Kansas City News & Events

Please join us for our monthly board of directors meeting. This event is free and open to the public.
When: March 6th, 2012, 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm
Where: Johnson Co. Library, Antioch Branch (8700 Shawnee Mission Pkwy., Merriam, KS)

[ Posted: Wednesday Jan 4 2012, 9:02 pm | More Details...]

Greetings –

Since 2006, the Equality Coalition has been working on passing legislation banning school bullying. We were successful in passing the initial anti-bullying law in 2007, and in amending it to include cyberbullying in 2009. In simple terms, the law requires all Kansas school districts to enact an anti-bullying policy, to develop an implementation plan, and to educate staff and students. Unfortunately, the law did not go far enough in holding school districts accountable, and many schools have not been in compliance with the law.

When: February 22nd, 2012, 8:00 am - 8:30 pm
Where: Kansas State Capitol ()

[ Posted: Wednesday Feb 22 2012, 7:50 am | More Details...]

STATE REP JAN PAULS INSINUATES PEDOPHILIA AS JUSTIFICATION FOR DISCRIMINATION

In the House Judiciary Committee today, State Representative Jan Pauls repeatedly asserted that "gays and crossdressers" don't deserve protection from discrimination, and insinuated that we shouldn't be allowed to work in day care centers, and shouldn't be permitted to be foster parents. In a committee session lasting two hours, Pauls repeated attacked the right of LGBT Kansans to live our lives in peace, without having to worry about being fired, evicted, or refused service just because of our sexual orientations and gender identity.

When: February 20th, 2012, 7:00 pm - February 24th, 2012, 8:30 pm
[ Posted: Monday Feb 20 2012, 9:15 pm | More Details...]

HB 2260 dubbed the “Kansas Preservation of Religious Freedom Act” seeks not to
preserve freedom, but rather to deny freedom to those gay, lesbian, bi-sexual and
transgendered Kansans that make our state their home. It seeks to amend K.S.A.
44-1001, a statute that exists to prevent and eliminate discrimination in employment,
public accommodations and housing.
• The attempt to amend this statute that stands as Kansas’ commitment and
dedication toward equality for all by offering an “opt out” sets bad precedent.

[ Posted: Tuesday Feb 14 2012, 11:15 pm | More Details...]

Thomas Witt, Executive Director
Kansas Equality Coalition
Testimony in opposition to HB2260
House Committee on the Judiciary
February 14, 2012

(Note: The full text of HB2260 can be found here: http://kslegislature.org/li/b2011_12/measures/hb2260/ )

Greetings Mr. Chairman and members of the committee. I am here today in opposition to HB2260.

HB2260 is a complex and convoluted bill, the intent of which is difficult to understand without careful study. The intent of this bill is to do one thing: Invalidate all non-discrimination policies in the state of Kansas that do not exactly match Chapter 44, Article 10 of Kansas Statutes, known as the “Kansas Acts Against Discrimination” (KAAD).

[ Posted: Tuesday Feb 14 2012, 12:01 am | More Details...]

WE NEED EVERYONE’S HELP AND SUPPORT. Today’s (Sunday, February 05, 2012) Salina Journal broke the news about our plans to go to the city commission meeting tomorrow to introduce our anti-discrimination amendments to the city code that would prohibit people from being discriminated against based on gender identity or sexual orientation. I want to thank Jim Leckliter and Janice Norlin for their great interviews that were highlighted in the article. The article also gave a lot of attention to our opposition and the successes they had in Manhattan getting the supporting commissioners voted out of office and that city’s short lived ordinance overturned.

[ Posted: Sunday Feb 5 2012, 8:55 am | More Details...]

Testimony of Angela Perry-Smith, Chair
Kansas Equality Coalition of the Central Plains
Senate Committee on Education
In Support of SB278
January 31, 2012

Good afternoon madam Chair and members of the committee.

I am Angela Perry-Smith, an educator at a small district in east central Kansas. I am speaking as a proponent of SB 278. I have a B.S. Secondary Education in English from Kansas State University, M.S. in Rehabilitation Counseling from Emporia State University and Secondary Education Degree in Music from Washburn University. I currently teach Pre-K through 12 Music and High School English. Previously, I worked at Lyon County Community Corrections as an Intensive Supervision Juvenile Officer, where I implemented one of the first juvenile day reporting programs in Kansas.

[ Posted: Thursday Feb 2 2012, 11:54 am | More Details...]

Testimony of Thomas Witt, Executive Director
Kansas Equality Coalition
Senate Committee on the Judiciary
In Support of SB308
February 1, 2012

Good morning Mr. Chairman and members of the committee. I am here today to speak in support of SB308, and I thank you for the opportunity to do so.

The Kansas Equality Coalition works to eliminate discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. In the six years since we formed, we have organized eleven chapters around the state and have nearly 2000 members. Today we ask you to amend Kansas Statutes to remove the unconstitutional criminalization of gay and lesbian Kansans.

[ Posted: Thursday Feb 2 2012, 11:49 am | More Details...]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:
Thomas Witt, Executive Director
Kansas Equality Coalition
Mobile 316-683-1706
witt@kansasequalitycoalition.org

Stephanie Mott, Chair
Kansas Equality Coalition
Mobile 785-215-7436
mott@kansasequalitycoalition.org

KANSAS EQUALITY COALITION URGES SENATE ACTION ON UNCONSTITUTIONAL BAN ON GAY, LESBIAN RELATIONSHIPS

Topeka, Kans, February1 , 2012 –


[ Posted: Thursday Feb 2 2012, 11:45 am | More Details...]

Greetings KEC members and supporters -

Please participate in our survey on LGBT discrimination. This survey will collect information on experiences of bias and discrimination in the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community in Kansas.

The online version is here: http://www.kansasequalitycoalition.org/survey2012.php

You may also complete a paper version of this survey by downloading and printing this form: http://www.kansasequalitycoalition.org/_files/KEC_2012_Discrimination_Survey.pdf

[ Posted: Sunday Jan 29 2012, 10:04 pm | More Details...]

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