Equality Michigan is an American

civil rights Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They ensure one's entitlement to participate in the civil and political life o ...

, advocacy and anti-violence organization serving

Michigan Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...

's lesbian,

gay ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late 1 ...

, bisexual 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 ...

(

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 ...

) community. Equality Michigan serves Michigan's LGBT community through victims services, lobbying on behalf of the LGBT community, public education on LGBT issues, and organizing Michigan's largest LGBT events such as Motor City Pride. The organization is a founding member of the

Equality Federation Equality Federation is a social justice, advocacy and capacity building organization serving and supporting state-based lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) advocacy organizations in the United States. History In 1997, a group of stat ...

History

In 1991, the Triangle Foundation was founded by

Jeffrey Montgomery Jeffrey Montgomery (May 9, 1953 – July 18, 2016) was an American LGBT activist and public relations executive. In 1984, his partner, Michael, was shot to death outside a Detroit gay bar, prompting Montgomery to engage in LGBT advocacy. He ...

, Henry D. Messer, and John Monahan as an anti-violence organization. Triangle Foundation expanded its mission in 1994 to include political and policy work following the closure of the

Michigan Organization for Human Rights The Michigan Organization for Human Rights (MOHR, ) was a Michigan-based civil rights and anti-discrimination organization. It was founded in 1977 and disbanded in 1994, with most of its assets transferring to the University of Michigan Bentley Hi ...

. Michigan Equality was founded by activist Beth Bashert in 1999, following successful electoral campaign efforts in support of LGBT rights in seven Michigan cities, including Ypsilanti, Kalamazoo, Traverse City, Huntington Woods, and others. Triangle Foundation merged with Michigan Equality to create Equality Michigan in 2010.

Structure

Equality Michigan, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, is the primary organization using the Equality Michigan brand. Equality Michigan Action Fund is a

501(c)(4) A 501(c) organization is a nonprofit organization in the 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 exempt from some federal income taxes. ...

nonprofit organization affiliated with, but independent from, Equality Michigan. The Equality Michigan Pride PAC is a political action committee (PAC) affiliated with, but independent from, the Equality Michigan Action Fund.

Victim services program

Equality Michigan's Victim Services Program documents and addresses the pervasive problem of violence committed against the actual or perceived LGBT and HIV-affected communities. Victim Services offers free and confidential support to victims of bias crimes, domestic violence, pick-up crimes, police misconduct, HIV-related violence, rape, and sexual assault. In addition, Equality Michigan provides accompaniments and advocacy for clients with the police, the courts, medical, and social service agencies. The organization works to get legal services offered at a reduced fee for low-income clients and help clients tell their story in order to raise awareness about the incidents that occurred to them. Data collected through this program is published annually through the

National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs The National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs, or NCAVP, is a national organization dedicated to reducing violence and its impacts on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) individuals in the United States. It was founded in 1995 by G ...

- which Triangle Foundation co-founded.

Policy program

Equality Michigan works to enact policy and legislative changes in Michigan to promote equality for LGBT people in such areas as housing and employment, prevent hate crimes, and to stop anti-LGBT

legislation Legislation is the process or result of enrolling, enacting, or promulgating laws by a legislature, parliament, or analogous governing body. Before an item of legislation becomes law it may be known as a bill, and may be broadly referred to ...

and similar measures from being introduced.

Community events

Equality Michigan's community events are intended to bring together and build the Michigan LGBT community. Motor City Pride 2012 - parade121

Motor City Pride

An annual Pride

street festival A street fair celebrates the character of a neighborhood. As its name suggests, it is typically held on the main street of a neighborhood. The principal component of street fairs are booths used to sell goods (particularly food) or convey informa ...

held in

Hart Plaza Philip A. Hart Plaza, in downtown Detroit, is a city plaza along the Detroit River. It is located more or less on the site at which Antoine Laumet de La Mothe, sieur de Cadillac landed in 1701 when he founded '' Fort Pontchartrain du Détroit' ...

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...

the second Saturday and Sunday of every June to celebrate the LGBT community. Previously held in

Ferndale, Michigan Ferndale is a city in Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It forms part of the Detroit metropolitan area. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 19,190. Ferndale is well known in the Detroit area for its LGBT population and prog ...

, the festival moved to Detroit in 2011. It is the largest LGBT event held in Michigan. The event showcases both local and national performers including Nickki Stevens, The Fundamentals.

Michigan LGBT ComedyFest

ComedyFest is an annual

comedy festival A comedy festival is a celebration of comedy with many shows, venues, comedy performers (such as stand up comics, sketch troupes, variety performers, etc.) and is held over a specific block of time. Normally, each festival has a diverse range of c ...

featuring national comedians held in Dearborn, Michigan for the LGBT community. Comedians performing have included Sean Hetherington (2005), René Hicks (2006), Ian Harvie (2009), and Julie Goldman (2014).

Equality Michigan Annual Dinner Event

Equality Michigan's Annual Dinner Event begins with a cocktail reception with a silent auction. The dinner features a

keynote speaker A keynote in public speaking is a talk that establishes a main underlying theme. In corporate or commercial settings, greater importance is attached to the delivery of a keynote speech or keynote address. The keynote establishes the framework f ...

and the presentation of " Catalyst Awards" recognizing individuals and organizations for excellence in service to Michigan's LGBT community. The event is attended by several community leaders and elected officials. Past speakers have included:

Education and outreach

Equality Michigan provides diversity trainings on social and political LGBT issues. This program also educates politicians, doctors, lawyers, teachers, and law enforcement professionals about issues related to the LGBT community.

Catalyst Awards

Each year at their annual dinner, the organization presents awards, called

Catalyst Catalysis () is the process of increasing the rate of a chemical reaction by adding a substance known as a catalyst (). Catalysts are not consumed in the reaction and remain unchanged after it. If the reaction is rapid and the catalyst recyc ...

Awards, to individuals, groups or organizations advocating for LGBT persons in Michigan. Some awards named after individuals, such as the Henry D. Messer Youth Activist Award, are given multiple years to honor specific types of actions.

Past Catalyst Award recipients

Some past recipients of a Catalyst Award include:

References

External links

Equality Michigan website

Motor City Pride

Lesbian and Gay ComedyFest
{{EqFed LGBT political advocacy groups in Michigan Political organizations established in 1991 1991 establishments in Michigan Nonviolence organizations based in the United States Organizations based in Detroit Charities based in Michigan Equality Federation