Atlanta

Atlanta Regional Commission Strengthens Commitment to LGBTQ+ Older Adults

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SAGE Care

Atlanta Regional Commission’s (ARC) Aging & Independence Services Department, the Atlanta Area Agency on Aging (AAA), Strengthens Commitment to LGBTQ+ Older Adults through Continued Partnership with SAGECare

Atlanta, May 6, 2024 – The Atlanta Area Agency on Aging proudly announces its achievement of receiving a SAGECare Credential. This prestigious credential is a testament to the Atlanta AAA’s unwavering commitment to providing an inclusive and affirming environment for LGBTQ+ older adults.

SAGECare awarded ARC’s Aging & Independence Services Department with its SAGECare Credential after a rigorous assessment of policies, practices, and staff training to create an inclusive and welcoming space for all residents, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity.

“Thanks to SAGECare for providing impactful education and consultation, enabling ARC to better serve our region’s diverse older populations,” said Becky Kurtz, Managing Director, “Our SAGECare Credential affirms our commitment to serve LGBTQ+ elders in metro Atlanta with sensitivity and respect.”

Don Terry, Client Services Liaison added, “To help those we serve with purpose is to better understand the very people we assist.  Obtaining SAGECare credential is our commitment to ensure we’re being intentional in bringing qualities of understanding and inclusivity to everyone.”

The SAGECare credential process evaluates aging services organizations based on various criteria, including non-discrimination policies, staff training on LGBTQ+ cultural competency, community engagement, and resident support services. By meeting and exceeding these standards, the Atlanta AA has demonstrated its commitment to promoting a diverse and supportive environment for LGBTQ+ seniors.

For more information about SAGECare Training, visit here.

About SAGECare: SAGECare is a fee-for-service training and consulting division of SAGE (1978), the nation’s oldest and largest non-profit that advocates and provides services for LGBTQ+ senior adults. SAGECare provides LGBTQ+ competency training and consulting to service providers, fostering a more inclusive and understanding approach to aging issues within the LGBTQ+ community.

Atlanta Gay Bars, Clubs, and Restaurants

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LGBTQ+ Atlanta

Woofs
Offering numerous screens to watch the game, this comfy gay hangout serves hearty pub fare.
www.woofsatlanta.com

Blake’s On The Park
Straight-friendly gay bar & neighborhood hangout with karaoke, live DJs & drag shows since 1988.
blakesontheparkatlanta.com

Bulldogs
A wide variety of drinks are available at this small gay night spot with DJs & a dance floor.
fb.com/bulldogsbaratlanta

The Heretic Atlanta
A rotating lineup of DJs & performers take the stage at this gay nightclub with theme nights.
www.hereticatlanta.com

Felix’s Atlanta
An energetic gay bar with regular karaoke shows, performers, DJs, dancing & drink specials.
www.felixsatlanta.info

Mary’s Atlanta
Relaxed bar caters to a gay & mixed-orientation crowd with karaoke & DJs spinning alternative tunes.
www.marysatlanta.com

X Midtown
Bistrolike Southern kitchen known for its fried chicken options & buzzy bar scene at night.
fb.com/XMidtownX

Friends on Ponce
Unpretentious gay watering hole with pool tables, a jukebox, free Wi-Fi, poker nights & more.
www.friendsonponce.com

Joe’s on Juniper
Popular among the LGBT crowd, this bar offers food & drinks, plus a hopping patio bar scene.
www.joesonjuniper.com

Photograph by Warren LeMay

Victory Fund Endorses Alex Wan in Race for Georgia House District 57

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Alex Wan Atlanta

Former Atlanta City Councilmember Alex Wan, a long-time Morningside homeowner and civic leader, has been endorsed by Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund in the race for Georgia State House District 57. Victory Fund (www.VictoryFund.org) is the only national organization dedicated to electing LGBTQ people to public office.

“LGBTQ Victory Fund endorsed Alex in his previous races and is pleased to endorse his bid to continue serving Georgians, this time under the Gold Dome,” says Mayor Annise Parker, Victory Fund President & CEO. “During his 8 years on Atlanta City Council and since, Alex has worked with friends and neighbors across the district, tackling the community’s shared challenges. He is well-positioned at this critical juncture in our history to continue fighting for those issues in the State Legislature.”

Wan announced his bid to represent Georgia State House District 57, following the December announcement by State Rep. Pat Gardner that she will retire after the 2020 General Assembly. This endorsement signals Victory Fund’s confidence that Wan is ideally suited to represent District 57 and will be a strong voice for equity and equality in the Legislature.

“I am honored by the support of Victory Fund,” says Wan, who has called District 57 home for more than 25 years. “As I have said before, Victory Fund’s candidate training and support played an important part in my public service journey. As I continue fighting for the progressive, inclusive values we share as Atlantans, I am proud to do so with the support of the LGBTQ Victory Fund.”

Wan served as an Atlanta City Council member for Council District 6, which overlays much of House District 57, for 8 years. Wan was the first Asian American and first openly gay man elected to the Atlanta City Council. Since that time, he continues his community service as the Fulton/Atlanta citizen representative on the Atlanta Regional Commission Board and as a member of the Mayor’s LGBTQ Advisory Board.

