Take Action

There are only 52 days left until Election Day. Here are some things you can do TODAY to help get out the vote. 

Register for our next PFLAG Academy Online.

As we race toward the general election, it is important for PFLAG voters and LGBTQ+ advocates to know their rights as they head to the polls.Join this month’s PFLAG Academy Online workshop to learn more about our rights as voters and participate in an engaging “Ask Me Anything” conversation with PFLAG’s Advocacy team and a representative from the League of Women Voters. Join us for PFLAG Votes 2024: Know Your Rights as a PFLAG Voter on September 26 from 8:30pm-9:30pm Eastern. Learn more and register here.

Celebrate National Voter Registration Day with us!

National Voter Registration Day is September 17th. Celebrate with us by using our social media toolkit to share why your love votes. Educate your network on how it’s critical for the LGBTQ+ community and those who love them to vote in this election. And don’t forget to take the pledge to be a PFLAG Voter. 

Participate in our week of action.

Our first Love Votes Week of Action kicks off the week of September 23rd. Stay tuned for opportunities to encourage your network to register to vote, learn about your rights at the polls, and share what your love is voting for this election.

DC-area PFLAGers

Join the Gender Liberation March on September 14th. The march will highlight the need for bodily autonomy, self-determination, collectivism, and the pursuit of fulfillment in the face of increasing restrictions on trans, non-binary, and other communities.

State Matters

Here is a sample of what’s going on around the country. Please be kind to yourself and use your discretion while reading this section. You can share news from your state with advocacy@pflag.org for possible inclusion in a future newsletter.

Voter ID laws could harm over 200,000 trans voters in the upcoming election. According to a report from the Williams Institute, over 825,000 transgender Americans will be eligible to vote in the 2024 elections, but an estimated 43 percent (276,500) of them do not have identification documents that reflect their name or gender. This could cause “barriers to voting in person" due to a "mismatch with their information as listed on voter registration rolls" or "because of voter ID laws." Please visit PFLAG’s Love Votes website for information on how to protect your right to vote. 

Connecticut - State to launch LGBTQ+ tourism campaign. In response to Florida’s tourism website recently removing its LGBTQ+ travel section, Connecticut is responding with an inclusive campaign of “Everyone belongs.” The ad campaign will feature digital outreach to LGBTQ+ Floridians and will spotlight LGBTQ+-friendly businesses, events, and communities. 

District of Columbia - Thousands expected to attend Gender Liberation March. The march will take place in DC on September 14th and will highlight assaults on abortion access and gender-affirming care. 

Florida - Stonewall Museum severs ties with state tourism authority. Visit Florida, Florida’s tourism website, took down the LGBTQ+ travel section recently. As a result, the Stonewall Museum in Fort Lauderdale announced that it is cutting all ties with the agency and demanded a refund for the annual fee of $475 they paid to the agency. 

Court Matters

Ninth Circuit Court partially blocks enforcement of Arizona anti-trans athlete ban. The Ninth Circuit Court upheld a lower-court ruling that blocks Arizona from enforcing its 2022 anti-trans athlete ban against two trans plaintiffs, saying the state law likely violates the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment. The lawsuit will be sent back to the lower court for trial, and the law will remain blocked in the meantime. 

Federal judge partially enjoins Idaho gender-affirming care ban. Chief U.S. District Court Judge David C. Nye’s ruling granted class action status to a group of trans inmates suing the state for barring them from receiving gender-affirming care and halted enforcement of the law as it pertains to incarcerated trans individuals. 

Federal judge partially blocks enforcement of New Hampshire anti-trans athlete ban. District Judge Landya McCafferty granted an injunction that blocks New Hampshire from enforcing the anti-trans athlete ban enacted this year against two trans plaintiffs, saying the state law likely violates Title IX.

Federal Matters

Speaker Johnson pulls short-term government funding bill before a vote, raising government shutdown concerns. The Speaker is tying the bill to fund the government for six months to a measure requiring people to show proof of citizenship when registering to vote; it is already unlawful for non-citizens to vote in federal elections. The government will shut down if a spending bill does not pass Congress by October 1st.

House Committee subpoenas VA for information about voter registration resources at VA medical facilities. The House Veterans’ Affairs committee voted 12-7 along party lines to compel the VA to provide information to the committee about third-party organizations providing voter registration services at some VA facilities in Michigan and other states. Congressman Mark Takano (CA-39) pointed out that policies for expanding access to voter registration have been in place under multiple presidents.

Global Matters

Australia - Government reverses position, will ask questions about gender identity in the upcoming census. Treasurer Jim Chalmers confirmed that the 2026 census would count transgender Australians for the first time, reversing the government’s position following backlash in response to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s original decision to scrap new census questions. 

France - New Prime Minister criticized for previous votes against gay rights. Prime Minister Michel Barnier, who was appointed by President Emmanuel Macron on September 5th, voted against repealing a Vichy-era law criminalizing same-sex relations between minors under 21 while he was serving in Parliament in 1981.

Media Matters

Chappell Roan dedicates VMA win to queer kids in the Midwest. Roan won Best New Artist at the VMAs on September 11th. While accepting the award, she said “…for all the queer kids in the midwest watching right now, I see you. I understand you, because I am one of you.”

PFLAG National
(202) 467-8180 | love@pflag.org

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