Capital City Connection

Capital City Alliance works to improve the quality of life for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender people in the greater Baton Rouge Area. email: [email protected] twitter: @ccabatonrouge phone: [phone] website: www.ccabatonrouge.org

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How Compassion Can Help Kids Handle Bullies

How Compassion Can Help Kids Handle Bullies

Attitudes towards the LGBTQ community are slowly improving across the globe. But many who identify with the community still face discrimination and other social challenges on a regular basis. For children in schools, bullying is a regular occurrence, taking the form of verbal harassment, physical violence, and cyber-bullying on social media sites. According to the Gay, Lesbian and Straight…

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Trail Blazer Shirt — Official Shirt of 2017

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Trail Blazer Shirt – Official Shirt of 2017

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Calling Your Representatives

Its time.  Its time that we call for our Allies and Accomplices to stand with us.  We are in a time in our country were we must take action and fight to continue having our freedom.  Below is a list of representatives to call.  Let them know that you stand with the LGBTQ+ community.…

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Keep Dancing: Baton Rouge's 1st Annual Pride March

Keep Dancing: Baton Rouge’s 1st Annual Pride March

“Love is Love is Love” was chanted as we marched through downtown Baton Rouge. Capital City Alliance’s Baton Rouge Pride March held Saturday, June 17th, 2017 was an energetic and passionate display of solidarity and I was honored to have been a part of it. This being my first year as a CCA board member, I spent my nights making posters, spray-painting PVC pipes, but best of all getting to know my…

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Diversity House: First LGBT focused youth homeless residential program in Louisiana

Diversity House: First LGBT focused youth homeless residential program in Louisiana

  First LGBT focused youth homeless residential program in Louisiana   Diversity House, the first transitional living facility with a focus on LGBT homeless youth in Louisiana, opened in February of 2016. The residential program provides individuals between the ages of 16 and 21 with 24/7 case management, which includes housing, job placement, education and counseling.   Diversity House is the…

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How Could Tobacco Companies Be Targeting You?

How Could Tobacco Companies Be Targeting You?

Smoking remains the single largest cause of preventable death in the U.S. Cigarette smoking is responsible for more than 480,000 deaths per year in the U.S., including 41,000 deaths resulting from secondhand smoke, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Furthermore, the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community smoking rates are among the highest of all…

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Family and Medical Leave for Louisiana Same-Sex Spouses

Family and Medical Leave for Louisiana Same-Sex Spouses

Today, the Department of Labor issued a new rule extending the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) to married same-sex spouses all over the country, including Louisiana. The new rule allows employees to take unpaid leave to care for their same-sex spouse, regardless of where the employee lives. This new “Place of Celebration” standard means that although Louisiana does not currently recognize…

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Happy LBGTQ Spirit Day! Spectrum, along with our friends at Capital City Alliance are celebrating Spirit Day 2014 by geauxing purple!

Spirit Day began in 2010 as a way to show support for LGBT youth and take a stand against bullying. Following a string of high-profile suicide deaths of gay teens, GLAAD worked to involve millions of teachers, workplaces, celebrities, media outlets and students in going purple on social media or wearing purple, a color that symbolizes spirit on the rainbow flag. Spirit Day now occurs every year on the third Thursday in October, during National Bullying Prevention Month, and has become the most visible day of support for LGBT youth.

LGBT Bullying facts:

In Louisiana:

8 in 10 have experienced verbal harassment based on their sexual orientation

Nearly 7 in 10 have have experienced harassment based on gender expression

Nearly 5 in 10 have been physically harassed based on their sexual orientation

1 in 10 has been physically assaulted based on gender expression 

Nationally:

9 out of 10 students experienced harassment at school because of their sexual orientation

8 of 10 students have been verbally harassed at school

6 of 10 have felt unsafe at school

2 of 10 have been the victim of a physical assault at school

8 of 10 transgender students feel unsafe at school because of their gender expression

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SO much love to Spectrum for this amazing post! Thanks for standing up with us!

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1st Annual Louisiana Equality March

Capital City Alliance (CCA) is an all volunteer organization. We feel that a well-organized, well-informed, and well-connected LGBT community will be able to...

Remembering that wonderful in 2012

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In honor of National Coming Out Day this Friday, Equality Louisiana has launched an online week of action to raise awareness and fight against bullying in Louisiana schools. We have to start standing up for our children.

