President Donald Trump’s issuance of a series of executive orders targeting diversity programs including transgender rights and LGBTQ, on the first day of his second term, against chasing strange, gender-rich people It was a clear signal of the new administration’s desires.
The January 20th directive also states that LGBTQ movement organizations, particularly those including impact litigation, will be responsible for protecting communities that provide services from harmful and discriminatory laws and policies over the next four years. We also focused on the following:
At a critical time when it is likely to test capacity limitations, these groups will be able to reach critical resources thanks to the opposition of a conservative movement towards diversity, equity and inclusion in both the government and the private sector. They face challenges that could limit access. .
Given that LGBTQ organizations have not kept their plans to actively restructure government, including removing all DEI-related programs, policies and all DEI-related programs, as well as keeping them secret. , hoped that the next administration would take over, and that federal funds for their work would drain. Activities.
But Trump goes further, issuing an order that decisively freezes payments of government funds related to existing grants and contracts, and investigates private companies for “illegal” policies and practices related to DEIs. It threatened.
In partial response to pressure from conservative leaders and activists, over the past few years, businesses have increasingly retreated from DEI efforts, including support for the LGBTQ community and causes.
A decrease in corporate gifts to LGBTQ organizations, coupled with losses in federal funds, could have a devastating impact on the communities they serve, and could potentially be tasked with reducing programs and services. It either leads to the heart or spares efforts to oppose a hostile regime.
Elliot Imse, executive director of the LGBTQ+ Victory Institute, told the Washington Blade in an interview last week.
The moves by many private companies that have moved away from supporting LGBTQ equality have been surprising, but “What we know is that it is currently a very uncertain environment for businesses, and they are I feel these new reality.”
Meanwhile, this moment presents an opportunity to remind businesses that their commitment to DEI is good for their bottom line, while rewarding companies that resist pressure to abandon their LGBTQ customers, employees and communities. IMSE said.
“There are a lot of courageous companies out there right now, and we need to be grateful. We need to make a purchase decision as a community with those companies in mind. To us All businesses that have reaffirmed their commitment must go out and support them.”
“Like all LGBTQ+ organizations, winning agencies are concerned about the current funding environment, but they have a program plan that directly addresses the reality of what’s happening across the nation,” he said. Officials serving everywhere, from small city offices to the most powerful position in government.
The diverse pipeline of outing leaders from diverse backgrounds is the best breakwater “against our equality and attacks on democratic backslides,” Imse said. “We have a very robust program plan for 2025, and we need to do it at this critical moment.”
The Victory Institute is currently looking for funds to support the organization’s international work to compensate for the loss of federal grants, but IMSE will maximize reach when this work is particularly important. He said he plans to expand its US-based program to make it even more.
“We intend to be in more cities than ever before. We will have a bigger training presence than ever before, including the LGBTQ+ Public Leadership Summit, which is specially designed to help LGBTQ+ people get jobs. It is designed. It is essential to reject the morale drop of the present moment, to help people with more boots on the ground and willing to stomp and run.”
He said, “We hope we can raise the funds needed to implement these programs and believe we can assert our donors that these programs are an important path.”
At the same time, IMSE acknowledged that LGBTQ groups, including the Victory Institute, are currently in a difficult position, and that “if funding is sluggish throughout the year, we must absolutely adjust.”
“It’s going to be a tough fight. There’s no doubt about it. Like all other organizations, we’re going to look at the numbers and adjust them as needed,” he said, ” The people we have in our organization make our organization strong. Their expertise, their relationships, their networks, ve was built.”
And while he said, “To ensure that we meet in the moment is something that keeps me at night,” Imus said, “To figure out a way to balance the reality we are in with optimism.” , stressing that when you talk to LGBTQ+, it’s something everyone has in their mind: community members, staff and your funders who recognize that “you must have hope.”
Ims said there was a lack of justification for holding hope. “Our movement has always thrived in moments of crisis. We will not like crisis, but it will refocus us. It motivates us, and often we It leads to breakthroughs that may not have been. It destroys self-satisfaction. It instills urgency.”
After Trump takes office and the new Congress is adopted by the GOP majority in both rooms, LGBTQ groups, including lobbying and government relations, will be policy at the federal level, at least until Democrats have the opportunity to retake. There are only a limited number of LGBTQ groups who understand their ability to influence. Domination of the house in 2026.
The Victory Institute was particularly suited to leave Washington, and the IMSE states that state legislatures, city councils and school boards have always been “bread and butter” in the organization, and elections for these positions are “really important” Even so, it is “lower attention” than in the US Congress races.
“When we talk about opportunities to advance in the near future, opportunities to start successful crime and defense, it’s in these legislative bodies,” he said. “And they definitely have a more impact on personal lives than the federal government.”
IMSE said this is especially true regarding the opportunities for legislative action to support LGBTQ Americans and defend their rights.
It’s especially important for the LGBTQ community and organizations to support each other, he said.
The LGBTQ movement group, particularly the international focus group, is “a phenomenal group that tries to bring us together and find out what has been done, keeping us up-to-date with potential litigation opportunities and putting it above. We are looking for funders who want to be advertised at this absolutely crucial moment in the history of our movement,” Ims said.
“We also need the community to step up in terms of supporting these organizations,” he said.
“It’s important that our community members are active, involved, involved and ensure that the LGBTQ+ media keeps ensuring our stories are being told,” Imse added. It is not permanent to ensure that backsliding is about to occur. ”
Source: Washington Blade: LGBTQ News, Politics, LGBTQ Rights, Gay News – www.washingtonblade.com
