Voices of Faith to Speak Out for LGBT Equality in Washington in Late May

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 3, 2011
Paul Guequierre

Voices of Faith to Speak Out for LGBT Equality in Washington in Late May

Religious leaders from all 50 states gather through HRC’s Clergy Call for Justice and Equality May 22-24

www.hrc.org/ClergyCall

WASHINGTON – The Human Rights Campaign, the nation’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) civil rights organization, today announced its Clergy Call for Justice and Equality 2011 will take place in Washington, DC May 23-24, 2011. Clergy Call is a biennial event of the HRC Foundation’s Religion and Faith Program, mobilizing clergy from across the country to speak up on matters of LGBT equality.

This year, over 300 religious leaders from all 50 states and representing more than 25 denominations and faith traditions will come together in the nation’s capital. They will organize and strengthen their faith voices and lobby members of Congress about why, as a matter of faith,they support full equality for LGBT people and families. Clergy will focus their advocacy on legislation to prohibit employment discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity and to protect students from bullying, harassment and discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity.

“America’s clergy are leading the charge in changing hearts and minds, both of the American people and our elected leaders,” said HRC President Joe Solmonese. “Clergy Call 2011 will have a lasting impact on Capitol Hill. Diverse clergy voices speaking out for justice show our legislators that religion is NOT antagonistic to the LGBT community. ”

The theme for Clergy Call 2011, “Leadership for Justice in Complex Times,” reflects the vision and need for a faith-based movement in support of LGBT equality at this moment of great change in our country. On May 22 and 23, clergy will engage in programming designed to strengthen their diverse voices and their reach as moral agents for justice. In addition to this skill-based work, they will take part in a faith service the evening of May 23^rd(open to the public), and a morning press conference on May 24^thbefore lobbying their elected leaders.

“Religious leaders from across the spectrum of faith backgrounds and from states as diverse as Maine and Alabama are turning to the core tenets of their religious beliefs as they proclaim that justice for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people is a matter of deep faith,” said Dr. Sharon Groves, director of HRC’s Religion and Faith program. “They will not stand on the sidelines, but are claiming their faith as they join the struggle for LGBT equality.”

“What HRC has figured out is that the best antidote to the Religious Right is mobilized moderate and progressive faith voices,” said Rev. Susan Russell, Sr. Associate Pastor at All Saints Church in Pasadena, CA. “As faith leaders, we must demonstrate the love, compassion and yearning for equality we possess in our hearts in order to end oppression.”

The Human Rights Campaign is America’s largest civil rights organization working to achieve lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender equality. By inspiring and engaging all Americans, HRC strives to end discrimination against LGBT citizens and realize a nation that achieves fundamental fairness and equality for all.

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