Tuesday, June 11, 2013

June 2013 SAGE Newsletter Notes


Celebrating Pride: SAGE Is Here
It’s Pride month, and this year, SAGE has many victories to celebrate. As President Obama stated in his official declaration of June as Pride month, “Support for LGBT equality is growing, led by a generation which understands that, in the words of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., ‘injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.’” This past year, we’ve seen the introduction of the LGBT Elder Americans Act of 2012 in Congress, an 83-year-old activist take a case for marriage equality all the way to the Supreme Court, and much more. We still have a long way to go, but SAGE will be there every step of the way to ensure that LGBT older people are at the forefront of the fight for equality. So this month, join us in our celebrations around the country:
SAGE will be marching in the annual Pride Parade in New York City on June 30. Edie Windsor, longtime SAGE volunteer leader and plaintiff in the Supreme Court case challenging the Defense of Marriage Act, will be this year’s Grand Marshal.
  • SAGE affiliates across the country are planning a variety of Pride events for LGBT elders and allies. For a list of affiliates and more information, visit SAGENet.
  • SAGE is proud to support Harlem Pride again this year! Join the celebration at Jackie Robinson Park and make sure to drop by our table to learn more about SAGE Harlem. 
For a full listing of upcoming SAGE Pride events, visit our site.
 

SAGE and Freedom to Marry Host DC Marriage Event
 
When: June 10, 2013, 9:00 – 10:30 am  Where: National Press Club, Washington DC
 
With a Supreme Court decision expected this month in two marriage cases, Freedom to Marry and SAGE will present a panel on the harms of the discriminatory Defense of Marriage Act on older same-sex couples. The panel will include leaders, experts, and LGBT seniors telling their stories of harm. Under DOMA, married same-sex couples are denied more than 1,100 protections and responsibilities automatically afforded to other married couples, including Social Security survivor benefits, access to health care and family leave, the ability to pool resources without adverse tax treatment, parenting rights, and familial status for immigration purposes.  Visit the SAGE Events page for more information on this important event. To attend, please RSVP to  angela@freedomtomarry.org.
 




SAGE Joins 33 Other LGBT Organizations in Pledge to Fight HIV/AIDS
 
On June 3, to mark Pride Month, executive directors from 34 LGBT and HIV/AIDS organizations from across the United States released a joint letter committing themselves and their organizations to re-engaging the broader LGBT community in the fight against HIV. SAGE is proud to join this effort and support the rapidly growing numbers of older people who are living with HIV/AIDS. Today, approximately 28% of people living with HIV in the U.S. are over 50. By 2017 that number is projected to grow to 50%. In addition, it is estimated that 15% of all new HIV infections occur in people over 50. And the available data clearly documents that the AIDS epidemic has disproportionately affected men who have sex with men, gay and bisexual men, people of color and transgender people of all ages, including elders. Read the letter at the SAGE Blog, and then visit the site We the LGBT to pledge your support for achieving the vision of an AIDS-free generation.

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