Leading Through Innovation

HRC is a leading non-profit organization in terms of technological innovation. Always continuing its efforts to stay at the forefront of digital marketing, HRC actively utilizes social media networks as an essential form of communication and engagement. Across the major social media platforms, including Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, HRC has a following of more than 3.5 million people who together form a growing number of communities working alongside and in support of HRC. With the implementation of Snapchat in 2014, HRC can now connect with countless members and supporters through a range of social media networks.

Prior to and throughout the 2014 Olympic Games in Sochi Russia, HRC launched an iconic viral campaign called #LoveConquersHate that successfully encouraged numerous people from around the world to act in solidarity with LGBTQ Russians by posting photos of themselves in HRC’s Russian-language Love Conquers Hate shirt.

In 2016, just days after the Pulse Orlando shooting, HRC began the #AskTheGays campaign in response to President Trump’s challenge to his skeptics to “ask the gays” about where he stood on LGBTQ equality. HRC used this campaign as a rallying cry to highlight Trump and then-Vice Presidential running mate Mike Pence’s atrocious records when it comes to LGBTQ equality and elevate the conversation around where the candidates, as well as their running mates, stood on the issues. It was an opportunity for our community to say what they really thought about an agenda of discrimination.

HRC has also embraced the use of #HRCTwitterTakeovers, and hosted one each with Pulse survivors Brandon Wolf and Angel Colon. Through the combined usage of revolutionary hashtag campaigns backed with community action and social media takeovers that spread awareness and center important narratives, HRC has been able to maintain a leading presence in social media, digital communications and beyond.

In addition to social media, cutting-edge applications – like the Buying for Equality app for iPhone and Android, updated in 2014 to include location services, as well as the Picture Equality app for iPhone and Android– help HRC connect users with tools to become more supportive of the LGBTQ community. Other projects include the Congressional Scorecard search tool, which provides information on the voting records and legislation co-sponsorships of members of Congress; interactive maps of state laws and policies, where readers can readily learn about LGBTQ-related legislation on a state-by-state level; and much more.

Elections and Campaigns

Presidential Endorsement

Arkansas Gov. Bill Clinton earned the Human Rights Campaign Fund's first presidential endorsement in 1992. After his election, HRCF's executive director took part in the first-ever meeting between LGBTQ leaders and a sitting president.

In 2008, HRC endorsed Barack Obama for president and worked tirelessly across the country to elect him - from raising money online to rallying volunteers in key states. One year later, President Obama was the keynote speaker at HRC's 13th Annual National Dinner. HRC again endorsed Obama for re-election, mobilizing thousands of volunteers, steering committee members, and HRC staff around the country to successfully re-elect the most supportive president in LGBTQ American history. 

Election Heavyweights

The success of HRC's electoral efforts has earned widespread recognition. Its Political Action Committee is among the National Journal's top-rated progressive PACs, as more than 90 percent of its endorsees win their elections. This success dates back to its first major electoral effort in 1982, when HRCF donated $140,000 to 118 congressional candidates. Eighty-one percent of those candidates went on to win.

In 2008, HRC engaged in the largest electoral campaign in the history of the organization - called Year to Win, an aggressive $7 million election effort to mobilize and motivate millions of LGBTQ and allied voters - and helped to elect more than 200 pro-equality congressional candidates. More than a year before the election, HRC co-hosted the first-ever televised presidential forum devoted to LGBTQ issues. Six of the leading Democratic presidential candidates participated.

In 2012, the most recent presidential election, HRC engaged in the largest electoral campaign in the history of the organization. Along with our energized supporters, HRC raised or contributed more than $20 million to re-elect President Obama and to win marriage equality in all three states where marriage was on the ballot, to defeat a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage in Minnesota, and to elect a Congress that includes both the most openly LGB individuals and also the most straight allies ever. Electoral victories included sending Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) to the U.S. Senate, making her the first openly gay Senator in U.S. history.

Anti-LGBTQ Pat McCrory Concedes

Pat McCrory finally accepted defeat in the North Carolina governor’s race in the fall of 2016. With a stunning 66 percent of North Carolina voters reporting opposition to HB2 -- a deeply discriminatory and anti-LGBTQ bill -- in exit polling, it’s clear that HB2 cost McCrory his re-election bid. According to polling commissioned by HRC and Equality North Carolina and performed by Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research, 57 percent of voters put HB2 as the top reason “not to vote for Pat McCrory” -- exceeding any other issue by 17 points.

