Full equality for all Americans should be a given. But it’s not a given for the millions of Americans that are lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender. In fact, quite the opposite is true. Did you know that you can be fired for being gay in a majority of states? And if you’re transgender, you can be fired in 33 states. That’s wrong. Think about it: dismissed from gainful employment and a meaningful future simply because you are being true to yourself and the society around you. That’s just one of the many reasons the Gill Foundation exists. We’re proud to advocate for full LGBT equality.
The Gill Foundation believes that the most immediate and impactful changes for LGBT people will come about in the states. The “lived experience” for most Americans occurs first at the local and state level so making positive changes there is our priority. We proudly support national and state organizations that support these efforts.
While our work is diverse, we focus most of our efforts in bringing about change within the following areas of public policy:
- Nondiscrimination in employment, housing, commerce, military service, services, and access.
- Relationship recognition including marriage equality, civil unions, domestic partnerships, and the provision of equal rights and benefits to spouses.
- Safe schools that are supportive and free from harassment and violence for LGBT and LGBT-parented students.
An informed and enlightened populace is one that is more than likely to support equality. Consequently, much of our work also involves educational programs aimed at winning over hearts and minds.
No social justice movement follows a linear path. So as you would expect, we make investments in a wide variety of organizations and efforts that represent different aspects of our movement. These efforts might range from litigation to overturn a ban on second parent adoption to partnering with a state equality organization to educate citizens about how gay and lesbians want to join and strengthen the institution of marriage.
We are grantmakers. Over our 19-year history, we have awarded $148 million to nonprofits that share our vision for a fully equal and inclusive America. But we’re much more than that. We’re sometimes leaders and always collaborators. We believe that you can never have too many allies and too few enemies. We share well with others and believe that knowledge should not be treated as a commodity. We introduce people to one another. We bring people and organizations together to learn from one another. We enlist, educate and motivate. We’re responsible and thoughtful and proud to be advocates for LGBT Americans.
