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Sioux City valedictorian on gender equity - No Hate In Our States

5/31/2023

The Class of 2023 will not be bullied!

Sioux City Journal on Twitter

Patrick Baughman, valedictorian of Sioux City West High School’s class of 2023, ends his speech with a declaration for trans rights and against "banned books" during graduation. Click here to see his speech.

PACG Webmaster

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Iowa students suffer from 2023 legislative session - No Hate In Our States

5/31/2023

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Iowa schools may never recover from 2023 legislative session

From Bleeding Heartland

Two Republican trifectas, 50 years apart, reshaped Iowa's K-12 schools. But whereas the legislature and Governor Robert Ray put public education on a more equitable, better funded path during the early 1970s, this year's legislative session left public schools underfunded and unable to meet the needs of many marginalized students.

Governor Kim Reynolds capped a devastating year for Iowa's schools on May 26, when she signed seven education-related bills, including two that will impose many new restrictions while lowering standards for educators and curriculum.

...The governor claimed Iowa's new education landscape "puts parents in the driver's seat." But the majority of parents won't benefit from the new laws.

...More than 90 percent of Iowa students attend public schools. Even if all of their parents wanted to switch to a private school, there would not be enough openings—especially for students with disabilities or those who need individualized education plans. Dozens of Iowa counties don't contain a single private school, making education savings accounts useless for most residents, unless they want to select a 100 percent virtual option.

...In addition, many private schools have jacked up tuition since Reynolds signed the voucher bill. So private school will remain unattainable for many low-income families who may genuinely need state assistance. The majority of the education savings account money would need to be spent on tuition, leaving little left over for other qualifying expenses like textbooks or tutoring. (Families must foot the whole bill for transportation to and from school, which is not a qualifying expense.)

...Advocates for LGBTQ Iowans condemned the new laws in statements published in full below. One Iowa's executive director Courtney Reyes said of Senate File 496, "Like many other centerpieces of the Governor’s agenda, this legislation will harm an already vulnerable group of children and will benefit no one..."

Read the full article here.

PACG Webmaster

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QC Juneteenth Festival - Of Interest to Our Forum Members

5/31/2023

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QC Juneteenth Festival
Saturday, June 17th at 11:00 am to 6:00 pm

The Lincoln Center
318 East 7th ST
Davenport, IA (map)

Friends of MLK Center (FoMLK)

The Friends of MLK (FoMLK) organization is proud to host the Quad City Juneteenth Festival on Saturday, June 17, 2023 at the Lincoln Center - TMBC located at 318 E. 7th St., Davenport, IA. from 11 am – 6 pm.

This festival is complete with food and retail vendors; local and national history information; community and resource booths; and fun-filled games and live entertainment for the whole family, this is sure to be an event you will not want to miss. Now that Juneteenth is a federal holiday, we are looking to make this year’s event our largest ever.

We look forward to having you join us as a vendor, volunteer, sponsor or patron for this years festival as we acknowledge and celebrate the Black/African American culture and history. Read the history of Juneteenth and find more information about the 2023 Festival here.

PACG Webmaster

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Unity Pride Parade - Community Event

5/29/2023

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Unity Pride Parade
Saturday, June 17th at 2:30 pm

Vibrant Arena at The MARK
1201 River DR
Moline, IL 61265 (map)

This Pride Parade is sponsored by QC Pride and will begin at the Vibrant Arena in Moline. From there it will head east on River Drive, turning right (south) on 17th Street, turning right (west) on 5th Avenue, then turning right (north) on 12th Street. We encourage you to line the streets to enjoy the fun! Find more information here.

PACG will have a table at the Pride Party at Bass Street Landing following the parade. Read more about that here, including information about volunteering.

PACG Webmaster

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Pride Party at Bass Street Landing - PACG event

5/29/2023

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Pride Party at Bass Street Landing
Saturday, June 17th from 3:30 to 10:30 pm

Bass Street Landing
1601 River Dr #306
Moline, IL 61265 (map)

Gender Equity and Civil Rights Forums

Join The Project of the Quad Cities for their third annual Pride Party at Bass Street Landing on Saturday, June 17, 2023! This event is FREE to attend. To learn about the Pride Parade in Moline, click here.