Between August and Election Day, TurnOUT NC -- a project of HRC and Equality North Carolina -- held more than 260 get-out-the-vote events in Charlotte and Raleigh on behalf of HRC and ENC endorsed candidates. HRC and ENC also released a series of ads targeting pro-equality voters, including “Lennie & Pearl for Roy Cooper,” “Pat McCrory: Bad for Business,” and “North Carolina Mom for Roy Cooper.”

Mark Green Withdraws as Army Secretary Nominee

HRC claimed victory as Donald Trump’s nominee for Army Secretary, Mark Green, announced he would remove himself from consideration in early 2017. Since Trump’s announcement of Green’s nomination, HRC worked diligently to expose Mark Green’s shameful anti-LGBTQ record and rhetoric, and the danger his nomination posed to LGBTQ service members and their families.

HRC lead a robust campaign to #StopMarkGreen and expose his shameful history of attacking LGBTQ people through the hashtag #StopMarkGreen, by making thousands of calls to the Senate and more. Mark Green’s shameful record includes using slurs against the transgender community, describing former President Obama’s guidance protecting transgender students an example of “tyrannical government,” saying being transgender is a “disease,” and encouraging the state of Tennessee to defy federal law and deny marriage licenses to gay couples.

The Road to Marriage Equality

Marriage Equality Sweeps the Nation

The Human Rights Campaign was at the forefront of the fight for marriage equality when, on June 26, 2015 in a historic 5-4 ruling, the Supreme Court of the United States found bans on marriage equality to be unconstitutional – and that the fundamental right to marriage is a fundamental right for all.

HRC contingent and President Chad Griffin stood in solidarity at the court with longtime HRC member Jim Obergefell, the named plaintiff in Obergefell v. Hodges, the consolidated case presented at the Supreme Court. HRC and its allies led the effort to enact marriage equality for loving and committed same-sex couples throughout the United States with several high profile efforts, including its historic “People’s Brief” with 207,551 signatories calling for full nationwide marriage equality. Thanks to tireless efforts and extensive on-the-ground work – most notably by educating people through Project One America– HRC helped change the minds and hearts of citizens across the country and bolstered unprecedented support for marriage equality.

In 2006, when Massachusetts was the only state to recognize equal marriage rights, HRC and its allies helped beat back anti-marriage amendments in New Hampshire and Iowa – and continued on-the-ground efforts through November to help win fair-minded majorities in both states' legislatures. This helped lay the groundwork for marriage equality in these states in 2008 and 2009, respectively.

HRC led the effort to enact marriage equality in the District of Columbia. It committed two full-time staff members who, working with coalition members, identified hundreds of supporters to testify before the DC Council; co-hosted a rally on the eve of the Council's vote; and hosted three of the first weddings at HRC headquarters. Additionally, the Religion and Faith program helped organize and sustain DC Clergy United for Marriage Equality, one of the key players in the fight.

In the fight for marriage equality in New York, HRC led the largest field campaign ever in support of state LGBTQ rights legislation. An unprecedented 30 full-time field organizers were employed by HRC across the state and they generated over 150,000 constituent contacts to targeted legislators. To reflect the deep and diverse support for marriage equality, HRC also created "New Yorkers for Marriage Equality," a video campaign that eventually featured more than 40 iconic New Yorkers.

In partnership with the Courage Campaign, HRC launched NOM Exposed in 2010 – holding the National Organization for Marriage accountable for the misinformation and hate spread in its effort to thwart equality.

In 2012, HRC campaigned alongside state and local partners to secure passage of marriage equality in Maine, Maryland and Washington state, to defeat a proposed constitutional ban on same-sex marriage in Minnesota, and to help successfully defend marriage rights in New Hampshire.  In the first three weeks of May 2013, HRC's extensive support helped usher in marriage equality in Rhode Island, Delaware and Minnesota. Investments and on-the-ground work in New Jersey, Illinois and Hawaii helped lead to marriage equality in those states as well.

In 2015 love won, and the Supreme Court of the United States ruled to stand on the right side of history.

The People's Brief

On March 6, 2015, HRC delivered its historic "People's Brief" - with 207,551 signatories calling for full nationwide marriage equality - to the U.S. Supreme Court. Longtime HRC member Jim Obergefell, the named plaintiff in Obergefell v. Hodges, the marriage equality case set to be heard by the Supreme Court on April 28, joined HRC to hand-deliver dozens of boxes of briefs.

