The Equality Caucus - Braver Angels

The Mission

As the Equality Caucus, we believe LGBTQ individuals are guaranteed our inalienable rights in the promise of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness which are among our shared American values. To support the movement-making work of Braver Angels to build bridges, we aim to engage in dialogue to undermine harmful stereotypes, focus on solutions, and respect our shared humanity.

Who We Are

We are members of the LGBTQ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer) communities, across generations and regions of the United States, that hold diverse views about issues affecting our communities.

The Challenge

Within our LGBTQ communities, we are witnessing polarization pitting members of the community against each other, mischaracterizing diverse views, and being both instigators and victims of cancel culture. Within American society, some individuals in the LBGTQ communities experience harmful stereotyping, threats to their physical and psychological safety, and challenges to their rights and protections.

The Opportunity

Within our LGBTQ communities and the greater Braver Angels community, the BA Equality Caucus is a space to share concerns and hope for equality, learn to listen to each other, understand viewpoint diversity, and strive to establish common ground. Join Our Caucus Allies (friends, family members, colleagues, those concerned for themes identified in the charter, and other allies) are welcome to join.  Thank you. If you have questions please communicate directly with the Equality Caucus leadership team at email equality-caucus-info@braverangels.org
 Learn and participate in a workshop
Common Ground Workshop – Better Care Options for Gender Questioning Youth
This is a Braver Angels ‘members only’ program.  Please login as a member (or join if not already a member) to use the Eventbrite signup here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/common-ground-better-care-options-for-gender-questioning-youth-registration-998851831717?aff=oddtdtcreator&discount=BRAVER View and listen Marquee presentation at National Convention, June 2024: A Gay May & a Conservative Christian Walk Into a Bar – Youtube at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LxuG8khpU9E&t=15s
David Blankenhorn, a founder of Braver Angels, in conversation with Jonathan Rauch, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, and author of Gay Marriage: Why It Is Good for Gays, Good for Straights, and Good for America (2004) at the beginning of same-sex marriage debates; and later books including notably Kindly Inquisitors: The New Attacks on Free Thought (2014, with George Will), and The Constitution of Knowledge: A Defense of Truth (2021).  They reflect on a continuing conversation that was earlier highlighted by Braver Angels: Braver Angels highlights the Blankenhorn-Rauch conversation
 Podcast episode hosted by Mónica Guzmán – on disagreeing better about LGBTQ rights – Listen at  https://braverangels.org/a-braver-way-episode-4/  
Spencer Cox, the Republican governor of Utah, and Troy Williams, the activist at the head of Utah’s most active LGBTQ rights organization, don’t buy the notion that a good way to stand for the ideas on your side is to attack the people on the other. Reflecting on their sometimes contentious relationship, the two talk with Mónica about how they’ve both been able to advance their sides through honest dialogue and good-faith engagement, resulting in some surprising win-win policy outcomes for the people in their state.
Podcast episode hosted by Mónica Guzmán – on how to speak across the divide when those on the other side may hate you, fear you, or wish you did not exist  – Listen at https://braverangels.org/a-braver-way-episode-17/
Award-winning writer, performer, and trans activist Kai Cheng Thom has wrestled with these questions in a more visceral way than most… and in a more universal way than you might expect. Kai shares the groundbreaking ways she manages the tension between advocating and understanding, then April joins Mónica to explore contrasting views on gender and sexuality from the left and the right, and together they face the quagmire at the heart of so many of our toughest clashes: How do you love people well while holding strong to your convictions?
   
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