Success Sundays – Post 3: "California Implements Proposition 1 to Enhance Mental Health Infrastructure"
Following the approval of Proposition 1 in March 2024, California has begun implementing measures to strengthen its behavioral health system. The proposition allocates $6.4 billion to develop treatment facilities and supportive housing for individuals with serious mental illnesses and substance use disorders. In 2025, the state is awarding $3.3 billion to build outpatient and inpatient treatment…
Living in a red state? Concerned about your rights in Trump’s America? Able and interested in relocating?
Let me humbly invite you to the great state of New York.
I have often spoken about this before, here on Tumblr, but after the election results it feels more important than ever. Allow me to state my case:
ONE. We signed a "safe haven" law into effect in the summer of 2023. It states we refuse to cooperate with other states’ transphobic laws.
TWO. Other transgender people have been moving here for some time, and our queer communities are growing.
THREE. We just passed a proposal expanding the Equal Rights Amendment of our state constitution. This will extend its protections to cover gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, disability, age, reproductive health decisions, and more. Transgender people are now explicitly protected from discrimination by law. Come to our state, you can sue the transphobes! The text of the amendment can be found here.
FOUR. Our state government offers a rare opportunity right now, with a lot of civil service positions open to the public for hiring until May 2025. I can't lay hands on specifics about LGBTQIA+ protections, and the government is BIG and varies from agency to agency, but it's generally a queer-friendly workplace in my experience. Union jobs with good benefits that include a defined benefit pension.
FIVE. We are a big state with lots of places to go. The living expenses upstate are fairly reasonable I think, though still higher than a lot of places. We’ve got the Adirondacks, the Catskills, and the Finger Lakes. If you want to visit NYC, there are plenty of places with lower-than-NYC costs of living that are still within driving distance.
SIX. I just learned, pulling this together, that Ithaca passed its own safe haven law in 2023. I'm not sure how much of a difference it makes legally, given the state law, but it does let you know that the city of Ithaca specifically wants to protect and welcome the transgender community. Ithaca is the home of Cornell University, a hip college town with lots of farm-to-table places and a hippy dippy vibe.
If you can't relocate, or aren't ready to relocate, just know that we care about you. We will keep fighting for you. We are on your side. And we're going to be here, ready to welcome you, for a long, long time.
Election 2024: LaLota Prioritizes Border Security, SALT Cap, Prop1
Freshman US Rep. NIck LaLota is locked in a battle with Democrat John Avlon for the 1st District, which runs from part of Huntington out to the East End of Long Island.
Illegal immigration and security of the southwest border, a statewide vote on enshrining abortion and other rights into the state Constitution, and the elimination of the cap on the deductibility of state and local taxes, are at…
Since I learned about Proposal 1 from lawn signs (ignorant lawn signs), I wanted some lawn signs of my own. At first I couldn't find any official ones, so my husband bought some supplies and I'm making my own:
I'm not sure yet what I'm putting on the flag one, I'm considering Crooked Media's saying, "leave trans kids alone, you absolute freaks." Since conservatives were so upset over being called weird, I'm also considering "weirdos want to know what's in children's pants." But that second one is a lot of words to take in on a drive-by. The first one, if you catch the first four words, you've got the idea.
I did eventually find official signs from New Yorkers for Equal Rights. I will probably buy one or two because I want it known that our side is organized enough to have official signs, too.
Did you know what New York State is holding a vote on its Equal Rights Amendment this November? Prop 1 would expand it to include queer rights and several other civil rights issues.
I literally just found out about this today, and I found out because of "save girls sports" lawn signs.
Now I would vote for this anyway, but as it happens my oldest child is trans. So I will be taking this personally. This is my child whose rights we are talking about. If I hear shit about this on Thanksgiving the family better be ready for a battle Royale because, if you think my child doesn't deserve the same rights as others, I AM COMING FOR YOU.
