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The National Latina/o Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Organization
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National Latina/o Group Supports Florida Rally
for Gay Adoption
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| WASHINGTON
- March 19 - Representatives of the Washington, D.C.-based National
Latina/o Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Organization (LLEGO)
will travel to Tallahassee, Florida, on Thursday for visits with
state legislators and a rally supporting adoption by same-sex
couples. The events are presented by the Unity Coalition of Miami-Dade,
a grassroots advocacy group for Latina/o sexual minorities.
Florida is
one of only three states in the country which outlaw adoption
by sexual minorities. The Unity Coalition will present a petition
to state legislators, signed by about 2,000 people, in support
of adoption by gays, lesbians and bisexuals.
"Thousands
of children in foster care in Florida cannot be adopted by their
caregivers simply because those foster parents are gay," said
Herb Sosa, Unity Coalition president. "These children have little
to no hope of being adopted. We are trying to secure a better
future for these kids."
While in Tallahassee,
the Unity Coalition will also lobby for more state funding of
HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment, a law against bias-related
harassment and discrimination in Florida schools, and increased
college and university funding for minorities.
Noemi Perez,
LLEGO's director of public affairs, and Laura Esquivel, director
of public policy and government relations, will attend Thursday's
Florida events. "The Unity Coalition of Miami-Dade is doing great
work," said Martmn Ornelas-Quintero, LLEGO executive director.
"We are happy to participate in the group's efforts to help Florida's
children."
The rally and
a press conference will take place at noon March 20 at Waller
Park on the Florida state capitol grounds. For more information,
the Unity Coalition can be contacted at 786-271-6982. A rally
was also held this morning in Miami.
The Unity Coalition
of Miami-Dade was spawned last year from local organizing efforts
for LLEGO's biennial international conference in Miami. LLEGO
has since supported the coalition with funding and promotion.
The Unity Coalition
and LLEGO helped defeat a referendum in September that would have
stripped lesbians, gay men and bisexuals in Miami-Dade County
of protection from discrimination. The Unity Coalition also helped
attain unanimous passage by the Miami-Dade County School Board
on March 12 of a resolution endorsing dignity for all students.
Also this month, the Coalition convinced the Miami-Dade County
Commission to call for all bars, nightclubs, bathhouses and adult
stores to post multilingual signs warning about the dangers of
unprotected sex.
LLEGO is the
nation's only organization devoted to organizing Latina/o LGBT
communities on a local, regional, national and international level.
A nonprofit group, LLEGO addresses social, health, and political
disparities based on sexual orientation, gender identity, and
ethnicity affecting the Latina/o LGBT community. LLEGO is home
to various programs providing infrastructure development to Latina/o
LGBT communities in the United States and Latin America.
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