The People's Brief has more signatories than any amicus brief ever submitted to the Supreme Court. With all of the signatures, each copy of The People's Brief is approximately 3,500 pages long, for a total of approximately 175,000 pages. It required four days of round-the-clock printing in order to complete the 50 copies required by the Court in time for the March 6 deadline for amicus briefs. Nineteen boxes were delivered to the Court. Read the full text of The People's Brief, a joint effort by HRC and Roberta Kaplan, the acclaimed civil rights attorney who famously advocated on behalf of marriage equality in U.S. v. Windsor in 2013.

Supreme Court Decisions in Hollingsworth v. Perry and Windsor v. U.S.

Under the leadership of President Chad Griffin, the Human Rights Campaign worked to elevate the national conversation around marriage equality in the leadup to the Supreme Court decisions in Hollingsworth v. Perry, challenging California’s Prop 8 that banned marriage for gay and lesbian couples, and Windsor v. U.S., challenging the federal government’s ban on recognizing legally married gay couples. As the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in these cases, a modified red version of HRC's iconic logo went viral on social media, harnessing the passion that supporters of equality felt about the issue. When the rulings were handed down, and marriage equality was returned to California and section 3 of DOMA was overturned, HRC worked tirelessly to educate the public about what these rulings meant for LGBTQ couples and families in California and across the U.S.

Historic Defense of Marriage Act Hearing

The issue of repealing the discriminatory Defense of Marriage Act had its first hearing in Congress in 2011, nearly 15 years after its enactment. Former HRC President Joe Solmonese testified before the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee in favor of the Respect for Marriage Act, which would repeal DOMA. "In 1996, DOMA was just hypothetical discrimination because every state excluded same-sex couples from marriage," said Solmonese. "Today we see it in much more concrete terms – as tangible, heart-wrenching, real-life discrimination." It was the first time that an HRC president had testified in front of Congress since 1996.

Defeat of the Federal Marriage Amendment

Twice – in 2004 and 2006 – HRC led the successful fight against the Federal Marriage Amendment, which would have banned marriage equality. The massive field and lobbying effort in 2004, coupled with a $1 million TV, print and online advertising campaign, effectively communicated the message that the FMA was discriminatory and unnecessary, and would undermine the U.S. Constitution. HRC led the way again in 2006, in a campaign that culminated in the delivery of nearly 250,000 postcards to Capitol Hill offices just ahead of a second congressional defeat of the FMA.

Laws & Legislation Across the U.S.

U.S. Senate Passes the Employment Non-Discrimination Act

In November 2013, the U.S. Senate voted 64 to 32 to pass the Employment Non-Discrimination Act for the first time in the legislation’s two-decade history. All Senate Democrats joined 10 Senate Republicans to approve the bill. HRC invested $2 million in a 12-week campaign that resulted in the successful vote. This victory was years in the making. For two decades, HRC’s deep bench of policy experts and advocates have walked the halls of Congress engaging with lawmakers in both parties about the importance of ENDA. HRC staff, and our dedicated members and supporters, have held hundreds of face-to-face meetings with legislators and their staffs. In the making, we’ve amassed a powerful arsenal of evidence – a robust and compelling body of work – for why common-sense workplace protections are neccessary.

Hate Crimes

After 11 years of advocacy work by HRC and countless other groups and individuals, President Barack Obama signed the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act into law in 2009. The law gives the Justice Department the power to investigate and prosecute bias-motivated violence where the perpetrator has selected the victim because of the person's actual or perceived race, color, religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or disability.

"Don't Ask, Don't Tell" Repeal

After 17 years of the discriminatory "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" law, during which the military discharged more than 14,000 brave LGBTQ service members, the law has finally been repealed. HRC's nationwide strategy helped lead to the historic congressional votes that sent DADT to the dustbin of history. HRC's efforts included:

• "Voices of Honor" National Tour: 50 cites, in partnership with Servicemembers United (SU), culminating in DC with Veterans Lobby Day where hundreds of veterans lobbied Congress.
• 625,000 emails generated from constituents urging repeal.
• 50,000 pro-repeal handwritten cards & letters to Congress.
• 1,000 grassroots lobby visits in Congress and in-district.
• 20,000 veterans mobilized for public events and local media.

Standing Up Against Transgender Discrimination

HRC had a strong presence in the first-ever congressional hearing that focused exclusively on transgender Americans and workplace discrimination. Former HRC President Joe Solmonese and Business Council members Meghan Stabler and Diego Sanchez provided testimony. The hearing was an effort to educate federal lawmakers on transgender issues and lay the groundwork for congressional action to ban arbitrary discrimination.

