Already in 2023, the ACLU is reporting tracking 378 anti-trans bills across the United States (ACLU, 2023). Republicans are literally calling for transgender people to be denied care, for the âeradication of transgenderismâ, and creating laws whose sole purpose is to hurt transgender youth against all medical advice. Research shows how these laws are hurting LGBTQIA+ people, especially transgender youth. It is becoming more and more dangerous to be LGBTQIA+, especially transgender. Within nonprofits, there needs to be a conversation on how to support LGBTQIA+, or queer, clients and communities. Well, thatâs why I am here to help. Here is a quick introduction of what to expect and who I am (and at the bottom a quick introduction to what is happening in Tennessee).
Who am I?
My name is Seth J. Meyer. I have a PhD in Public Administration and an MSSW in Social Work Administration. I have been involved in LGBTQ advocacy since high school and working in nonprofits since college. With over 20 years of experience, I have seen a lot of changes in the ways that the LGBTQIA+ community is approached, discussed, and supported. The terminology has changed, the needs have changed, and the community has changed.
My research focuses on social equity, specifically LGBTQIA+-issues in nonprofit organizations. In journals such as the Journal of Public and Nonprofit Affairs (Meyer & Millison, 2022), Public Administration Review (Meyer, 2023), Nonprofit & Voluntary Sector Quarterly (Meyer, Dale, & Willis, 2022), & Voluntas (Meyer & Elias, 2022), I have discussed the importance of including LGBTQIA+ communities in nonprofit studies. Now, I am expanding to include nonprofits in general. I will be using my personal experience, my research, and the newest research coming out that can help nonprofits.
What to expect?
So what to expect? To start, I plan on doing a weekly newsletter (coming out on Wednesdays) which discusses the ways that nonprofits can help the LGBTQIA+ community. I will be starting with terminology and really helping nonprofits understand who the LGBTQIA+ community is. Also, I will be discussing some of the new laws that are being introduced and passed and how these laws impact individuals and nonprofit organizations in these states (especially Florida, Texas, and Tennessee). I welcome questions and comments; please let me know how this newsletter can be of use to you!
Who is this for?
Anyone and everyone who wants to support the LGBTIQA+ community! I am writing this specifically for nonprofit employees and volunteers, as well as those interested in public service in general, but I am happy to answer your question no matter where you come from or what you do. This is a newsletter about welcoming everyone, being an ally to the LGBTQIA+ community, and staying up-to-date on the laws and regulations impacting LGBTQIA+ people. If you have questions or topics you want me to touch on, let me know!
Conclusion
I look forward to taking this journey with you! I have been wanting to do this for a long time and now is the perfect time to start this conversation among nonprofits. Importantly, this is a way to help you support LGBTQIA+ individuals and communities at a time when many people are scared. And press below to subscribe and share!
What is Happening in Tennessee?
Last week, Gov. Bill Lee signed a law which impacts âadult cabaret performancesâ on public property. The idea is to âshieldâ these performances from children. (HRC, 2023). Basically, this is an attempt to criminalized drag shows. The law also impacts gender-affirming care, which I will be discussing in a couple of weeks. Adult-oriented performances now includes âmale or female impersonatorsâ (PBS News Hour, 2023). This impacts LGBTQIA+ communities because drag queens could basically be hit with a misdemeanor for obscenity (Freeman, 2023). So what does this mean for nonprofits in Tennessee?
So far, we donât know how this law will actually be enforced. Due to its vagueness, its quite possible that a more liberal city will enforce it differently than a more conservative part of the state, especially during an election year. The law is quite vague, and drag shows can happen as long as they are not considered âharmful to minorsâ (Freeman, 2023). This could easily be used to attack any transgender person who is just being themselves (PBS News Hour, 2023). That said, according to Satta (2023), this law is probably a violation of the first amendment and is, therefore, unconstitutional. For me, this reminds me a lot of the pre-Stonewall era where LGBTQIA+ performers would be arrested for not wearing less than three pieces of clothes from their traditional gender. Two nonprofit organizations who will be particularly impacted:
Drag story hour, which is a nonprofit which connects drag queens with libraries where they read books to kids. Itâs an amazing organization and a lot of fun for kids.
Pride Marches. These big marches provide support to everyone and are wonderful celebrations of pride, happiness, and acceptance (usually, although we can talk about the Philadelphia and Boston Pride Marches in another post). Just having people who dress in drag or anything considered ânon-normativeâ could lead to arrests.
What should your nonprofit do? I am not here to say. If you are in Tennessee and you have clients who are transgender or gender nonbinary, you should be staying up-to-date on how this law will be enacted. We will talk about what type of advocacy that nonprofits can do in a future post (it is a fine line), but you can certainly encourage your clients to contact their representatives against this. The ACLU is waiting until it is actually enforced to fight the law, so if you are considering any sort of drag show, I recommend reaching out to the ACLU-TN (You can read their statement and find their resources here). They can help provide local guidance. As more states pass anti-drag laws, we will be seeing legislators and police having to grapple with the question of how to enforce these and what are the limits of free speech? And if you want to support children being read books by drag queens and learning about being nice to everyone, find your local drag story hour here. Itâs a great organization!
In conclusion, even though this is a new law, the impact is still developing. Be aware and, if you are in Tennessee, check in on your clients.
References:
ACLU (2023) âLegislative Attacks on LGBTQ Rightsâ https://www.aclu.org/legislative-attacks-on-lgbtq-rights.
Freeman, J. (2023) âTennessee Enacts Nationâs First Law Restricting Drag Showsâ Rolling Stone https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-features/tennessee-drag-show-law-bill-lee-1234689713/
HRC (2023) âHuman Rights Campaign Slams Governor Lee for Signing Anti-Drag Bill and Gender Affirming Care Ban into Law; TN Becomes First State to Criminalize Dragâ https://www.hrc.org/press-releases/human-rights-campaign-slams-governor-lee-for-signing-anti-drag-bill-and-gender-affirming-care-ban-into-law-tn-becomes-first-state-to-criminalize-drag
Meyer, S. J. (2023). Social equity and LGBTQ populations in African public administration: A macroâand microâapproach. Public Administration Review. https://doi.org/10.1111/puar.13554
Meyer, S. J., Dale, E. J., & Willis, K. K. (2022). âWhere My Gays At?â the status of LGBTQ people and queer theory in nonprofit research. Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, 51(3), 566-586. https://doi.org/10.1177/0899764021102149
Meyer, S. J., & Elias, N. M. (2022). Rainbow research: Challenges and recommendations for sexual orientation and gender identity and expression (SOGIE) survey design. VOLUNTAS: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations, 1-7. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11266-021-00436-5
Meyer, S., & Millison, J. (2022). Queer up your work: Adding sexual orientation and gender identity to public and nonprofit research. Journal of Public and Nonprofit Affairs, 8(1), 145-156. https://doi.org/10.20899/jpna.8.1.145-156
PBS News Hour (2023). âTennessee governor signs drag show restrictions into lawâ https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/tennessee-governor-signs-drag-show-restrictions-into-law
Satta, M. (2023). âWhy Tennesseeâs law limiting drag performances likely violates the First Amendmentâ The Conversation https://theconversation.com/why-tennessees-law-limiting-drag-performances-likely-violates-the-first-amendment-201126.