LGBTQ+ Affinity Group
Jones Day established the LGBTQ+ Affinity Group to coordinate the Firm's support of numerous LGBTQ+ advocacy organizations as well as the many Firmwide and local initiatives initiated by Jones Day partners and associates around the globe.
Jones Day’s LGBTQ+ Affinity Group provides community and support to numerous LGBTQ+ advocacy organizations across the globe. In addition, members of the affinity group represent pro bono clients.
Journeys of Hope: Celebrating Pride with Lambda Legal
To celebrate Pride, Jones Day's LGBTQ+ Affinity Group hosted Lambda Legal CEO Kevin Jennings for a virtual presentation, "Journeys of Hope," where he shared stories of resilience and hope in the fight for LGBTQ+ freedom.
"Journeys of Hope" traced the decades-long legal fight for LGBTQ+ equality in the United States, from an era when sodomy laws criminalized same-sex relationships through pivotal victories: Lawrence v. Texas (2003), which struck down sodomy statutes; and Goodridge v. Department of Public Health, which made Massachusetts the first state to recognize same-sex marriage. Despite setbacks, perseverance culminated in Obergefell v. Hodges (2015), securing nationwide marriage equality; and Nabozny v. Podlesny, establishing that anti-gay school discrimination could violate equal protection guarantees.
As former Lambda Legal Executive Director Tom Stoddard (1986–1992) said, "… you have to believe there is a possibility of a real future, and then you have to work every day to try to achieve that future. It won't come about by hope alone, but it won't come about at all without hope."
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