PACG will be tabling at this event. Contact Gender Equity Forum facilitator Alta Price to volunteer.

PACG Webmaster

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Racial Equality rally Third Anniversary - A Message from the Board

5/29/2023

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Celebrate the 3rd Anniversary of our weekly Civil Rights rally
Saturday, June 24th at 12:00 Noon

Slumberland Corner
16th St. and John Deere RD
Moline, IL 61265 (map)

Civil Rights Forum

Ever since George Floyd was murdered in 2020, a dedicated group of people have been rallying at noon every Saturday in Moline to advocate for racial equality and justice in our country. Knowing that the nationwide rallies and press coverage would soon die down, PACG Board member, Caryn Unsicker, called her friend, Glenda Guster, (who is now the PACG President) to see if she would join in to ensure that public awareness of the issue survived. The first rally was on June 13, 2020, and Caryn and Glenda have rarely missed a Saturday in the past three years! They - and the others who join them - are greeted each week by many passersby honking and giving a thumbs up to indicate they are willing to keep the conversation about racial equality and justice going.

Please join us at noon on Saturday, June 24th to help commemorate the 3rd Anniversary of this Civil Rights rally. Bring a friend! We have extra signs. You can come for the entire half hour or only part of it, as your time allows. We hope to see you there.

Caryn Unsicker

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Montana's anti-drag law - No Hate In Our States

5/29/2023

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Montana Has Officially Passed an Anti-Drag Law. Here's What That Means

From Them

Montana Governor Greg Gianforte has signed the state’s anti-drag bill into law.

According to the Montana Free Press’s legislative tracker, Gianforte signed HB359 on Monday. A clerk at the Montana State Legislature confirmed to Them that Gianforte signed the bill into law.

An initial version of the bill explicitly banned minors from attending drag performances, but its language was eventually altered to be both broader and less clear. The bill that the governor signed Monday bans minors from attending “sexually oriented shows,” defining such a performance as one that is “intended to appeal to a prurient interest in sex” and features the “complete or partial” exposure of certain body parts, including genitalia, the pubic region, the butt, or a “female breast.”

Montana’s attacks on the art of drag coincide with a nationwide push looking to criminalize drag and those who perform it...

Read the entire article here.

Maggie Davis

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Pride Month Kick Off - starting Friday, June 2nd

5/23/2023

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QC Pride Fest - Pride Month Kick Off Update
Friday, June 2nd from 5:00 pm to midnight and
Saturday, June 3rd from noon to midnight

Schwiebert Riverfront Park
101 17th St
Rock Island, IL 61201 (map)Civil Rights and Gender Equity Forums

Quad Cities Pride Alliance, Elle on Main, Rock Island Parks and Recreation and other groups are sponsoring QC Pride Fest this year at Schwiebert Riverfront Park in Rock Island. Read more info here as it becomes available.

PACG is staffing a table on Saturday from noon until 8:00 pm. Volunteers are needed! Please contact Gender Equity Forum facilitator, Carolyn Martin, to volunteer.

We are also staffing a table on Saturday, June 17th at the QC Unity Pride Parade and need volunteers then as well. Look for a future post on volunteering for that one.

PACG Webmaster

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Pride in the QCA - No Hate in Our States

5/23/2023

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Pride in the QCA
June of 2023

Civil Rights and Gender Equity Forums

PACG is listed as one of the many cosponsors of Pride events in our area during the month of June. Many other groups are doing this excellent work as well. From a terrific article by The REAL Mainstream:

Groups leading Pride events are TPQC, QC Pride, Figge Art Museum, Clock Inc. and QCPA
The run of events involves these five main groups:

The Project of the Quad Cities: this nonprofit provides physical and mental health services to LGBTQ+. BIPOC and other marginalized populations in 20 counties in Iowa and Illinois. It's offering five events through the Quad Cities this Pride season, including its premier Pride event on June 17th, Pride at Bass Street Landing.

