Most South Dakotans have at least one person in their life who identifies within the LGBTQ+ and Two Spirit community. That person might be a family member. A neighbor. A friend’s child or grandchild.
Though support of LGBTQ+ and Two Spirit people has progressed in recent years, the community still faces hate crimes, employment and housing discrimination, barriers to health care and harmful bias.
That’s why allies – people who support their LGBTQ+ and Two Spirit friends and neighbors both publicly and privately – are so important.
The ACLU of South Dakota’s Ally Academy will provide a basic framework of understanding of LGBTQ+ and Two Spirit people and the unique challenges they face. This interactive, all-inclusive forum will educate allies on the steps they can take to help address barriers to fairness and justice for everyone.
Allies are some of the most effective and powerful voices of the LGBTQ+ and Two Spirit movement – and are especially important as the 2020 South Dakota Legislative Session gets underway.
“During the 2019 session, legislators debated but ultimately did not pass four discriminatory bills targeting transgender youth,” said Libby Skarin, ALCU of South Dakota policy director. “We know there’s the potential for discriminatory legislation again in 2020. By speaking up, allies can help show our elected officials the broad support for LGBTQ+ and Two Spirit equality in our state.”
IF YOU GO:
WHAT: Ally Academy
IN RAPID CITY: 4 p.m. Jan. 12 at the Rapid City Public Library, 610 Quincy St.
IN SIOUX FALLS: 6 p.m. Jan. 15 at Siouxland Libraries, 200 N. Dakota Ave.
FOR INFORMATION: www.aclusd.org/events
About the ACLU of South Dakota
Based in Sioux Falls, the American Civil Liberties Union of South Dakota is a non-partisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to the preservation and enhancement of civil liberties and civil rights. The ACLU of South Dakota is part of a three-state chapter that also includes North Dakota and Wyoming. The team in South Dakota is supported by staff in those states.
The ACLU believes freedoms of press, speech, assembly, and religion, and the rights to due process, equal protection and privacy, are fundamental to a free people. In addition, the ACLU seeks to advance constitutional protections for groups traditionally denied their rights, including people of color, women, and the LGBTQ communities. The ACLU of South Dakota carries out its work through selective litigation, lobbying at the state and local level, and through public education and awareness of what the Bill of Rights means for the people of South Dakota.
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