The Tennessee Equality Project is presently in the process of forming “ TEP Montgomery County,” a special group that is concerned with the needs of citizens in the Clarksville Region. They need your help and support. An organizational meeting will take place on November 12 at 7:00 PM in Clarksville at the Borders Bookstore Cafe at 2801 Wilma Rudolph Blvd. The meeting should last no more than one hour. Please plan to attend. If you have any questions, please contact Todd Hughes at todd@TNequalityproject.org.
Elsewhere in Tennessee: Nashville
The Tennessee Equality Project held a meeting with Nashville Community Members and Leaders to Solicit Opinions for non-discrimination ordinance for Nashville, TN.
A group of approximately sixty community members met on the evening of Wednesday, October 12, at the East End Methodist Church in Nashville to discuss the possibilities for a non-discrimination ordinance and other positive legislation for Metro Nashville.
Attending the meeting were leaders from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the Nashville GLBT Chamber of Commerce, the Tennessee Equality Project (TEP) and the Tennessee Transgender Political Coalition. Each leader provided a short presentation on behalf of his or her group, within the context of the possibility of a non-discrimination ordinance for Metro Nashville.
After the presentations, Mr. Sam Felker moderated a discussion between attendees in which many expressed their outlook regarding a positive plan of action for conducting the initiative. While participants expressed a wide variety of opinions, several themes were common: a carefully planned effort that is appropriate for implementation in the Nashville community; building strong alliances with local businesses; community and faith leaders, and the general populace; and a careful consideration of what has worked in other communities.
About the Tennessee Equality Project
The Tennessee Equality Project is a statewide organization dedicated to promote and sustain the equality of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender persons in the State of Tennessee through the establishment of fair and equitable laws protecting these rights and the elimination of laws that would seek to counter this effort. TEP is also concerned with fair and just treatment for victims of hate crimes.
TEP’s mode of operation is unique in that we believe in forming a strong bond with legislators who are sympathetic to our causes. While the Tennessee Legislature is in session, they monitor our legislators and have a full-time lobbyist on the hill representing the GLBT community. In addition, TEP encourages and provides the resources for Tennesseans to contact their representatives regarding specific legislation that affects the GLBT community in Tennessee .