QC Pride: this nonprofit started the first QC Pride celebrations years ago and still coordinates the annual Pride Parade, also happening on June 17th. QC Pride also helps present a film series at the Figge Art Museum.

Figge Art Museum: in addition to hosting all kinds of multi-cultural arts and education events, the nonprofit Figge collaborates with Clock, Inc and has hosted Pride Month film showings for years.

Clock, Inc: this nonprofit provides counseling, support groups and social opportunities for LGBTQ+ youth throughout the Quad Cities area. Clock holds at least three Pride events this year, including Pride Paint Night on June 19th.

Quad Cities Pride Alliance: this rebranded version of the for-profit Quad Cities Pride Festivals that has coordinated the Quad Cities Pride Festival on June 2 and 3rd since 2018. The group says it has applied to become a nonprofit and expects to receive confirmation any day on its new charity status. QCPA also plans to hold more events throughout the year from here on.

Also helping to coordinate the events are the following nonprofit organizations: Quad Citians Affirming Diversity (QCAD), One Human Family QCA, Progressive Action for the Common Good (PACG), MCC of the Quad Cities, Quad Cities Pride in Memory, and Free Mom Hugs-Quad Cities.

PACG Webmaster

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Understanding book bans - No Hate In Our States

5/23/2023

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Objection to sexual, LGBTQ content propels spike in book challenges

An analysis of book challenges from across the nation shows the majority were filed by just 11 people

(image: Chantal Jahchan for The Washington Post; Getty Images)

The Washington Post has researched the incidents of banned books throughout the country and written an incredible article that is factual but alarming. Read part of it below and click the link for the entire article.

Books about LGBTQ people are fast becoming the main target of a historic wave of school book challenges — and a large percentage of the complaints come from a minuscule number of hyperactive adults, a first-of-its-kind Washington Post analysis found.

A stated wish to shield children from sexual content is the main factor animating attempts to remove LGBTQ books, The Post found. The second-most common reason cited for pulling LGBTQ texts was an explicit desire to prevent children from reading about lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, nonbinary and queer lives...

...The Post analyzed the complaints to determine who was challenging the books, what kinds of books drew objections and why. Nearly half of filings — 43 percent — targeted titles with LGBTQ characters or themes, while 36 percent targeted titles featuring characters of color or dealing with issues of race and racism. The top reason people challenged books was “sexual” content; 61 percent of challenges referenced this concern...

...A small number of people were responsible for most of the book challenges, The Post found. Individuals who filed 10 or more complaints were responsible for two-thirds of all challenges. In some cases, these serial filers relied on a network of volunteers gathered together under the aegis of conservative parents’ groups such as Moms for Liberty.

Read the article here or listen at the provided link.

PACG Webmaster

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<<Previous

The Class of 2023 will not be bullied!

Iowa schools may never recover from 2023 legislative session

QC Juneteenth FestivalSaturday, June 17th at 11:00 am to 6:00 pm

Unity Pride Parade Saturday, June 17th at 2:30 pm

Pride Party at Bass Street LandingSaturday, June 17th from 3:30 to 10:30 pm

Celebrate the 3rd Anniversary of our weekly Civil Rights rallySaturday, June 24th at 12:00 Noon

Montana Has Officially Passed an Anti-Drag Law. Here's What That Means

QC Pride Fest - Pride Month Kick Off UpdateFriday, June 2nd from 5:00 pm to midnight andSaturday, June 3rd from noon to midnight

Pride in the QCAJune of 2023

Objection to sexual, LGBTQ content propels spike in book challenges

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Categories

QC Juneteenth Festival
Saturday, June 17th at 11:00 am to 6:00 pm

Unity Pride Parade
Saturday, June 17th at 2:30 pm

Pride Party at Bass Street Landing
Saturday, June 17th from 3:30 to 10:30 pm

Celebrate the 3rd Anniversary of our weekly Civil Rights rally
Saturday, June 24th at 12:00 Noon

QC Pride Fest - Pride Month Kick Off Update
Friday, June 2nd from 5:00 pm to midnight and
Saturday, June 3rd from noon to midnight

Pride in the QCA
June of 2023