Lesbian Rights Are Women's Rights
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You and your girlfriend are holding hands on a busy
street. A man shoves you and spits out a threat. You are both shaken, but
aren't comfortable going to the police.
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Your 65 year-old aunt is in intensive care. You and
your husband visit but you notice that her partner never does. When you
ask why, she tells you that the hospital only allows immediate family.
Your aunt's partner can only see her if she pretends to be her sister.
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Your daughter decides not to try out for her school
basketball team because she overhears other students calling the players
"dykes". She loves the sports, but fears the taunting of her classmates.
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You avoid conversations with your office colleagues
so you don't have to discuss your lover. You wouldn't dream of having a
photo of her on your desk or bringing her to the office holiday party.
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You're attracted to other girls at school, but there's
no one for you to talk to. You're afraid you'll lose your friends and your
parents will kick you out of the house.
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You're fired from your job of 25 years because your
boss finds out that you are a lesbian. When you call a lawyer to sue for
reinstatement, you're shocked to find you have no legal protection against
such discrimination.
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We're Working To Stop The Hate.
NOW is the largest feminist organization in this
country working for lesbian rights. The day-in, day-out activism of NOW's
quarter of a million members and hundreds of chapters makes a difference.
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We mobilize our powerful grassroots activists to
defeat anti-lesbian and gay ballot measures and legislation.
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We press members of Congress and the administration
to prosecute hate crimes and outlaw employment discrimination on the basis
of sexual orientation.
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We organize record-breaking marches
to protest the radical right wing and their hateful agenda.
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We advocate for women who are driven out of the military
by lesbian-baiting and military witch-hunts.
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We champion important advance such as same-sex marriage
and funding for lesbian health issues. We need your help NOW.
Show You Support Equal Rights...
....for all women. To win those rights, we
need to outlaw discrimination based on sexual orientation. We need to stop
the violence that keeps many of us silent for fear of being known or perceived
as lesbian, gay, or bisexual. More of us need to tell the truth about our
lives and make it clear that homophobia is a social disease.
We need legal recognition of all of our families.
We need the same rights to health, pension and tax benefits as heterosexual
couples. We need to stop bigoted judges who take children away from nurturing
lesbian mother.
Regardless of your sexual orientation, we urge
you to stand united against discrimination. By simply joining
NOW or buying feminist products from our catalog,
you help give us the clout and money we need to champion these issues.
Contact your local NOW chapter
to find out about their action plans to stop the hate.
Join NOW, where lesbian rights have been a national
priority since 1975. Do it for yourself--and for girls and women everywhere.
If you click Join NOW, you
can DO IT NOW. |
 "When
my ex-husband challenged the custody of my children because I am a lesbian,
my years of activism in NOW and the women's movement were returned a hundred
fold."
--Rosemary
Dempsey, a long-time National NOW leader who won a precedent-setting
lesbian custody case
 "For
lesbians of color, homophobia is compounded by race and sex discrimination.
I am glad to see NOW linking all of the issues that are under attack by
the radical right, as it gives us a perfect opportunity to bring together
people with common goals."
--Mandy
Carter, one of the nation's leading African-American lesbians fighting
the radical right and a member of NOW's National Lesbian Rights Committee.
 "As
a lawyer and an activist, I know that changing laws isn't enough. We've
got to work together to end the culture of discrimination."
-- Susan Mackenzie, attorney
at law and National NOW Board Member.
 "NOW's
organizing was instrumental in our successful campaign to add sexual orientation
to the White House Conference on Aging's non-discrimination policy."
--Del Martin, early NOW
leader and author of Lesbian
Woman with Phyllis Lyon.
 "Any
women who is or has ever been active in the feminist movement knows that
the question isn't whether you will be called a lesbian, but rather when.
It's a divide and conquer tactic designed to stop us from pursuing power."
--Lisa Tiger, Native
American AIDS activist.(Quicktime
clip from Rally for Women's
Lives speech)
 "I
am a young lesbian, a feminist and an activist. NOW provided a safe and
empowering place for me to be who I am."
--Amy Drayer, co-president,
Scripps College NOW. |