1986 this fathers’ group expanded to include lesbian mothers, prompting a name change to the Gay and Lesbian Parents Coalition International (GLPCI), a chapter-based organization. [2] In 1998, GLPCI changed its name to the Family Pride Coalition in order to include bisexual and transgender parents. [2] In 2007, in order to better capture the full breadth and scope of their mission, Family Pride changed its name to the Family Equality Council and in 2019 updated the name to Family Equality. [2]

In 2006, Family Equality collaborated with the University of Pennsylvania on a two-day symposium for professionals who work with households headed by same-sex couples and their advocates. The symposium led to the creation of an online databank of resources for same-sex couples with children. [3]

Family Equality launched an initiative called "The Outspoken Generation" in April 2012, with young adult children of LGBT parents as its spokespersons. The co-chairs were Zach Wahls, the son of a lesbian couple who came to public attention after his testimony before an Iowa legislative hearing went viral on YouTube, and Ella Robinson, the daughter of New Hampshire Episcopal Bishop Gene Robinson. [4]

Outspoken Voices Podcast

The Outspoken Voices Podcast is produced by Family Equality and hosted by Emily McGranachan with co-host Dakota Fine. This podcast is "by and for LGBTQ+ parents, people with LGBTQ+ parents, grandparents and everyone else who is part of our family journeys." [5]  Outspoken Voices aired their first episode on January 10, 2017 and continues to release new episodes monthly. The hosts discusses numerous important topics with guests to create episodes that are specifically catered for LGBTQ+ families and LGBTQ+ individuals that plan to have families. [6] [7]

Season 1 [8]
Episode NumberEpisode Title
1Parental Engagement: Empowering Our Kids to Navigate Changing School Climates
2Celebrating Black History Month & Parenting
3Inclusive Summer Camps
4What to Consider Before Tying the Knot & Starting a Family
5Families Formed Through Foster Care
6Becoming an Empty-Nester
7All About Family Week
8Stories Behind the Every Child Deserves a Family Act (Part 1)
8.5Stories Behind the Every Child Deserves a Family Act (Part 2)
9Planning for College
10Donor Siblings: Creating Families & Relationships
11National Adoption Month Stories
12LGBTQ Family Formation Options
13New Years Resolutions & Healthy LGBTQ Families
Season 2 [8]
Episode NumberEpisode Title
14What’s In a Name?
15Trans-Racial Adoption & Identity
16From Closet to Comedy
17Why Second-Parent Adoption?
18Outnumbered at Home
19Power in the Telling
20Grandparents and Advocacy
21Biology Doesn’t Define Our Family
22Let’s Talk About Trauma
23Exploring the Queerspawn Legacy
24A Forever Home for Every Child (Bonus Episode)
25Latinx Irish Soda Bread
26We Chose Each Other
27Bisexual Parents Rock
28Up for Debate
Season 3 [8]
Episode NumberEpisode Title
29Desperately Seeking Queer Characters
30Protest Signs & Strollers
31Soccer Star & Olympic Queerspawn
32From Single to Step-Parent
33Getting Campy
34People with Trans Parents
35LGBTQ Divorce Equality
36Trans Dads
37Generations of Queerspawn
38Co-Parenting Alternative Families
39Queering the Campaign Trail
40Answering Tough Questions
41The Bi+ Postpartum Experience
42Changed by Family Week
43Parenting is Political
44Intersecting Identities
45Supporting Trans Pregnancy
46Tag-Team Pregnancy
47Adopted Queerspawn of Color
48Listening to Adoptees
49Queer Families & the Classroom
50Donor Conceived Queerspawn
512019 Outspoken Voices Podcast Highlights
52COLAGE Community
53LGBTQ Sandwich Generation
54Our (Queer) History
55LGBTQ+ Adoption & Foster Families
56Intersecting Identities 2.0
57An Open Book: LGBTQ+ Inclusivity in Children’s Literature with Alli Harper at Ourshelves
58Author, Poet, and Activist: Sunu Chandy

Related Research Articles

The Queer Youth Network (QYN) was a national non-profit-making organisation that was run by and for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) young people and is based in the United Kingdom. It had an aim to represent the needs and views of younger LGBT people by campaigning for greater visibility and equal rights, as well as providing general support and information to those who are just coming out or who are experiencing homophobia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LGBT culture</span> Common culture shared by lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer people

LGBT culture is a culture shared by lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer individuals. It is sometimes referred to as queer culture, while the term gay culture may be used to mean "LGBT culture" or to refer specifically to homosexual culture.

The origin of the LGBT student movement can be linked to other activist movements from the mid-20th century in the United States. The Civil Rights Movement and Second-wave feminist movement were working towards equal rights for other minority groups in the United States. Though the student movement began a few years before the Stonewall riots, the riots helped to spur the student movement to take more action in the US. Despite this, the overall view of these gay liberation student organizations received minimal attention from contemporary LGBT historians. This oversight stems from the idea that the organizations were founded with haste as a result of the riots. Others historians argue that this group gives too much credit to groups that disagree with some of the basic principles of activist LGBT organizations.