Since 2009, HRC’s annual Corporate Equality Index has held employers accountable for how well they protect employees from discrimination based on gender identity or expression. In addition to publicly rating companies’ protection policies for transgender employees, HRC works to support employers striving to fully insure transgender employees. In an effort to specifically to address the gap between the current product offerings and accepted medical practice, in June 2011 HRC launched an “Insurance Equality Task Force,” which engages in direct advocacy with the insurance industry. 

HRC Indices

Corporate Equality Index

Since its inception, the Corporate Equality Index has helped lead a sea-change in workplaces across the country. When HRC first began the CEI in 2002, 89 companies voluntarily provided their employment policies for LGBTQ employees and they were rated on seven basic criteria. Just 13 companies received a score of 100 percent.

The 2015 CEI saw 366 businesses, spanning nearly every industry and major geographic area of the U.S., ranked as top scorers. Sixty-six percent of Fortune 500 companies included gender identity in their non-discrimination policies, compared to a staggering 3 percent in 2002, and sexual orientation was part of non-discrimination policies at 89 percent of Fortune 500 companies in 2015. In 2016 a record 407 businesses earned the CEI’s top score of 100 percent. Furthermore, 511, or 60 percent of CEI-rated businesses offer transgender-inclusive healthcare coverage, up from 0 in 2002 to 49 in the 2009 CEI to 278 in the 2013 CEI and 418 in 2015. Additionally, more than 330 major employers have adopted supportive inclusion guidelines for transgender workers who are transitioning.

A strong majority of businesses are ensuring that wherever they do business, here and abroad, LGBTQ people enjoy the same workplace protections. In addition, businesses are aligning their corporate values of LGBTQ inclusion with their supplier standards, funders and within the community at large.

Healthcare Equality Index

The Healthcare Equality Index was developed to meet an urgent need for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer Americans: the need for equitable, knowledgeable, sensitive and welcoming healthcare, free from discrimination.

The 2014 HEI found that 50 percent of LGB patients surveyed have experienced some type of discrimination in healthcare, while 70 percent of transgender or gender non-conforming patients surveyed have experienced discrimination in healthcare. However, significant changes were made from 2013 to 2014 – out of the 1,504 healthcare facilities evaluated, almost one third of them met all of the core criteria for LGBTQ patient-centered care. Of the more than 500 healthcare facilities that voluntarily completed the survey, more than 96 percent reported fully inclusive LGBTQ patient and employment non-discrimination and equal visitation policies.

The HRC Foundation utilizes the HEI to encourage healthcare providers to adopt best practices for LGBTQ employees, patients and their families, as well as provide trainings and best practices. By significantly increasing awareness of how hospitals and healthcare facilities are treating LGBTQ patients and employees across the country, LGBTQ people and their families are better equipped when it comes time to choosing a healthcare provider that is best suited for their needs.

Municipal Equality Index

The Municipal Equality Index examines the laws, policies, and services of municipalities and rates them on the basis of their inclusivity of LGBTQ people who live and work there.

As legal rights for LGBTQ people shift drastically when crossing state borders, the MEI provides a revealing snapshot of LGBTQ equality from municipalities of varying sizes from every state in the country. The 2014 MEI rated a total of 353 cities from every state in the nation, an increase of more than 60 cities that were rated in 2013. A total of 38 cities earned perfect 100-point scores, even with the more demanding criteria from one year ago that includes transgender-inclusive healthcare coverage. The average city score was 59 points, and half of the cities researched scored over 61 points. Eleven percent scored 100 points; 25 percent scored over 80 points; 25 percent scored under 44 points; and just four percent scored fewer than 10 points.

Progress throughout 2014 was particularly noteworthy on transgender equality, and it is clear to see that cities across the nation are stepping up to ensure that all people are treated equally in all aspects of their lives.

State Equality Index

As marriage equality continues to make historic progress across the country, a stark reality has been brought to light: millions of LGBTQ Americans, including those who can legally marry, are left without reliable workplace protections. HRC’s inaugural State Equality Index is a comprehensive state-by-state report that provides a review of statewide laws and policies that affect LGBTQ people and their families. The SEI rates all 50 states plus Washington, D.C., in six areas and assigns the states to one of four distinct categories.

Formerly known as Equality from State from 2004-13, the 2014 SEI reveals that although same-sex marriage is legal in 37 states and Washington, D.C., more than 111 million people - 35 percent of Americans - live in marriage states that lack explicit, fully-inclusive statewide workplace protections for LGBTQ people. Additionally, more than 206 million people – 65 percent of Americans – live in states that have no explicit statewide workplace protections for LGBTQ people.

