(Baltimore, MD - April 8, 2024) - Lambda Legal and co-counsel Winston & Strawn LLP, Perkowski Legal, PC, and Scott Schoettes today announced they have reached a settlement with the Department of Defense (DoD) in a lawsuit filed in 2018 on behalf of a former Navy midshipman, Kevin Deese, and a former Air Force cadet, John Doe (a pseudonym), who were denied commissions after graduating from their respective service academies because they are living with HIV. The settlement provides for Deese and Doe to be commissioned as officers in recognition of the status and military careers they qualified for and earned years ago.

Washington, DC - April 8, 2024 - Today, the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) announced its decision to categorically ban transgender women from women's sports.

Geneva, 4 April 2024 - The United Nations made a historic move to protect the human rights of intersex persons, 35 civil society organisations said today, as the Human Rights Council adopted its first-ever resolution specifically addressing discrimination, violence, and harmful practices against persons with innate variations in sex characteristics. A majority of States voted in favour of the resolution, with no States voting against it.

New York, USA- 03 April 2024 - Outright International strongly condemns the decision by Uganda's Constitutional Court to invalidate only a few provisions of the Anti-Homosexuality Act, 2023, while leaving the rest intact. The Court categorically declined to nullify the Act in its entirety or issue a permanent injunction. This decision falls short of the necessary action to protect the rights and lives of LGBTQ individuals in Uganda.

Oklahoma City - Oklahoma State Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters must be relieved the calendar has turned to April, because his last week of March was filled with continued backlash and criticism from Oklahomans, canceled events, and more staff upheaval at the Oklahoma State Department of Education (OSDE). It's clear that no matter how much Walters tries to hide himself from criticism, Oklahomans refuse to let him off the hook.

WASHINGTON - April 3, 2024 - Today, the Human Rights Campaign Foundation, the educational arm of the nation's largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ+) civil rights organization, released a report in partnership with Community Marketing & Insights featuring data collected from 1,899 LGBTQ+ adults (age 18 and older) in the United States. The report, which comes at the start of Financial Literacy Month, fielded survey responses about financial wellness within the LGBTQ+ community and highlights the unique economic challenges that many in the community often face.

March 29, 2024 - Today the Texas Court of Appeals, Third District, upheld injunctions in two related cases against the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) and Commissioner Masters, barring them from implementing the agency's rule expanding the definition of child abuse to presumptively treat the provision of gender-affirming care as child abuse.

Oklahoma City - March 29, 2024 - Just ten members of the public are allowed to speak during the public comment period at the Oklahoma State Board of Education monthly meetings. And yesterday, all ten speakers used their time to call out State Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters for his failure to protect the state's LGBTQ+ students and keep Oklahoma schools safe. Their message was clear: Ryan Walters must be removed from office.

ATLANTA - March 29, 2024 - Georgia's state legislative session came to a close early this morning, with legislators failing to advance any of the more than 20 anti-LGBTQ+ bills introduced in Georgia this year. In the waning days of session, MAGA lawmakers in the Senate launched a last ditch effort to further restrict freedoms for LGBTQ+ young people and families, hijacking two unrelated bills and stuffing them with anti-LGBTQ+ amendments. Neither bill was taken up for a vote in the House.

WASHINGTON - Today, the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the nation's largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ+) civil rights organization, honors Transgender Day of Visibility (TDOV). Held annually on March 31, TDOV celebrates transgender and non-binary people worldwide living openly and authentically while raising awareness around the discrimination and violence they still face.

WASHINGTON - March 28, 2024 - This week, both chambers of the Republican-controlled Kansas Legislature passed legislation that would ban gender-affirming care for trans children. The bill now heads to Democratic Governor Laura Kelly's desk, and she's expected to veto the anti-trans legislation. However, state Republicans likely have the numbers needed to override her veto and make this dangerous attack on trans youth state law. The House passed the bill 82-39, with two GOP absences that could provide the two votes needed for a veto-proof majority. The Senate passed the bill 27-13 along partisan lines, which is a veto-proof Republican supermajority.

(NEW YORK, NY -- March 28, 2024) In advance of Transgender Day of Visibility, Lambda Legal, the nation's oldest and largest legal nonprofit working to achieve full equal rights for LGBTQ people and everyone living with HIV, today launched a multimedia campaign, "Speak OUT: Trans and Nonbinary Voices". The campaign will be a platform for transgender and nonbinary voices to share their stories and experiences, in their own words as they navigate the current challenging social and political climate

WASHINGTON - March 27, 2024 - Kelley Robinson, president of the Human Rights Campaign, released the following statement in response to the full release of the Oklahoma Medical Examiner's report on the death of Nex Benedict, a 16 year-old non-binary student of Choctaw heritage. "The full report does little to fill in the gaps in information about that day or the more than a year of bullying and harassment that led up to it. It does not answer the questions of so many in Oklahoma and across the country. We continue to support the calls from Nex's family for an independent investigation.

On Transgender Day of Visibility, we honor the extraordinary courage and contributions of transgender Americans and reaffirm our Nation's commitment to forming a more perfect Union - where all people are created equal and treated equally throughout their lives.

The Pennsylvania Equality Project will hold Spring FreeShop at the Meadville Public Library on Friday, April 19 from 10 AM - 5 PM and Saturday, April 20, from 9 AM - 5 PM. We are seeking donations of food, clothing, blankets, non-perishable food items, kitchen items, books, toys, games, etc. on both days of the event. On Saturday, April 20, anyone who needs the donated items can take what they like for free. There is no cost for admission to this event. Spring FreeShop 2024 is being held at the Meadville Public Library in the Community Room on the Upper floor, 848 North Main Street, Meadville, PA 16335. For more information, visit our website, https://paequality.com, or call (814) 350-6635.