Equality Ohio

Last updated

Equality Ohio
Founded1 March 2005;20 years ago (2005-03-01)
Legal status 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization
Focus LGBTQ+ rights
Headquarters Columbus, Ohio, U.S.
Dwayne Steward
Director of People and Culture
Sheena Barnes
RevenueUS$1,878,720 [1] (2020)
ExpensesUS$1,350,944 [1] (2020)
Employees15 (2023)
Website equalityohio.org

Equality Ohio is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that supports lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBTQ) equality in Ohio. [2] The organization is a member of the Equality Federation. [3]

Contents

Since its founding, Equality Ohio has concurrently operated under two separate nonprofit tax identification numbers – one for Equality Ohio and another for the Equality Ohio Education Fund. [1] The latter of these retains most of the funding for the organization. [1]

History

Equality Ohio was founded in 2005 following the passage of Ohio Issue 1, which banned state recognition of same-sex relationships. [4] [5]

Leadership transitions

In its twenty-year history, Equality Ohio has had several executive directors. The organization's first executive director, Lynne Bowman, was one of its founders, and she served as its executive director for over 5 years. Following this, Sue Doerfer became executive director in December 2009, but she announced her resignation in late 2010. [6] Doerfer was replaced by Ed Mullen, who was a former candidate for Illinois State Representative and civil rights lawyer from Chicago, [7] [8] and Mullen served in this role for nearly two years. In 2012, the organization hired its fourth executive director, Elyzabeth Joy Holford, [9] and Holford left the role to return to California in 2015. [10] Following this, Alana Jochum was named the executive director in 2015. [10] Alana left the role in 2023 and currently serves as Policy Director with Americans for Trans Equity (A4TE). From 2023-2024 the organization was led by Interim Executive Director, Katie Belanger. In 2024, the agency hired its first openly queer Black Executive Director, Dwayne Steward. [11]

Legislative priorities

In the early 2010s, Equality Ohio focused on advancing state legislation to prohibit employment discrimination or housing discrimination based on sexual orientation. [12] During this period, the organization was also focused on the Equal Housing and Employment Act (HB 335/SB 231) and enumeration of the safe schools legislation, which was passed in January 2012. Following this, Equality Ohio focused on marriage equality.[ citation needed ]

Given opposition in the state legislature, Equality Ohio endorsed the Citizens Not Politicians campaign for the 2024 Issue 1 ballot initiative against gerrymandering. [13]

Labor union creation

In fall 2022, the organization announced that its employees had elected to form a labor union. The leadership of the organization agreed to voluntarily recognize the labor union, Equality Ohio Workers United. [14]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Equality Ohio". ProPublica. 10 November 2021. Archived from the original on 14 July 2023. Retrieved 25 July 2023.
  2. ↑ Aaron Marshall (30 July 2009). "Ohio House bill targets discrimination against gays, transgender people". The Plain Dealer . Archived from the original on 12 October 2012. Retrieved 26 November 2010.
  3. ↑ "Member Organizations". Equality Federation. Retrieved 14 January 2014.
  4. ↑ Glassman, Anthony (11 March 2005). "Out of Issue 1, a new statewide group is born". Gay People's Chronicle . Retrieved 18 November 2010.
  5. ↑ "History". Equality Ohio. Retrieved 13 July 2023.
  6. ↑ "Equality Ohio hires new chief". Business First. 3 December 2009. Retrieved 25 November 2010.
  7. ↑ Crump, Sarah (15 August 2010). "Equality Ohio director loves what city's neighborhoods have to offer: My Cleveland". The Plain Dealer . Retrieved 26 November 2010.
  8. ↑ Anthony Glassman (19 November 2010). "Sue Doerfer resigns Equality Ohio post". Gay People's Chronicle . Retrieved 26 November 2010.
  9. ↑ "Equality Ohio Hires Its Fourth Director". Yes. On Top Magazine. Retrieved 16 November 2012.
  10. 1 2 "Equality Ohio Director Elyzabeth Holford ends short stay in Ohio". The Columbus Dispatch. 28 July 2015. Retrieved 13 July 2023.
  11. ↑ "Equality Ohio Board Announces Veteran Ohio LGBTQ Leader Dwayne Steward as Next Executive Director".
  12. ↑ Siegel, Jim (15 September 2009). "Gay-rights bill passes Ohio House". Columbus Dispatch. Archived from the original on 24 July 2012. Retrieved 9 November 2009.
  13. ↑ "Endorsements – Yes on Issue 1 » Citizens Not Politicians" . Retrieved 25 August 2024.
  14. ↑ "Equality Ohio Announces Formation of Historic Worker Union". 12 September 2022. Retrieved 13 July 2023.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.