Equality Texas in the News
(News8Austin (Time Warner Cable) © 02/27/2010)"These are not crimes against individuals," Equality Texas Interim Director Chuck Smith said. "They're crimes against entire classes of people. The community needs to stand up and say, 'We're not going to tolerate crimes against entire classes of people. We just aren't.'" (more)
(KTBC Austin (FOX) © 02/26/2010)Equality Texas and Austin civic leaders say an attack on two gay men on Saturday night near City Hall is a warning to the gay community that more safety is needed downtown. (more)
(KXAN Austin (NBC) © 02/25/2010) [
VIDEO]
Austin city officials are weighing in after two men were attacked and beaten near the City Hall parking garage. Leaders with the statewide coalition Equality Texas addressed a group at City Hall to show the dedication behind proving a hate crime happened. Officials said, since the Texas James Byrd Act went into effect in 2001, more than 1,800 hate crime reports have flooded the state. Of those, fewer than a dozen have actually been prosecuted as such. (more)
(KEYE Austin (CBS) © 02/25/2010) [
VIDEO]
Hundreds of people are expected at a rally in Downtown Austin Saturday protesting the assault of two gay men over the weekend. (more)
(KEYE Austin (CBS) © 02/25/2010) [
VIDEO]
"We're here today because we as a community will not stand for biased-motivated crime," said Equality Texas Interim President Chuck Smith. (more)
(News8Austin (Time Warner Cable) © 02/25/2010) [VIDEO]Officials try to determine whether assault on two gay men was a hate crime. (more)
Randall Terrell, political director for Equality Texas, noted that legislation introduced in the last few sessions would require the state's judges to grant gender-marker changes if certain criteria are met, but the bills didn't go anywhere. Even in ultraprogressive Travis County, gender-marker changes are hard to come by. (more)
Randall Terrell is the Policy Director at the Equality Texas Foundation. Karen Landolt is a member of the Pride and Equity Faculty Staff Association at the University of Texas at Austin. Both organizations are sponsoring the Texas Equity Conference on competitive benefits on February 19-20th. (more)
Gender bias may be preventable in the classroom by minimizing stereotypes of gender roles, according to a UT researcher. Psychology professor Rebecca Bigler presented the findings of her study Wednesday on how children interpret gender and racial inequality.
The UT community could get involved by joining organizations that promote equality and allow for volunteer opportunities, Bigler said. Equality Texas is a nonprofit organization based in Austin that lobbies in government and creates social awareness of gender-equality issues. The organization aims to advocate ending gender inequality, said Chuck Smith, the organization's deputy director. (more)
Equality Texas to Use 2010 to Prepare for Next Year's Legislative Session
(Edge Dallas, January 7, 2010)
Although the Texas Legislature will not be in session for another full year, Equality Texas continues to gear up for a busy 2010. Political Director Randall Terrell said his organization will work to inform the public and educate legislators on a number of issues he anticipates will factor into this year's elections -- and hopefully the 2011 legislative session. (more)
"This is a long time coming, with a city of this size," said Paul Scott, executive director of the Austin-based Equality Texas, a statewide group advocating rights of lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgender Texans. "We see this as Fort Worth joining many cities around the country that have inclusive language." (more)
(Univision 41 San Antonio 10/22/09) [VIDEO]
Un foro con profesores y administradores pone en alerta a las autoridades.
Video coverage of
Equality Texas Foundation's Community Forum on Safe Schools in San Antonio.
Gay Marriage Debated In Texas(Dallas KERA (PBS) 13 © 10/03/2009) [
AUDIO]A Texas state district judge has ruled a gay couple who married in another state - can seek a divorce in Dallas County. That goes against the state's contention that because gay marriage is not legal in Texas the state can not dissolve what it doesn't recognize in the first place. KUT's Ben Philpott reports on how this case could affect the state's constitutional gay marriage ban. (more)
SAME SEX DIVORCE RULING(KUT Austin © 10/03/2009) [
AUDIO]
Austin, TX A Texas state district judge has ruled a gay couple who married in another state can seek a divorce in Dallas County. That goes against the state’s contention that, because gay marriage is not legal in Texas, the state can not dissolve what it doesn’t recognize the first place.
12th Street has seen its share of vandalism. Business owners report graffiti, back doors kicked in and even windows shot out. Over the weekend, someone hit number 809. It’s the state headquarters of Equality Texas, a non-profit dedicated to eliminating discrimination based upon sexual orientation, gender identity and expression. (more)
Equality Texas HQ Gets Vandalized(Austinist © 09/29/2009) The Austin headquarters for
Equality Texas, a statewide organization that educates and engages people on policies and their effect on Texans of all sexual orientations, were vandalized this past weekend. Perpetrators smashed the large plate glass window facing the street, but didn't enter the building or remove any of its contents. (more)
Gay-rights group offices vandalized(Austin KXAN (NBC) 36 © 09/29/2009) AUSTIN (KXAN) -
Equality Texas said their downtown offices were vandalized over the weekend. According to their Web site, Equality Texas is an organization that educates Texans about policies and their effect on Texans of all sexual orientations and gender identities. It focuses on members of the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community. (more)
Houston ISD Takes a Stand Against Bullying
(KIAH-TV Channel 39 Houston 09/23/09) [VIDEO]
HOUSTON -- Bullying in school was the topic of discussion during an open forum meeting at Lamar high school Wednesday evening. The
Equality Texas Foundation hosted the event for parents, teachers, and school administrators to discuss school safety.
An estimated 5.7 million teens are involved in school bullying, whether they are engaging in it or are the target of it. Bullying can range from physical violence to spreading malicious gossip and in the digital age, bullying has gone online.
AISD Parents Speak: Could TAKS Test Make Bullies Worse
(KLBJ News Radio 09/17/09)
AUSTIN -- Yolanda Padilla says her son has had to put up with a lot of abuse in school because he is in a minority and is an easy target because of who he is attracted to. Padilla says social networking sites like Facebook and MySpace have amplified what used to be threats and abuse by troublemakers who targeted her son because of his sexual orientation.
Wednesday night's forum was co-hosted by AISD, Equality Texas Foundation and the Texas Civil Rights Project. (more)
AUSTIN -- Austin-area school districts are working to combat bullying on campus -- and they're holding a forum to discuss the problem. It will be held Wednesday, Sept. 16 at 6:00 p.m. at Baker School Cafeteria located at 3908 Ave. B. Chuck Smith from the Equality Texas Foundation stopped by Good Day Austin to talk about the forum.
AUSTIN -- Bullying in public schools and how to prevent it: That’s the focus of a public forum being held Wednesday night in Austin. As KUT’s Nathan Bernier reports, officials from the city, the Austin school district, and several non-profits are looking at how they can keep schools safe and keep kids in class. The event is being organized by Equality Texas Foundation.
AUSTIN -- The Equality Texas Foundation will host a community forum on safe schools at 6 p.m. today at the Baker Center, 3908 Avenue B. The forum is presented jointly by the foundation, the city's Human Rights Commission, the Anti-Defamation League, the Texas Civil Rights Project, and the Texas Gay Straight Alliance Network. (more)
(El Paso Times © 08/23/2009)
EL PASO -- At first glance, providing health-insurance benefits to gay and unmarried partners of city employees seems like a small matter. Only about 45 people in a municipal work force of 6,100 qualify, but the issue has been explosive. The City Council majority that favors the benefit package has faced angry critics who threaten to take the issue to voters if they lose the first round of this .......
A different view comes from Paul Scott, executive director for Equality Texas, a nondiscrimination advocacy group. He says programs for domestic partners are simply a benefit of employment. (more)