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Our Voices

Join us in welcoming NCLR’s newest Legal Assistant Janine Grgurina!

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...

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Welcome NCLR’s Newest Staff Members – KJ Popkin and Shauna Madison!

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...

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Drag is MANY things…a Crime is Not One.

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...

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Connecting the Dots: Reproductive Equity, Family Regulation, & Black Maternal Health

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...

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We’re on the right side of history. And we’re going to win.

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...

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New Staff Join the NCLR Team in 2023!

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...

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NCLR’s Legislative Priorities in the 118th Congress

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...

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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...

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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...

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An Advocate for Immigrants’ Rights – NCLR’s Immigration Project Associate

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...

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