Reblog this post and other images throughout the week to tell your followers, “I’m coming out against bullying.”

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Another Transgender Woman Killed, Another Media Fail

There are wrong and right ways to talk about transgender people and issues in the media. I must admit I was hopeful that news outlets would be more aware of how transgender people were talked about in the media because of Chelsea Manning and the work of national organizations to educate the media.

Recent events in Baton Rouge have shown this not to be true. The Advocate has rightfully criticized the local Baton Rouge Advocate for the mishandling of coverage of the murder of a transgender woman in Baton Rouge:

The Baton Rouge paper's coverage of Hartley's murder repeatedly uses the derogatory word "transvestite," in addition to male pronouns and numerous mentions of Hartley's arrests for prostitution.

Unfortunately, this woman’s experience is not unique. Transgender people are harassed, mistreated and killed at alarming rates in the United States, and when the media pays any attention to these horrific events, it is usually only in a sensationalist manner.

According to the National Transgender Discrimination Survey, 27% of transgender people report incomes of $20,000 or lower and more than 15% report incomes of $10,000 or lower. Only 7% percent of the general population reports incomes of $10,000 or lower. This high percentage of transgender people who live in poverty is not surprising if you also consider the fact that 97% of transgender people experience mistreatment, harassment or discrimination at work.

It is for this reason that transgender people desperately need employment and housing protections. People who are homeless and/or unemployed often turn to high-risk activities in order to survive. This leads them into even more dangerous situations.

by Micah Caswell Communications Director

[equalitylouisiana]

Gene Mills, president of the Louisiana Family Forum, is up to his old tricks again. At this point, we shouldn’t even be surprised at the lengths he’ll go to attack LGBT people and their families.

The Times-Picayune reports that Mills is using his position on the Governor’s Commission on...

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Momentum is still building in Baton Rouge!

Since last November, Baton Rouge Mayor-President Kip Holden has worked closely with Capital City Alliance and EQLA to update the city's nondiscrimination policy to make sure that all people are protected regardless of sex, race, religion, sexual orientation or gender identity. Mayor Holden is taking a necessary step in making his city-parish a place where LGBT people have the opportunity to succeed, to flourish, and to live. His long-term commitment to working with us and our partners should be commended. The recent issues with the East Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office demonstrate how important it is for open and active dialogue between the LGBT community and public officials.

Additionally, after admitting that they have also been using the unconstitutional portions of the “crimes against nature” law, Baton Rouge Police Department has agreed to take steps similar to those being taken by the Sheriff’s Office. The Chief of Police said the Department would begin to report hate crime statistics, work with CCA and Equality Louisiana to implement training for all personnel, and work with us to establish an LGBT liaison position.

Baton Rouge joins Shreveport, Lafayette, and New Orleans as cities that recognize and value equality and dignity. Closer to, and more in touch with, their communities than legislators, these local leaders are slowly changing the landscape in Louisiana for the better. There is an increasing willingness at the local level to change policies and practices to make our cities safer and better places for LGBT people--something we have not yet seen in the state legislature. We hope this trend continues, and call upon all of the elected officials in our state take a cue from these brave local policymakers to work for changes that give LGBT people the respect and rights they deserve.

We are gaining momentum in Baton Rouge and need your help to keep it going! You can support the work of CCA by donating here, by volunteering and even just by coming to a Second Sunday Brunch at Copeland’s Cheesecake Bistro.

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New York Times: After Arrests on Charges of Sodomy, an Apology

A Louisiana sheriff apologized for the arrests of men on charges that they violated an anti-sodomy statute that has been ruled unconstitutional.

Capital City Alliance and Equality Louisiana are mentioned in this New York Times article, and Bruce Parker, Coalition Manager for Equality Louisiana, is quoted!

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At least a dozen men in the last two years have been arrested by the East Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office for committing no crimes. In a recent investigative report, the Baton Rouge Advocate discovered through examination of arrest records that the EBR Sheriff’s office has been arresting men…

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GLSEN wants to hear your story – on camera! We’re opening the GLSEN NYC offices to our friends on Friday, August 16 and Monday, August 19 from 2-6 p.m. to record stories of how No Name-Calling Week has impacted your school and why schools should be safe for all students. All you need to do to participate is click here and fill out the form to register. 

We could use your story to help promote this year’s GLSEN No Name-Calling Week!

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This looks like a great project! Can't wait to see what comes of it.