COLAGE is an organization created in 1990 by the children of several lesbian and gay male couples who felt a need for support.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robyn Ochs</span>

Robyn Ochs is an American bisexual activist, professional speaker, and workshop leader. Her primary fields of interest are gender, sexuality, identity, and coalition building. She is the editor of the Bisexual Resource Guide, Bi Women Quarterly, and the anthology Getting Bi: Voices of Bisexuals Around the World. Ochs, along with Professor Herukhuti, co-edited the anthology Recognize: The Voices of Bisexual Men.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LGBT parenting</span> LGBT people raising one or more children

LGBT parenting refers to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people raising one or more children as parents or foster care parents. This includes: children raised by same-sex couples, children raised by single LGBT parents, and children raised by an opposite-sex couple where at least one partner is LGBT.

Jennifer Chrisler is a former executive director of the Family Equality Council, a nonprofit LGBTQ advocacy and education organization based in the United States that was previously known as the Family Pride Coalition.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Black Tie Dinner</span>

Black Tie Dinner is a formal charity dinner held each year in Dallas, Texas to raise money for the North Texas lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) community. The first dinner was held in 1982. Since its inception, Black Tie Dinner has remained one of the largest LGBTQ fund-raising dinners in the nation, both in attendance and distribution. Today, the dinner is attended by over 2,500 guests per year, and has an annual distribution of over $1 million. Each year, Black Tie Dinner selects up to 20 LGBT focused organizations in the North Texas area to receive proceeds from the dinner, in addition to one standing National beneficiary, the Human Rights Campaign Foundation. To date, Black Tie Dinner has raised over $25 million.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zach Wahls</span> American politician

Zacharia Wahls is an Iowa state senator for the 43rd District, and American LGBTQ+ activist and author.

The Civil Rights Agenda (TCRA) is a civil rights advocacy organization founded in June 2010 by Jacob Meister, with a stated mission "to maintain and increase individual rights for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer (LGBTQ) citizens in Illinois through inter-generational volunteerism and community-driven project-based education, statewide coalition and network building, and leadership in supporting underserved communities with the necessary tools that will equip members of those communities with the resources and confidence to establish equality for all persons, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity."

Austin, Texas has one of the most prominent and active LGBT populations in the United States. Austin was acclaimed by The Advocate in 2012 as part of its Gayest Cities in America, and was recognized by Travel and Leisure as one of America's Best Cities for Gay Travel. Much of Austin's gay nightlife scene is clustered around 4th Street. LGBT activism groups Atticus Circle and Equality Texas are headquartered in Austin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Queens Pride Parade</span>

The Queens Pride Parade and Multicultural Festival is the second oldest and second largest pride parade in New York City. It is held annually in the neighborhood of Jackson Heights, located in the New York City borough of Queens. The parade was founded by Daniel Dromm and Maritza Martinez to raise the visibility of the LGBTQ community in Queens and memorialize Jackson Heights resident Julio Rivera. Queens also serves as the largest transgender hub in the Western hemisphere and is the most ethnically diverse urban area in the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LGBT culture in Baltimore</span>

LGBT culture in Baltimore, Maryland is an important part of the culture of Baltimore, as well as being a focal point for the wider LGBT community in the Baltimore metropolitan area. Mount Vernon, known as Baltimore's gay village, is the central hub of the city's lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender communities.

Dr. Kim Fountain is Chief Operating Officer of the Center on Halsted, the Midwest's largest LGBTQ+ community center, located in Chicago, Illinois. She was previously Executive Director of the Pride Center of Vermont and Associate Director of Education & Public Advocacy for the New York City Gay & Lesbian Anti-Violence Project. Fountain has served on the New York State Crime Victims Board and is a trainer for the Office of Victims of Crime and the National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs' Reports Committee. She serves on the board of the National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum.

The Boston Alliance of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Youth (BAGLY) is a non-profit organization located in Boston that works to protect, expand, and raise awareness for the rights of gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, queer, and questioning youth (LGBTQ+). Founded by LGBTQ+ youth in 1980, it adopts a youth-led, adult-supported approach to better meet the varied needs of a wide demographic of LGBTQ+ youth in Greater Boston. BAGLY's stated goals are to create, sustain, and advocate for socially just and intersectional programs, policies, and services for the LGBTQ+ youth community, which they achieve through frequent community-based leadership development, health promotion, and social support programs.

References

  1. Familyequality.org. "Family Equality - Family Equality". Family Equality Council. Retrieved 2017-11-19.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "History - Family Equality". Family Equality. Retrieved 12 December 2017.
  3. Gambone, 56-7
  4. Huffington Post: Zach Wahls To Co-Chair 'Outspoken Generation,' Gay Parents' Initiative For Adult Children, With Ella Robinson," April 6, 2012, accessed May 29, 2012
  5. "Outspoken Voices Podcast - Family Equality". Family Equality .
  6. "Outspoken Voices - a Podcast for LGBTQ+ Families". player.fm .
  7. Lott, Emily (2020-09-30). "7 Best LGBTQ Family & Fertility Podcasts You Should be Listening To". Gay Parents to Be .
  8. 1 2 3 "Family Equality | Outspoken Voices Podcast". Family Equality. Retrieved 2021-11-20.

Sources