The SEI did point to a few signs of encouragement, particularly when it concerns LGBTQ youth, and health and safety. While 2014 was a year of rapid legal developments in marriage equality, HRC continues to work toward state and nationwide non-discrimination laws and policies for all LGBTQ people.

Protecting Our Families & Our Healthcare

Advocating for All Families

President Barack Obama signed a historic memorandum in 2010 that protects the visitation and healthcare decision-making rights of LGBTQ people. All hospitals that participate in Medicare or Medicaid must now respect the rights of all patients to designate visitors and must respect all patients' advance directives. HRC worked with White House and Department of Health and Human Services staff in support of the memorandum. In addition, the HRC Foundation worked for years to encourage hospitals and other healthcare providers to adopt pro-LGBTQ policies.

The All Children-All Families initiative seeks to enhance LGBTQ cultural competence among child welfare professionals and educate LGBT people about opportunities to become foster or adoptive parents to waiting children. As of January 2013, 67 agencies across the country are participating in ACAF, 30 of which have been designated as “Leaders in Supporting and Serving LGBT Families,” having met each of ACAF’s 10 benchmarks of LGBT competence.

Expanding Equality in the South

In the spring of 2014 HRC unveiled Project One America, a comprehensive campaign to dramatically expand LGBTQ equality in the South through permanent campaigns in Mississippi, Alabama and Arkansas. The first of its kind campaign exclusively works for LGBTQ equality in Mississippi, Alabama and Arkansas and focuses on making progress on three fronts – changing hearts and minds, advancing enduring legal protections and building more inclusive institutions for LGBTQ people from the church pew to the workplace. Since the implementation of Project One America, Alabama became the 37^th state, plus Washington, D.C., with marriage equality.

In the fall of 2014, HRC launched a new public education and engagement campaign in Mississippi called All God’s Children. With faith at the center of the effort, the campaign was built around four consecutive weeks of television ads and was amplified by robust direct mail, phone banking operations, telephone town halls, billboards, online advertising and door-to-door conversations. All God’s Children exclusively aimed to strengthen the foundation of public support for LGBTQ Mississippians, aid in the passage of pro-equality legislation and bolster efforts to win marriage equality for the state’s gay and lesbian couples.

Protecting Our Youth

Protecting students from bullying is among HRC's priorities. The HRC Foundation's Welcoming Schools program addresses family diversity, gender stereotyping, bullying and name calling in schools. It is a resource for elementary schools, educators and parents.

Over the past few years, HRC has stepped up its anti-bullying efforts. In 2010, the organization led the campaign to oust bigoted Arkansas school board member Clint McCance. In 2011, HRC launched its Call it Out campaign, which aims to "call out" homophobia and transphobia and to promote respect and civil discourse.

In 2012, HRC released a groundbreaking study of LGBTQ-identified young people. With more than 10,000 respondents ages 13-17, “Growing Up LGBT in America” is the largest known survey of LGBTQ teens and shows how critical the work of achieving equality is for future generations. It provides a stark picture of the difficulties they face. The report is the first in a series of efforts to analyze the landscape for LGBTQ youth. A follow-up publication, the National Coming Out Day report, explores the coming out experiences of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer youth—to whom they come out, in what settings, obstacles they experience, and the ways in which coming out may be related to their personal well–being, sense of safety, and their connections to family, school and community.

HRC held its fourth annual Time to THRIVE Conference in 2017, a national event that promotes safety, inclusion and well-being for LGBTQ youth. The conference brings together a broad audience of youth-serving professionals, including K-12 educators, mental health providers, pediatricians, religious leaders, recreational athletic coaches, and more, with the goal of creating a thriving LGBTQ youth population. In two years, the conference has included inspiring speakers such as Chelsea Clinton, Betty DeGeneres, Michael Sam, Jazz Jennings, Judy Shepard, and Ellen Page, who bravely announced for the first time her decision to live openly and authentically.

HIV Travel Ban Ends

The U.S. prohibition on HIV-positive people entering the country for travel or immigration purposes was finally reversed in 2009. HRC had been a lead organization lobbying on Capitol Hill for the statutory repeal and working to ensure that Department of Health and Human Services' regulations were changed. In July 2009, when the proposed regulation lifting the ban was open for public comment, more than 19,000 HRC members and supporters submitted statements in favor of ending the discriminatory policy.