The Equality Kansas, formerly Kansas Equality Coalition, is a statewide

LGBT rights Rights affecting lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender ( LGBT) people vary greatly by country or jurisdiction—encompassing everything from the legal recognition of same-sex marriage to the death penalty for homosexuality. Notably, ...

organization whose mission is to end discrimination based on

sexual orientation Sexual orientation is an enduring pattern of romantic or sexual attraction (or a combination of these) to persons of the opposite sex or gender, the same sex or gender, or to both sexes or more than one gender. These attractions are generall ...

and gender identity and expression. The coalition seeks to ensure the dignity, safety and legal equality of all

Kansans The following are notable people who were either born, raised, or have lived for a significant period of time in the American state of Kansas. Academics and Nobel Prize laureates *Milton S. Eisenhower (1899–1985), university president; ...

. Created on October 9, 2005, during a meeting in Emporia, Kansas, Equality Kansas is dedicated to ending discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

Chapters

Equality Kansas started with five chapters: * Johnson County (since reorganized as the Northeast Kansas Chapter) *

Lawrence Lawrence may refer to: Education Colleges and universities * Lawrence Technological University, a university in Southfield, Michigan, United States * Lawrence University, a liberal arts university in Appleton, Wisconsin, United States Preparator ...

/ Douglas County *

Topeka Topeka ( ; Kansa: ; iow, Dópikˀe, script=Latn or ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Kansas and the seat of Shawnee County. It is along the Kansas River in the central part of Shawnee County, in northeast Kansas, in the Central Uni ...

* The

Flint Hills The Flint Hills, historically known as Bluestem Pastures or Blue Stem Hills, are a region in eastern Kansas and north-central Oklahoma named for the abundant residual flint eroded from the bedrock that lies near or at the surface. It consists of ...

(since reorganized as the Riley/ Geary County Chapter) * Wichita Since then, six more chapters have been added: * Southwest Kansas (March 14, 2006) * North Central (July 26, 2006) * South East (January 13, 2008) * Central Plains (April 27, 2008) * Hutchinson Area (June 27, 2010) * Northwest Kansas (July 18, 2010)

Activities

Members of the Lawrence chapter were instrumental in persuading the city of Lawrence, Kansas, to institute a domestic partnership registry in 2007. It is the first of its kind in the state. Lawrence is the seat of Douglas County, which is the only county in Kansas where a majority of voters opposed the state's 2005 constitutional amendment banning

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

. In February 2007, members of Equality Kansas testified before the Kansas House Committee on Federal and State affairs in opposition to a bill that would have outlawed domestic partnership registries in the state. No floor vote on the bill was held in 2007. In February 2008, the Kansas House of Representatives voted 66 to 50 to refer the bill to the House Judiciary Committee for more hearings. In August 2007, members of the coalition stood with then

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to th ...

Governor

Kathleen Sebelius Kathleen Sebelius (; née Gilligan, born May 15, 1948) is an American businesswoman and politician who served as the 21st United States secretary of Health and Human Services from 2009 until 2014. As Secretary of Health and Human Services, Sebeli ...

as she signed an

executive order In the United States, an executive order is a directive by the president of the United States that manages operations of the federal government. The legal or constitutional basis for executive orders has multiple sources. Article Two of t ...

banning discrimination in employment based on

and

gender identity Gender identity is the personal sense of one's own gender. Gender identity can correlate with a person's assigned sex or can differ from it. In most individuals, the various biological determinants of sex are congruent, and consistent with the ...

. The order applies to the executive branch of state government. In March 2009, Members of the Topeka chapter were instrumental in successfully lobbying the Board of the Topeka/Shawnee Co. Library to prevent a move by local religious conservatives to restrict access and censor predominantly LGBT sexual education materials.

Kansas Equality PAC

In 2006, the coalition formed a political action committee, Equality Kansas PAC, to work toward the election of state and local candidates for office in Kansas who support equality for

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 ...

Kansans. The mission of the PAC is to end discrimination based on

and gender identity/expression and to ensure the dignity, safety and legal equality of all Kansans by working to elect fair minded candidates to office, regardless of party affiliation.

References

{{Reflist

External links

Official site
LGBT political advocacy groups in Kansas Politics of Kansas Non-profit organizations based in Kansas

Chapters

Activities

Kansas Equality PAC

See also

References

External links