Stonewall Shooting Sports of Utah is a group of gun rights advocates in Utah. It supports the Pink Pistols' idea that was described nationally in 2000 by writer Jonathan Rauch for the legal, responsible and safe use of weapons for their self defense, recreation and shooting sports. Hundreds of supporters including those who are lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) have joined the group since 2002 when it was founded by Utah gay activist David Nelson. [1] [2]
The group is nonpartisan, but recognizes that most LGBT Americans identify as Democrats. The group promotes the Second Amendment Foundation and more than 50 other self-defense groups including African American Hunting Association LLC, Amendment II Democrats, American Gun Culture Report, Armed Liberals, Gun Loving Liberal, The Gun Toting Liberal, Gun Toting Liberals, GunTards.net, The Liberal Gun Club, Liberals With Guns, Oregon Democratic Gun Owners Caucus, Pro-Gun Progressive and Women Against Gun Control. [3] [4] [5]
Members of the group are encouraged to campaign for candidates and lobby for public policies which support their interest in the Second Amendment to the Constitution for the United States and the protection of equal rights for gay Americans, and against the fear of weapons. They worked successfully for state legislation which protects the right of students to possess legally concealed firearms on public college campuses, to eliminate gun-free policies at Salt Lake City- and Salt Lake County-government public property, and continue to work against hate crime. [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12]
The Utah Pride Festival is a festival held in downtown Salt Lake City in June celebrating Utah's diversity and gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender (LGBTQ) community. The event is a program of the Utah Pride Center, and includes the state's second-largest parade, after the Days of '47 Parade.
Affirmation: LGBTQ Mormons, Families, & Friends is an international organization for individuals who identify as gay, lesbian, transgender, bisexual, queer, intersex, or same-sex attracted, and their family members, friends, and church leaders who are members or former members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Stonewall Democrats, also known in some states as LGBT Democrats, is a caucus within the Democratic Party that advocates for issues that are relevant to LGBT Americans. The caucus primarily operates through individual chapters or political clubs supporting LGBTQ rights and affiliated with the Democratic Party.
The Utah Pride Center (UPC) is a tax-exempt nonprofit organization in Salt Lake City. It provides services, events and activities to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBTQ) people in Utah. The center manages annual and ongoing projects including the Utah Pride Festival.
The rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) people in the U.S. state of Utah have significantly evolved in the 21st century. Protective laws have become increasingly enacted since 2014, despite the state's reputation as socially conservative and highly religious. Utah's anti-sodomy law was invalidated in 2003 by Lawrence v. Texas, and fully repealed by the state legislature in 2019. Same-sex marriage has been legal since the state's ban was ruled unconstitutional by federal courts in 2014. In addition, statewide anti-discrimination laws now cover sexual orientation and gender identity in employment and housing, and the use of conversion therapy on minors is prohibited. In spite of this, there are still a few differences between the treatment of LGBTQ people and the rest of the population, and the rights of transgender youth are restricted.
QSaltLake is a lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBTQ) news and entertainment magazine published monthly by Gay Salt Lake Inc. in Salt Lake City. The magazine is the feature publication for the corporation. Related publications, web sites and a nonprofit organization are among the corporate projects.
D. Chris Buttars was an American politician who served in the Utah State Senate representing the 10th Utah Senate District. He began his service as a state senator in 2001 and resigned in 2011 citing health problems.
Scott Daniel McCoy is an American politician and attorney from Florida. A Democrat, he is a former member of the Utah State Senate, where he represented the state's 2nd senate district which comprises portions of Salt Lake City. He resigned from the senate in December 2009 to dedicate himself more fully to his legal career.
The Pink Pistols are an LGBTQ gun rights organization in the United States and Canada. Their motto is "Pick on someone your own caliber".
Benjamin Michael McAdams is an American politician and attorney who served as the U.S. representative from Utah's 4th congressional district from 2019 to 2021. He was the only Democratic member of Utah's congressional delegation, and a member of the Blue Dog Coalition. From 2013 to 2019, he served as mayor of Salt Lake County, and from 2009 to 2012, he was the Utah state senator from the 2nd district, which includes Salt Lake City, South Salt Lake, and a portion of West Valley. McAdams was elected to Congress in 2018, narrowly defeating two-term Republican incumbent Mia Love. In 2020, McAdams ran for reelection, but he lost to Republican challenger Burgess Owens. He is the most recent Democrat to represent Utah in Congress.
David Keith Nelson was an American LGBT and gun rights activist. He founded or helped found several LGBT-related nonprofit organizations in Utah and helped direct others. His work with the Democratic Party encouraged many LGBT Utahns to serve as party leaders. His work as a legislative and executive lobbyist accomplished the adoption of several LGBT- and weapon-friendly state and local laws, rules, ordinances and policies, and the rejection of other legislation.
Utah Stonewall Democrats is a Salt Lake City-based lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBTQ) political group affiliated with the Utah Democratic Party. The word "Stonewall" in the group's name refers to the Stonewall riots of 1969, a pivotal event in the history of protecting equal rights for LGBT people.
Todd Weiler is a Republican member of the Utah State Senate. He lives in Woods Cross, Utah. Weiler was first appointed to the state Senate in January 2012.
Mormons Building Bridges is a decentralized grassroots group composed primarily of members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who seek to improve the attitudes between members of the LDS Church and the LGBT community.
LGBT+ Liberal Democrats is a British lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and other sexual minorities equality group of the Liberal Democrats political party. The organisation is one of several Specified Associated Organisations, giving it special status within the party, and has been referred to as one of the "most important" of such groups. The group campaigns both within the party and UK-wide on LGBT+ issues, as well as mentoring and providing advice to the party's candidates.
Although the historical record is often scarce, evidence points to LGBT individuals having existed in the Mormon community since its beginnings, and estimates of the number of LGBT former and current Mormons range from 4 to 10% of the total membership of the LDS Church. However, it wasn't until the late 1950s that top LDS leaders began regularly discussing LGBT people in public addresses. Since the 1970s a greater number of LGBT individuals with Mormon connections have received media coverage.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has been involved with many pieces of legislation relating to LGBT people and their rights. These include playing an important role in defeating same-sex marriage legalization in Hawaii, Alaska, Nebraska, Nevada, California, and Utah. The topic of same-sex marriage has been one of the church's foremost public concerns since 1993. Leaders have stated that it will become involved in political matters if it perceives that there is a moral issue at stake and wields considerable influence on a national level. Over a dozen members of the US congress had membership in the church in the early 2000s. About 80% of Utah state lawmakers identied as Mormon at that time as well. The church's political involvement around LGBT rights has long been a source of controversy both within and outside the church. It's also been a significant cause of disagreement and disaffection by members.
This is a timeline of LGBT Mormon history in the 2010s, part of a series of timelines consisting of events, publications, and speeches about LGBTQ+ individuals, topics around sexual orientation and gender minorities, and the community of members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.