Groundbreaking Project October 7-13 Highlights Broad Support for Full Workplace Equality
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SOULFORCE PRESS RELEASE: October 10, 2007
For Immediate Release
Contact: Paige Schilt, Director of Public Relations and Media
Cell: 512-659-1771
paige@soulforce.org
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(Austin, TX) — This week, straight people are speaking out in small towns and major cities across America as part of a landmark project called Seven Straight Nights for Equal Rights, a week of nighttime vigils to create visibility for heterosexuals who believe in civil rights for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender Americans.
Ironically, as Seven Straight Nights is mobilizing citizens to speak up for equality, some members of Congress have introduced a new version of the Employment Nondiscrimination Act (ENDA) that does not include crucial workplace protections for transgender Americans.
Soulforce and Atticus Circle, national sponsors of Seven Straight Nights for Equal Rights, have affirmed their support for a version of ENDA that includes gender identity and gender expression and have joined more than 200 other equality organizations in a letter opposing legislation that leaves transgender Americans "without protections and basic security that the rest of us are provided."
"I believe transgender Americans should be treated equally in the workplace, and I want to instill in my children the practice of standing up for what they believe in, regardless of how hard or unpopular it may be," says Anne Wynne, founder of Atticus Circle.
Seven Straight Nights vigils from Little Rock, Arkansas to Eureka, California will provide a forum for Americans to educate themselves and speak out on behalf of an inclusive ENDA, which is expected to come up for a vote in the next ten days.
"Now is the time to let our members of Congress know that we support workplace equality for all Americans," says Jeff Lutes, Soulforce Executive Director.
To find out if Seven Straight Nights for Equal Rights activities are planned in your community, go to: www.sevenstraightnights.org.
"Seven Straight Nights for Equal Rights" is a joint project of Atticus Circle and Soulforce. Atticus Circle is a national non-profit that is dedicated to achieving equality for all partners, parents, and their children regardless of sexual orientation. Soulforce is a national social justice organization that seeks freedom for LGBTQ people from religious and political oppression through the practice of relentless nonviolent resistance. For more information, visit www.sevenstraightnights.org.