LGBTQ civil rights organization Equality California is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year and reflecting on how it has grown in scope.
The organization’s work today includes advocating for pro-LGBTQ policies in Sacramento and Washington, D.C., supporting candidates running for elected office and training future leaders.
But state Senator Toni Atkins, the first out lesbian to lead both legislative chambers, said she remembers when Equality California started as a network and campaign for same-sex marriage.
It was founded in 1999 as the California Alliance for Pride and Equality, or CAPE. When she ran for San Diego City Council in 2000, Atkins said she remembers CAPE knocking on doors to talk with voters about opposing Proposition 22, which defined marriage as between a man and a woman.
“CAPE was the leading effort to bring in allies,” Atkins said. “It wasn’t just gay community people; it was LGBTQ+ and our allies. And many of those allies really made the difference for us in those early years as we were having the marriage discussion.”
The organization rebranded as Equality California in 2003. Alice Kessler, now a consultant for the nonprofit, joined as a legislative director in Sacramento three years later and held the position through 2009. Besides marriage equality, Kessler said she worked on bills dealing with domestic partnerships, such as one on state income tax filings.
She also pushed for a bill establishing Harvey Milk Day to honor the first out gay elected official in California. Another proposal sought to require public school curriculums include the contributions of LGBTQ people and served as a precursor of the 2011 Fair, Accurate, Inclusive, Respectful (FAIR) Education Act.
Kessler said the time after the passage of Proposition 8, which banned same-sex marriage in 2008, was a difficult period for the organization. It operated more like a political campaign than a nonprofit back then, she said.
“It was like we were in campaign mode all the time,” Kessler said. “Because there were things happening and we had to respond right away and we had to be really nimble.”
She credits current Executive Director Tony Hoang and his predecessor Rick Zbur for building Equality California’s current infrastructure. Hoang started working for the organization as a field intern in 2009, when activists anticipated a ballot measure to overturn Proposition 8 in 2010 or 2012. The fact voters can pass a constitutional amendment appealing the proposition this November feels like a full circle moment, Hoang said.
Since 2009, Hoang said the organization has responded to the perception that marriage equality was the only issue the movement cared about.
“We just had to articulate that to the broader community, that there were many more issues, including trans issues, immigrant rights issues, labor issues, really running the gamut in terms of what our issues are because we are part of every single community,” Hoang said. “It's been really gratifying to be part of an organization that's been [a] leader in that driver's seat for the movement as a whole as the broader LGBTQ+ movement has evolved across the country.”
Atkins, who was first elected to the state Assembly in 2010 and the state Senate in 2016, said the organization serves as a critical partner in LGBTQ rights advocacy. Equality California and the California Legislative LGBTQ Caucus have grown alongside each other, she added, working to pass packages of bills each year.
She also stressed its influence in supporting the election of both LGBTQ and ally candidates. Equality California provides suggestions for appointments to state boards and commissions, too, Atkins said.
“They are part of the LGBTQ+ infrastructure in this state and what we do in California really resonates across the county,” Atkins said.
For the organization's future, Hoang said he sees increasing transgender representation and acceptance as a key pillar.
“We really have to ensure that we’re … able to move the needle in terms of acceptance and having trans kids, trans individuals as a whole and the support system around them being able to share their stories,” Hoang said. “So we’re able to put a face and a real person to what we are talking about.”
Equality California has held several 25th anniversary award events earlier this year, including one in Sacramento honoring two local school board trustees. Two more anniversary events are scheduled in Los Angeles and Palm Springs in October.
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