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NBJC in the News

Fair Employment Practices: A Broken Bargain for LGBT Workers of Color
November 14, 2013

In my years as an advocate for racial equality, I've heard countless stories from black men, women, and youth about barriers faced in school, college, finding a job, keeping a job, and being treated equally in the workplace. Despite laws that promote equal access to employment and protect workers from unfair practices, black workers can be subjected to hiring bias, unequal pay, and discrimination. We've worked tirelessly to enforce workplace protections so that all black people can have a fair shot at getting ahead.
 
Now, those laws aren't perfect, but imagine if we didn't have them. Imagine if co-workers made disparaging remarks about who you are, what you look like, or whom you love and there was nothing you could do about it. Imagine if you worked just as hard as your colleagues, then one day a new manager walked up and fired you just because you are black, but you didn't have any recourse, either with your supervisor, the human resources manager, or the law.

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Small Business Conference for LGBT Communities Resumes After Government Shutdown
November 5, 2013

 
The U.S. Small Business Administration’s Many Faces One Dream LGBT Economic Empowerment Tour for Communities of Color is back on track after being stalled due to the federal government shutdown. Initially set to take place last month, the New York City leg of the 13-city tour will now occur on November 20-21, 2013 at the New York Marriott near the Brooklyn Bridge. MFOD was launched this year to bring focus on innovation and creativity in the small business sphere.
 
“While we were excited and ready to host the MFOD-NYC conference in October, the shutdown of the federal government forced us to postpone our NYC tour stop,” says Sharon J. Lettman Hicks, Executive Director and CEO of the National Black Justice Coalition, the nation’s leading Black lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) civil rights organization.

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Marco Rubio Blocks Gay Black Judge's Nomination To Federal Bench, Puzzling Everyone
September 27, 2013

WASHINGTON -- Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) has withdrawn his support from a federal judicial nominee that he previously recommended -- William Thomas, a gay black judge from Miami -- and, to the anger and puzzlement of many, is preventing the nomination from moving forward at all.
...Sharon Lettman-Hicks, executive director and CEO of the National Black Justice Coalition, suggested homophobia and racism may be in play.

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Coming together to honor the architect of the 1963 March on Washington
August 22, 2013

From Metroweekly
On behalf of the National Black Justice Coalition and the black lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community, I applaud President Barack Obama for giving the late Bayard Rustin the national esteem and recognition he deserves by awarding him the Presidential Medal of Freedom. As one of the chief architects of the Civil Rights Movement and the brilliance behind the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, Rustin's indispensable contributions to the ethos of our country continue to reverberate and push us toward a more just and fair society. America is indebted to Rustin, and our nation is right to finally honor him for his stalwart courage and leadership.

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New civil rights generation recognizes Bayard Rustin
August 21, 2013

From USA Today.com
As the face of the March on Washington and its most prominent voice, Martin Luther King Jr. is well known 50 years later as one of the crusaders of the civil rights movement.
A name not as widely recognized, however, is that of Bayard Rustin, the chief organizer of the march, King's mentor and an openly gay, African American civil rights advocate.

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NBJC Applauds the U.S. Supreme Court Marriage Equality Rulings
June 26, 2013

WASHINGTON, D.C. - June 26, 2013 - Today, the U.S. Supreme Court issued rulings in favor of loving and committed same-sex couples in two landmark marriage equality cases. The National Black Justice Coalition (NBJC), the nation's leading Black lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) civil rights organization, applauds the Supreme Court for standing on the right side of history.
 
Earlier this year, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments on two historic cases: Hollingsworth v. Perry, the challenge to California's Proposition 8, and United States v. Windsor, the case challenging the so-called Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). Both cases were said to have the potential to dramatically change the trajectory of the movement for LGBT equality. 

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NBJC JOINS DOJ AND NAACP FOR MARCO MCMILLIAN TOWN HALL
June 13, 2013

 
CLARKSDALE, MS – Monday, June 10, 2013 – The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) Community Relations Service (CRS), the National Black Justice Coalition (NBJC), Parks & Crump law firm, and the family of Marco McMillian came together for a town hall meeting on Saturday, June 8, sponsored by the Coahoma County Branch of the NAACP to discuss the murder of Marco McMillian, a Black mayoral candidate in Clarksdale, Mississippi, who was also gay.

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NBA center Jason Collins has come out!
April 29, 2013

This story appears in the May 6, 2013, issue of Sports Illustrated.

I'm a 34-year-old NBA center. I'm black. And I'm gay.

I didn't set out to be the first openly gay athlete playing in a major American team sport. But since I am, I'm happy to start the conversation. I wish I wasn't the kid in the classroom raising his hand and saying, "I'm different." If I had my way, someone else would have already done this. Nobody has, which is why I'm raising my hand.

My journey of self-discovery and self-acknowledgement began in my hometown of Los Angeles and has taken me through two state high school championships, the NCAA Final Four and the Elite Eight, and nine playoffs in 12 NBA seasons.

Read the whole story at Sports Illustrated.

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Our Issues: Interview with the National Black Justice Coalition (NBJC)
April 10, 2013

AfroPunk recently sat down with Spelman alumnus and NBJC Programs and Outreach Associate Je-ShawnaWholley to discuss the founding of the organization, influencing policy, experiences of queer Black people on Historically Black College and University as well as predominantly white college campuses, and what “queer” looks like in a modern context.

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Same-Sex Marriage Supporters Again Gather Outside Supreme Court
March 29, 2013

Several hundred same-sex marriage supporters once again gathered outside the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday as the justices heard oral arguments in a case that challenges the constitutionality of the Defense of Marriage Act.
National Black Justice Coalition CEO Sharon Lettman-Hicks, Tyler Deaton of Young Conservatives for the Freedom to Marry, Alliance for Justice President Nan Aron and Earl Fowlkes of the Center for Black [Equality] are among those who spoke at a rally near the steps of the Supreme Court. Members of the Westboro Baptist Church gathered along First Street, N.E., but the vast majority of those who gathered outside the court backed nuptials for gays and lesbians.

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