Janine Grgurina (she/her) – Legal Assistant A UC Santa Cruz alumni, Janine Grgurgina comes to us after running a voter registration campaign and working on behalf of affordable housing. She is interested in advocating for transgender healthcare and reproductive justice and is excited to be working for NCLR because of our positive impact on the LGBTQ community. Where do you currently reside? Noe Valley, San Francisco What is your educational background?Bachelor of Arts in Sociology...
We’ve had two more additions to the NCLR team recently! Help us welcome our new Staff Attorney, KJ Popkin, and our Director of People, Culture, and Equity, Shauna Madison! KJ Popkin (they/them) – Staff Attorney KJ Popkin comes to us with a breadth of experience working on social justice issue cases ranging from police brutality to abortion bans. They were led to NCLR because they believe it is “crucial to go where the need is greatest,” and are motivated to work on behalf of...
Over the past year, we have seen more than 475 anti-LGBTQ laws introduced in dozens of states all across the country. From restricting healthcare for transgender youth to trying to erase LGBTQ people from public education and banning trans kids from playing sports in their schools, the non-stop wave of anti-LGBTQ legislation has never been more intense than it is right now. Included in the list of discriminatory and unjust laws we are seeing pass in states like Tennessee and...
Brooklyn’s Family Court was rife with gossip during my time representing children, teens, and young adults involved with the family regulation[1] (also known as “child welfare”) system. One rumor concerned youths living in institutions who had removed their own IUDs, hoping to become pregnant. Its tellers’ tones were contemptuous toward the young people who had risked their health in pursuit of riskier pregnancies that would destroy their futures. I winced in imagined pain and went on to the...
This week marked the 3rd anniversary of my tenure at NCLR. This anniversary has another significance for those of us in the Bay Area: I started this job the same day California introduced a mandatory shelter-in-place order due to the global COVID pandemic. The pandemic punctuates the way many of us have experienced the past three years. Because the pandemic and my start at NCLR happened at the same time, for me, it has served as a reminder that we are inextricably interconnected, a...
The NCLR team is growing in 2023! Help us welcome Lisa Oman and Rachel Berg. Rachel Berg (she/her) – Staff Attorney Rachel joined NCLR because of her passion for civil rights law and her concern for LGBTQ rights around the country, especially in states like her home state of Tennessee. Before NCLR, Rachel got her BA in Political Science at Vassar College, her Master of Science at the London School of Economics, and her J.D. at Fordham University School of Law. She has spent her career...
It’s January of an odd-numbered year, which means a new Congress has just convened. Unlike the previous two years, we now have divided party control, making legislating even more difficult. While progress may be slowed, it is essential that NCLR and other LGBTQ civil rights organizations continue to have a presence on Capitol Hill, reminding members of the House and Senate that we expect them to act in the best interests of all of their constituents. So what’s on NCLR’s policy wish list this...
Born Perfect – NCLR’s campaign to end conversion therapy – hit the ground running on New Year’s Day, and 2023 looks to be a year of record progress against this fraudulent practice, which has inflicted devastating harm on millions of LGBTQ youth and their families. At least four states have an opportunity to protect youth from this dangerous and discredited practice. NCLR’s Born Perfect campaign testified in favor of Minnesota’s new bill in January, and we are actively partnering with state...
NCLR has engaged in federal advocacy nearly since our founding 45 years ago, but the establishment of our DC office made participation in federal spaces – such as Congress and the White House – much more regular. As NCLR showed up in these spaces more frequently, the organization became more widely known among federal policymakers. NCLR routinely joins LGBTQ partner organizations for bi-weekly calls with the White House, engages in regular meetings with other federal agencies, and...
Even as Latinx Heritage Month has come to a close, we continue to uplift Latinx voices year-round. This month, we are spotlighting our Immigration Project Associate Pamela Mercado Garcia (she/her/ella). Pamela works with our Immigration and Asylum team. In 1994, NCLR was the first national LGBTQ organization to launch an Immigration Project. As part of this program, the work that Pam does daily helps to carry on the life-saving work that this program has always focused on, including advancing...
Equality Florida is the largest civil rights organization dedicated to securing full equality for Florida’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) community. We’re changing Florida through lobbying, grassroots organizing, education, and coalition building — so that no one suffers harassment or discrimination on the basis of their sexual orientation or gender identity or expression.
Come Out With Pride
The mission of Come Out With Pride Orlando is to cultivate visibility, authenticity, and acceptance by curating inclusive experiences that celebrate and embody the spirit of queer resilience.
Orlando Youth Alliance
Since 1990, the Orlando Youth Alliance (OYA) has been providing safe spaces for LGBTQ youth in Central Florida. Their coverage area includes metro Orlando, but also spans out to include the rural counties surrounding Orlando. In 2008, they created a chapter in Lakeland, Florida (Polk County). OYA oversees the highly successful Polk Pride Festival which attracts over 6,000 people annually.
Southern Legal Counsel
Southern Legal Counsel, Inc. (SLC) is a Florida statewide not-for-profit public interest law firm that is committed to the ideal of equal justice for all and the attainment of basic human and civil rights. SLC developed its Transgender Rights Initiative to fill a gap in access to justice for Florida’s transgender community, including in areas such as access to legal authenticity, access to safe and affirming school and work environments, access to medically necessary healthcare, and more. SLC’s Trans Rights Initiative protects the rights of Florida’s LGBTQ+ community utilizing federal impact litigation, policy advocacy, and individual representation. SLC has litigated many of the recent federal cases against the state of Florida, and has successfully overturned the Medicaid Ban on gender-affirming care (Dekker v. Weida); permanently enjoined the medical care bans for minors and restrictions for adults created by SB 254 and the Boards of Medicine rules (Doe v. Ladapo); preliminarily enjoined the pronoun ban for transgender teachers in Florida’s public schools; and more.
Joy Metropolitan Community Church
Joy MCC is the spiritual home to a multi-cultural, inclusive, and diverse community of faith. We are rooted in the life, ministry, and teachings of Jesus. We experience a vibrant spirituality that is positive, practical, and progressive. We’ve always been a totally open and affirming church. We welcome the full participation of people of allraces, cultures, ages, abilities, spiritual backgrounds, sexual orientations, and gender identities. We share a deep sense of community where our diversity is celebrated, not merely tolerated.
ACLU of Florida
The mission of the ACLU of Florida is to protect, defend, strengthen, and promote the constitutional rights and liberties of all people in Florida. We envision a fair and just Florida, where all people are free, equal under the law, and live with dignity.
QLatinx
QLatinx is a grassroots community-led racial, social, and gender justice organization dedicated to the advancement and empowerment of Orlando’s LGBTQ+ Latinx community. QLatinx is committed to building a supportive infrastructure, addressing inequity, promoting inclusionary QLatinx aims to deepen the political consciousness of LGBTQ+ and Latinx individuals about intersections and complexities of institutional, interpersonal, and internalized forms of oppression. This work includes empowering local LGBTQ+ leadership to become cognizant of gender and racial inequities with the LGBTQ+ community and in relation to cisgender populations.
Community Spring
Community Spring is a grassroots organization dedicated to economic justice. The two pillars of our work are income and power: income to meet people’s needs and power to reshape the systems that keep them down.
Pride Community Center of North Central Florida
The Pride Community Center of North Central Florida offers safe spaces, resources, services and events to foster and enhance the well-being and visibility of LGBTQ+ people in North Central Florida. Visibility changes minds. Here in North Central Florida, LGBTQ+ people deserve access to safe spaces where they can not only express themselves, but where they can also be a part of a community. Come join us.