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Posts tagged ‘LGBT’

Creating a Caucus to Protect WorkPlace Equality.


OMAHA, NE – On April 16th, 2013, a group of LGBT Democrats in Omaha met to discuss some issues that need to get done before the May 14th General City Elections. Among the topics discussed were getting LGBT people registered to vote, volunteering for the Suttle Campaign and forming an LGBT Caucus for the Douglas County Democrats to create a solid LGBT voice in the County level party.

Volunteering for the Suttle campaign is an important issue for the General City Elections on May 14th, Mayor Jim Suttle not only signed the Workplace Protections Ordinance into law, but he is also credited with getting a key swing vote to support Workplace Protections on the City Council!!!  The Suttle Campaign has many opportunities available for volunteers; canvassing, phone banking and data entry are the main ones.  You can call the campaign office at 402-933-0500 to find out more information.  The office is open from 10am-8pm Monday -Thursday, 10am-5pm on Friday and 12pm-5pm on Saturdays and Sundays.   The Suttle Campaign office is located at 347 N 76th St Omaha, NE 68114, which is near 76th and Cass, behind the KwikShop there.  The Firefighters are also hard at work canvassing for Jim Suttle’s campaign, meet them this Saturday, April 20th at 10am at the FireFighters Union Hall near 60th and Grover.  Here is the FaceBook Page for their event.

Another very important topic discussed is getting voters registered.  There will be voter registration applications available at Rebel Interactive on April 21st from 3pm-6pm. Here is the FaceBook Event Page.  They are located at 1217 South 13th St, just a couple of blocks south of 13th and Pacific.  Another opportunity for voter registration applications is the Milo Bail building at UNO, on April 24th, 11am-1:30pm.  If you cannot make those events there are many other opportunities where you and your loved ones can register to vote.  You can register at any public library and at the DMV until April 26th.  You can register in person at the Douglas County Election Commission until May 3rd.  Remember the election is May14th!!

Another item discussed is forming the LGBT Caucus.  The Douglas County Democrats adopted an amendment in November 2012 that made the county level party more LGBT inclusive, as well as creating the opportunity for minority communities to create county level caucuses. The adopted changes also added a Diversity Representative to the Executive Board, allowing a potential LGBT voice in the County party’s executive body.  We need participants for the actual caucus, we must have at least 10 people agree to be a part of it.  We need people to step and run for the office of chair.  Once we have 10 members and an elected chair, we can go to the Central Committee of the Douglas County Democrats and ask for approval and certification.  We must keep 10 members in the Caucus, the chair must attend all Central Committee meetings. The chair will have a vote in the Central Committee. If the Caucus falls below its membership requirements, and/or the chair doesn’t fulfill their duties the Caucus can become decertified and we would have start over again.

The Mission of the Greater Omaha LGBT Democrats:

1. To sensitize Democratic candidates and officeholders to the political needs of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer community.
2. To promote the Democrats’ message of economic justice and social progress in the LGBT community.
3. To encourage LGBT community participation in the campaigns of Democratic candidates and at all levels of the Democratic Party.
4. To facilitate the election of Democratic candidates to public office by maximizing the Democratic turnout in the LGBT community.
5. To educate voters concerning fundamental information about LGBT issues, with the purpose of encouraging them to vote for LGBT supportive candidates.

We need volunteers to help out with campaigns of LGBT friendly candidates.  We need LGBT friendly candidates in office to defend the protections we have won, and to vote for and sponsor new legislation! We are looking to bring in a county or state level chapter of the National Stonewall Democrats!!!  Until we formerly organize and elect a chair, Please contact Ken Riter at 402-686-6389 for more information.

Additional items discussed:  Getting the group to attend the Douglas County Election Commission’s Deputy Registrar classes so we can conduct official voter registration drives as well as know everything we need to know about registering to vote in Nebraska.   Organizing an event to galvanize and motivate LGBT voters with a MILK viewing is also an option discussed.  A couple of people said they would discuss the possibility with Aksarben Cinema, FilmStreams and Flixx Lounge about viewing the movie at one of those places. Additional suggestions are welcome, please call Ken at 402-686-6389 for help with any questions or suggestions you have!

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Announcements, Elections, Press Release, Statements

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Douglas County Democrats To Vote On LGBT Inclusive Measure!


OMAHA, NE – This Thursday, Nov 15th, the Douglas County Democrats will be considering an amendment to their Constitution and Bylaws, hopefully ensuring an inclusive County Level Democratic Party. The measure will include the LGBT community when it comes to electing officers in the Douglas County Democrats’ Executive Committee. The measure, if approved, will begin the creation of several County Level Caucus Organizations for 8 different identified groups, including African-American, Latino and LGBT.

I am very excited for this! I  have helped push for this since the County Convention back in June 2012. We have been hashing this out in the Inclusive Task Force Committee since July.  We have now finished a proposal that will introduced to the Central Committee for the first time. I am a member of of the Central Committee from LD9, and all 4 original committee members from LD9 have been in involved in some manner.  I’m very proud of my LD district for that involvement!  A total of 15 people were involved in the Inclusion Task Force Committee.  As fellow activist and friend, Mika Covington, says, “Great things happen when Queers step up!!”  The meeting is this Thursday, Nov 15th at 7pm at the IBEW at 8946 L Street Omaha, NE 68127 near 90th and L.