“I hope that my service to our district since I moved here over 25 years ago has demonstrated the kind of representative I will be,” Wan says. “Voters know my values. They know my commitment to service. They know that I’m accessible. And voters know that my experience on the Atlanta City Council and relationships I have developed with state and national elected officials will be invaluable.”

His professional experience includes the private, public, non-profit and higher-education sectors. He is Executive Director of Horizons Atlanta, a nonprofit that provides tuition-free summer enrichment programs for children from traditionally underserved communities. Wan holds a Bachelor’s in Industrial Engineering from Georgia Tech and a Finance MBA from Wharton Business School and has completed educational programs at Dartmouth and Harvard.

Members of the Georgia House are elected for two-year terms, with the election to be held in November 2020, taking office in January 2021. Wan notes that redistricting that results from the 2020 Census will take place in the Fall of 2021, and that we need legislators in place who will approach that process fairly.

For more information about Wan and his campaign: www.AlexWanForAtlanta.com.

Morehouse College Will Admit Transgender Men Starting in 2020

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Morehouse College Will Admit Transgender Men Starting in 2020

Morehouse College, the nation’s only all-male historically black college, has announced that it will update its admissions policy to include transgender men. This comes on the heels of neighboring women’s institution and historically black college, Spelman College, adopting an admission policy inclusive of transgender women in 2017.

The policy, which is set to go into effect in 2020, marks a major shift in the school’s 152-year history, and comes at a time when colleges across the country are evaluating more inclusive policies for LGBTQ and gender non-conforming students.

“This is a great first step for Morehouse that should be celebrated, especially as trans rights are federally under attack,” said Georgia Equality Deputy Director and Morehouse Alumnus, Eric Paulk. “However, it’s important to be mindful of the work that has to happen between now and the implementation of the new policy to ensure an atmosphere of equity and safety for trans students and LGBTQ+ students on campus. This means ensuring that these voices lead and are centered in every step of the process.”

Other historically black colleges and universities including, Tuskegee University, Howard University, Florida A&M University, Southern University, North Carolina Central University and Morgan State University have adopted inclusive transgender policies. “Ultimately, if there’s not a focus on faculty and staff training, a shift in student culture that supports LGBTQ+ students, and culturally competent student services, the new Morehouse policy will be nothing more than empty symbolism. Georgia Equality is committed to being a resource for Morehouse and other Georgia institutions as they navigate this space.”

Southerners on New Ground Job Openings

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Song Job

Southerners on new ground (SONG) is hiring to help support their ever growing work and our membership across the South. SONG is looking for looking for a Communications Fellow, Development Fellow, Operations Support and Facilities Support to join the team!

Southerners On New Ground (SONG) is a regional Queer Liberation organization made up of Black people, people of color, immigrants, undocumented people, people with disabilities, working class and rural and small town, LGBTQ people in the South.

You can find job descriptions and more information about how to apply in links below:

Development Fellow
Communications Fellow
Operations Support
Facilities Support

Anti-LGBT Bills Defeated in Georgia

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Georgia LGBT Equality

From Georgia Unites: For the fifth year in a row, a coalition of hundreds of business, faith and other community leaders and thousands of individual Georgians has defeated legislative attempts to enshrine anti-LGBT discrimination into Georgia law.

The session started with an early victory: Lawmakers speedily passed a long-awaited overhaul of Georgia’s adoption and foster care system. HB 159 was unfinished business from the last legislative session. The bill was heading for passage when extremist lawmakers tainted it by adding an anti-LGBT amendment, thereby ensuring it wouldn’t advance in 2017.

The Senate Judiciary Committee stripped that amendment this year, allowing the bill to sail through both chambers before Governor Deal signed it on March 5th.

But soon anti-LGBT lawmakers were back with another attempt to discriminate against LGBT Georgians. They rolled the anti-LGBT amendment that had been attached to HB 159 into a stand-alone bill, SB 375. That bill would have given taxpayer-funded adoption and foster care agencies a License to Discriminate against LGBT youth and same-sex couples.

Child welfare were adamant that such legislation would not improve Georgia’s adoption and foster care system. In fact, they said, children would wait longer for loving homes if qualified LGBT parents were excluded. And since SB 375 would have allowed agencies to refuse to work with LGBT youth, it essentially guaranteed they would stay longer in foster care, reducing the likelihood they’d be adopted at all.

Business groups also worried about the effect such a License to Discriminate would have on Georgia’s economy—specifically on the state’s $9.5 billion film industry and the Atlanta metro area’s chances of snagging Amazon’s second headquarters.

In the end, although the Senate advanced SB 375, it never gained traction in the House and had not received any additional attention as of Sine Die on March 30th. Extremist lawmakers tried several last-ditch attempts to attach discriminatory language to the hundreds of bills that the legislature considered from March 27th to 30th, but all attempts were unsuccessful.

This is something we can celebrate—but we can’t rest until LGBT Georgians are protected from discrimination by law. We’re committed to keeping the pressure on lawmakers until LGBT-inclusive civil rights is the law of the land in Georgia.

Find out more at: www.georgiaunites.org.