In 2011, President Obama announced a challenge to the private sector to train or hire 100,000 unemployed veterans or their spouses by the end of 2013. 

 

Today, President Barack Obama, along with First Lady Michelle Obama, and Vice President Joe Biden participated in a Joining Forces Employment initiative at the White House. 

 

President Barack Obama established a goal when asking the private to train or hire 100,000 veterans and military spouses by the latter stages of 2013. Today, the First Lady announced that domestic businesses nearly tripled this goal and did so 8 months in advance of the target date. The private sector has already trained or hired over 290,000 veterans and military spouses. 

 

In addition to this fantastic news, the First Lady also announced that domestic companies have committed to train or hire an additional 435,000 veterans and military spouses over the next five years. 

 

Some of the American companies that stood out with regards to training or hiring military veterans include:

 

• The BNSF Railroad committed to hire 5,000 veterans and spouses over the next five years

 

• UPS committed to hire over 25,000 veterans and military spouses over the next five years

 

• McDonald’s committed to hire 100,000 veterans and military spouses over the next five years

 

• Home Depot promised to hire 55,000 veterans and military spouses through 2018

 

• Deloitte has promised to double its veteran hiring over the next three years

 

• AT&T promised to create an online military talent exchange to facilitate military hiring

 

• The BlackStone Group urged each of its 50,000 managers to hire at least one veteran in its affiliated businesses 

 

In addition to these announcements, the First Lady also shared stories from veterans who have successfully transitioned into second careers. With the Iraq war finished and the war in Afghanistan nearing its end, more than one million service members are expected to transition back to civilian life within the next couple of years. Respectable civilian jobs will not only help our military families manage their transition to normalcy, but will also demonstrate that our nation truly appreciates their service. 

 

 

Source: whitehouse.gov

 

Starting today, committed same-sex couples in every community and corner of the Centennial State will gain access to the fundamental protections they require to take care of themselves and the ones they love. 

 

Colorado’s Civil Union Law passed in March with bipartisan support in both houses of the state’s General Assembly; the bill was then signed into law by Governor Hickenlooper. Advocates at several Colorado gay rights organizations and initiatives worked tirelessly to ensure that the bill would secure approval and subsequently be passed in a timely fashion. 

 

One Colorado, which was the leading advocacy group in ensuring the success of this bill, put together a streamlined application form, equipped with Frequently Asked Questions, and an assortment of other tips for couples seeking civil unions. 

Colorado, through the passing of this law, becomes the eighteenth state—in addition to Washington, DC—to offer comprehensive state-level benefits, rights, and obligations to same-sex couples.

 

Currently, nine states in the U.S. (Connecticut, Maine, Iowa, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, New Hampshire, Washington, and Vermont), along with Washington DC issue marriage licenses to homosexual couples. Moreover, as of May 1st, nine states (Colorado, California, Hawaii, Delaware, Nevada, Illinois, New Jersey, Rhode Island, and Oregon) will provide the equivalent of state-level spousal rights to homosexual couples within state borders. 

 

For more information on trends, upcoming votes, and state sentiment regarding the passing of laws that extend rights to homosexual citizens, please visit the Human Rights Campaign website at www.hrc.org. 

 

 

Source: Human Rights Campaign

 

Last week, the Boy Scouts of America Executive Committee offered a policy that would establish a nondiscrimination policy to eliminate its longstanding discriminatory ban on gay Scouts, while maintaining several discriminatory practices in place for lesbian and gay parents, employment opportunities, and Scout leaders. 

 

The resolution offered by the Boy Scouts of America proposes a policy where, “no youth shall be denied entry into the Boy Scouts of America on the basis of their sexual orientation.” This policy is national in scope as opposed to the organization’s previous approach that placed the membership decisions on the shoulders of local sponsoring organizations. The new proposed resolution will face a vote by approximately 1,4000 leaders of the organization during their National Council Meeting, which is set to take place on May 22nd through the 24th. 

 

“It is welcomed news that the leadership of the Boy Scouts of America is open to terminating the ban on gay scouts; however, this resolution must contain more protections for the gay community,” said Chad Griffin, the President of the Human Rights Campaign. “Adults and Parents of good moral character, regardless of sexual orientation, must be allowed to volunteer their time to mentor the upcoming generation of Americans. What message does this proposal send to the homosexual scout who, as an adult, wishes to continue a lifetime of scouting by becoming a leader in the organization?” 

 

Unanswered in the proposal is the issue of employment discrimination; currently the job application for a leadership position with the organization explicitly says homosexual cannot apply. The application, which is uniform throughout the nation, reads: “The Boy Scouts of America will not employ agnostics, atheists, avowed or known homosexuals.”

 

In anticipation of a universal resolution, the Human Rights Campaign issued a petition asking its supporters to call on their local Boys Scouts of America councils to vote in favor of a policy which prohibits discrimination against homosexual scouts, parents, and leaders of the organization. The petition aims to generate messages to local council representatives, so they hear how the ban on homosexuals harms members of their own community. 

 

 

Source: Human Rights Campaign

 

Rhode Island Governor Lincoln Chafee just signed the state’s marriage equality bill into law in a riveting ceremony on the steps of the Rhode Island State House. The marriage equality bill passed the Rhode Island state House earlier this morning with unanimous bipartisan support. 

 

The Human Rights Campaign celebrated the historic victory moments after it became official by raising the Rhode Island flag above their D.C. office. The state of Rhode Island now becomes the tenth state alongside the District of Columbia to legalize gay marriage. 

 

Rhode Island becomes the last state in New England to legalize gay marriage after independent Governor Chafee signed the bill on Thursday. “I know that you have been waiting for this day for a long time,” Chafee said to the state’s lesbian and gay community at a ceremony in front of thousands. “I understand that you have loved ones that have long dreamed that this day would become a reality. I am proud to announce that this day has finally come, and you are free to marry the person you love.”

 

Chafee outlined his support for gay marriage rights for not only moral grounds, but also economic, “the talented workers who are pushing this economy forward want to live in a place that reflects their thoughts and values. These young people want diversity, not simply because of a sense of justice, but because diversity makes life more enjoyable,” he said. “Why would any state in the U.S. turn away the individuals who are most likely to create the economies of the upcoming generations?”

 

As a conservative U.S. senator in 2004, Chafee expressed his support for gay marriage when the vast majority of his party staunchly opposed it. Chafee was ousted from his seat in 2006 but won the governor’s race in Rhode Island in 2010 as an independent. 

Chafee is now urging fellow governors to push for similar legislation to what was passed in his state today; Chafee is also calling for the United States Supreme Court to overturn the Defense of Marriage Act. 

 

Although public sentiment continues to favor same-sex marriage, legalizing the prospect remains a burden for the majority of states. Even in Rhode Island, which is positioned in the nation’s friendliest territory for gay-marriage supporters, opposition from the state’s religious right served as a staunch impediment to the bill for several years.  

 

 

Source: Human Rights Campaign