I hope this will help people understand that political parties, especially the Democratic party, will listen to us as a people.  We just have to put ourselves in a position to talk where we will be heard. Many Democrats won election because they support the LGBT community, and because they had the support of great organizations like the National Stonewall Democrats.  The creation of a county level LGBT Caucus would give us a nice stepping stone in creating a Stonewall Democrat chapter here in Omaha.

You can view the proposal here, Inclusion_Task_Force_Proposal_Presentation_Packet

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LGBT Democrats Go For Gwen Howard.


Gwen Howard

Gwen Howard (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

OMAHA, NE – On April 22nd the Greater Omaha LGBT Democrats had their most productive meeting so far.  The group of people in attendance discussed many things to move the group forward, including attending the Douglas County Democratic Convention to formalize the LGBT Caucus at the County level, including writing bylaws to establish the group in the County party and most importantly to put a priority on getting Gwen Howard to the November election. It was decided to organize events around Gwen Howard’s campaign and two events that came out of the discussion is a table for Gwen at the bar scene and marching with Gwen’s campaign in the Cinco de Mayo parade.

The first event is the Cinco de Mayo parade, Saturday May 5th.  Instead of marching as a separate group, the LGBT Democrats will march with the Howard campaign. It will be a great time to meet Gwen as well as members and volunteers of her campaign.  The Cinco de Mayo parade starts at 10am, but the lineup will begin at 9:30am near Highland Park, 25th and D.  Also, Gwen Howard WILL BE at the parade event!

The other event, LGBT Democrats for Gwen Howard, is at The Max, 1417 Jackson St on Friday, May 11th from 7pm to 10pm. It is a very important event because it is the Friday before the May 15th Primary and is a great chance to find out more about Gwen’s positions on issues that concern our LGBT Community.

On Gwen Howard’s campaign website is important information on her stance on various issues affecting the US, including the LGBT Community. Gwen points out that “she has introduced more successful legislation in 7 years than Congressman Lee Terry has in 7 terms“. We need a capable person who supports LGBT issues so we can finally get legislation passed like ENDA and the repeal of DOMA.  With at least 7 people running for Congress in Nebraska’s 2nd District, Gwen Howard is the only candidate who even acknowledges the issues of LGBT Nebraskans. On her campaign site she says. “We should respect the rights of all Nebraskans, including members of the GLBT community.  These Nebraskans should be treated as equal members of our society and allowed to contribute and participate fully in our economy and community. Gwen Howard will vote to pass the Employment Non-Discrimination Act and repeal DOMA.”

Not only does Gwen Howard support direct LGBT issues, she also supports legislation that affects women, working families, students, and housing for example. These aren’t primarily LGBT issues, but they definitely affect those in the community.

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First Meeting: 11 March 2012


OMAHA, NE – The Greater Omaha LGBT Democrats held their first meeting Sunday night, March 11th, 2012 at the 13st Coffeehouse.  An informal meeting was conducted, and informal minutes were taken, but I will summarize our discussion.  The meeting had 6 attendees, all males. We are definitely in need of a wider variety of attendees! I’d like to see all letters represented, including lesbians, bisexuals, transgendered, as well as straight allies and any questioning types and intersexed individuals, if they are in the area.  Increased racial diversity would also be a plus.  If are going to stand up for LGBT issues, as many people as possible in the LGBT Community should be represented!  We discussed some of the things the group would be involved in, for example: voter registration drives, collectively choosing an LGBT friendly candidate and assisting those candidates with their campaigns. I also believe the group could become a very important source of information for the local LGBT Community for politics as well as educating the community in the democratic process.  The group could also be instrumental in organizing volunteers for our chosen candidates as well as doing work within the local Democratic Party.  I did mention that I would like to see the group grow into a local Stonewall Democrat Chapter, but that is NOT the primary goal.  Right now, we need to grow our numbers and network so each attendee agreed to bring 2 people with them at the next meeting which is scheduled for Sunday March 25th, 2012 at 7pm at 13st Coffeehouse.

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The Time for Greater Omaha LGBT Political Organizing is Long Overdue.


OMAHA, NE – The time for Greater Omaha LGBT Political Organizing is long overdue.  So what do we do?  Sit on our thumbs and hope for the best?  NOPE!  We are going to get together as one group, one voice and make our issues known. Our issues as members of the LGBT Community have been ignored for far too long.  We, as a people, can do something about that.  For example, have you ever looked at the make up of the current leadership of the Douglas County Democrats?  Well, have a look right here on the Douglas County Democrats Leadership page.  Notice how men, women and even those of racial minority backgrounds are represented?  There are even positions specifically labeled Minority Representatives.  Also, the bylaws dictate that if one Minority rep is male, the other must be female.  If the Chairman is male, the Vice-Chair must be female. This is how they ensure both men and women are represented in the party.  Here is the link to the Douglas County Democrats Bylaws to find out more. I am confident that if we, as Greater Omaha area’s LGBT Community, put our heads together, we can create some space for ourselves.  A space that will allow us the power to ensure that Democratic Candidates in our Greater Omaha area will be people who are considerate supporters of our precious and delicate LGBT issues.  But that can only happen if we participate in the political party that has long stood up for our issues on the National stage.  Its up to us to make sure the Democratic Party in the Omaha area is up to that task right here.  Its takes participation to create those seats to fill, it takes participation to be heard politically.

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