Happy Pride, Shit Givers.
Last week’s issue was about survival: trans healthcare, mental health, the scaffolding that holds people up when their own government is trying to knock them down.
This week is about everything that comes after. The ability to not just survive, but thrive. The right to work without being fired for who you are or to marry the person you love or cross a border in search of safety and actually find it. To be counted, represented, and seen.
And, quick reminder, you still have the opportunity to get in the running for a free APL T-shirt or a full APL-merch swag bag. All you have to do is upgrade to an Important Membership before Friday! You even get to trial the Membership for 30 days!
If you don’t want to upgrade, but still want to rep the merch, that’s cool too. All of our *Actually* Pro Life merch is up on our store (among a bunch of other great stuff!).
Okay, let’s go.
— Willow
Still legal to fire you for this
Positions: Federal Equality Act passed, Conversion therapy banned nationwide, Marriage equality protected by statute
In most US states, you can still be legally fired, evicted, or turned away from a business for being LGBTQ+. In the year 2026. Federal protections exist in patches, but not comprehensively. This is the bread-and-butter civil rights fight for the entire LGBTQ+ community.
Here’s what you can do:
The Human Rights Campaign is the largest LGBTQ+ civil rights organization in the country. Canvassing, phone banking, legislative advocacy, electoral work — if you want to be plugged in at scale, this is where you start. (go)
Lambda Legal is the litigation arm of this fight, taking cases to court on employment, housing, healthcare, and public accommodation discrimination. (go)
The LGBTQ+ Victory Fund is changing who makes the laws by endorsing and supporting out LGBTQ+ candidates at every level of government. (go)
The work on the ground
Positions: LGBTQ+ nondiscrimination in all states
Federal law moves slowly, and in the meantime LGBTQ+ people are living under whatever their state legislature decided this session. The groups on the ground are doing the work of showing up, building power, and refusing to disappear.
Here’s what you can do:
PROMO is Missouri’s LGBTQ+ advocacy organization, doing electoral and legislative work . Canvas, phone bank, organize. (go)
Freedom Oklahoma is building safety and community for LGBTQ+ Oklahomans through housing, employment, and health programs. (go)
Add the Words Idaho is a campaign to add “sexual orientation” and “gender identity” to Idaho’s Human Rights Act. (go)
Trans Ohio is advancing the rights of trans, nonbinary, and intersex people in Ohio through advocacy, education, and direct services. (go)
Fairness West Virginia is building the case that everyone deserves to be treated fairly, regardless of who they are or who they love in West Virginia. (go)
One Iowa is improving the lives of LGBTQ+ Iowans through healthcare access, policy advocacy, and community building. (go)
Wyoming Equality is fighting for the dignity and equality of LGBTQ+ people Wyoming. (go)
Georgia Equality is advancing fairness, safety, and opportunity for LGBTQ+ Georgians. (go)
Equality Florida has been fighting back against anti-LGBTQ+ legislation for over 25 years. (go)
The double gauntlet
Positions: Right to counsel in immigration proceedings, Clear immigration court backlog (under 1 year wait)
If you’re LGBTQ+ and fleeing a country that criminalizes your existence, you face two gauntlets: the country you’re running from and the immigration system you’re running into. Many LGBTQ+ asylum seekers are detained, often in facilities where they face additional targeting and abuse. They are also almost invisible in mainstream immigration coverage.
Here’s what you can do:
The Florence Project provides legal services for people detained in Arizona’s immigration system, one of the largest detention networks in the country. A significant share of their clients are LGBTQ+. (go)
RAICES provides immigration legal services and advocacy, taking on over 10,000 cases a year. (go)
The UN Refugee Agency is the agency responsible for the protection of LGBTQ+ people fleeing persecution. (go)
And another thing!
Positions: Accurate identity documents accessible, Protect transgender healthcare access, Comprehensive sex education federally funded
This section is less about legislation and litigation, and more about the work of making sure LGBTQ+ people are visible, documented, and present in their communities. Data protects people. Representation protects people. Showing up protects people.
Here’s what you can do:
Read the US Transgender Survey, the largest survey of trans experiences ever conducted in the US. Participation is how researchers, policymakers, and advocates know what trans people actually need. (go)
interACT does legal advocacy, education, and ally outreach to advance legal protections for intersex people. (go)
Run for School Board — school boards make decisions about what kids learn, what libraries stock, what bathrooms students can use, and whether LGBTQ+ students see themselves in their education. LGBTQ+ people and allies running for local office is one of the highest-leverage things happening right now. (go)
You belong here, and so does everyone else. Let’s make sure everyone has the same opportunities to fully participate in public life.
Thank you — as always — for giving a shit.
— Willow
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