Equality Federation is a

social justice Social justice is justice in terms of the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society. In Western and Asian cultures, the concept of social justice has often referred to the process of ensuring that individuals fu ...

advocacy Advocacy is an Action (philosophy), activity by an individual or advocacy group, group that aims to influence decision making, decisions within political, economic, and social institutions. Advocacy includes activities and publications to infl ...

and

capacity building Capacity building (or capacity development, capacity strengthening) is the improvement in an individual's or organization's facility (or capability) "to produce, perform or deploy". The terms ''capacity building'' and ''capacity development'' ha ...

organization serving and supporting state-based

lesbian A lesbian is a Homosexuality, homosexual woman.Zimmerman, p. 453. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate n ...

, gay,

bisexual Bisexuality is a romantic or sexual attraction or behavior toward both males and females, or to more than one gender. It may also be defined to include romantic or sexual attraction to people regardless of their sex or gender identity, whi ...

and

transgender A transgender (often abbreviated as trans) person is someone whose gender identity or gender expression does not correspond with their sex assigned at birth. Many transgender people experience dysphoria, which they seek to alleviate through tr ...

(

LGBT ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term is a ...

) advocacy organizations in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

History

In 1997, a group of state-based LGBT advocacy organizations came together to form the Equality Federation, which originally operated as a volunteer-run coalition. In 2005, Toni Broaddus joined the Federation as its first executive director, transitioning it to a staffed organization. In 2010, the Federation was a staff of four when Broaddus stepped down. After a nationwide search, the board of directors hired Rebecca Isaacs as the organization's second executive director in 2011. It was declared in December 2020 that Fran Hutchins would be succeeding Rebecca as the third execute director, starting January 2021.

Structure

The Equality Federation is an umbrella group of two separate non-profit organizations. The Equality Federation is a

501(c)(4) A 501(c) organization is a nonprofit organization in the Law of the United States#Federal law, federal law of the United States according to Internal Revenue Code (26 U.S.C. § 501(c)) and is one of over 29 types of nonprofit organizations exe ...

membership organization serving organizations who advocate for LGBT equality in nearly all 50 states. The Equality Federation Institute is a

501(c)(3) A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of the 29 types of 50 ...

organization with programs in

leadership development Leadership development is the process which helps expand the capacity of individuals to perform in leadership roles within organizations. Leadership roles are those that facilitate execution of an organization's strategy through building alignment ...

, policy advocacy, and organizational development. The Equality Federation staff is distributed across the United States.

Programs

Equality Federation's programs focus on leadership development, policy advocacy, and organizational development.

Leadership development

Equality Federation staff provide coaching and mentoring to new and experienced executive directors, offer training for staff and board of advocacy organizations, and operate an internship program to connect young people with statewide organizations. The organization also hosts two annual events: the New Executive Director Boot Camp and the Summer Meeting. The New Executive Director Boot Camp is attended by new organization leaders for two days of in-depth training. The Summer Meeting provides state-based organization leaders with the opportunity to collaborate and develop working relationships.

Organizational development

Equality Federation's organizational development program focuses on strengthening member organizations to ensure they're sustainable and strategically positioned to advance public policy changes. The program's offerings include strategic planning services (organizational, advocacy, and fundraising plans), executive search support, and access to online services. The organization also works to create partnerships within and across regions. The Southern Cohort convenes annually at the Southern Leadership Summit to share best practices and form partnerships for working in the

Southern United States The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, or simply the South) is a geographic and cultural region of the United States of America. It is between the Atlantic Ocean ...

. Similarly, the Midwest Cohort meets at the Midwest Leadership Summit to strategize for the

Midwestern United States The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of the United States. I ...

Policy advocacy

The organization's policy program assists state-based organizations with their public policy advocacy efforts. The State Equality Fund (a philanthropic partnership that includes the Evelyn and Walter Haas, Jr. Fund, Ford Foundation, the

Gill Foundation The Gill Foundation is an American philanthropic foundation based in Denver, Colorado. It is one of the largest funders of efforts to secure full equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in the United States. The foundat ...

, and anonymous donors) works with the Equality Federation to build support for passage of statewide nondiscrimination laws in

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

and

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

. The organization has worked with a number of state-based organizations to develop plans after their state allows

same-sex marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same Legal sex and gender, sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being ...

. Equality Federation has also formed a partnership with the

GSA Network GSA Network is a nonprofit organization that assists students with starting gay–straight alliances (GSA) to fight homophobia and transphobia in schools. GSA Network originally focused on supporting youth in California, and still has its headq ...

to advance safe school policies in five states.

Membership

Equality Federation serves statewide LGBT advocacy organizations in the United States, including:

References

External links

Equality Federation website
{{LGBT in the United States LGBT political advocacy groups in the United States Organizations established in 1997 1997 establishments in California Non-profit organizations based in San Francisco