EQUALITY OHIO

Mission

Equality Ohio was founded in 2005 by a group of 65 dedicated LGBT activists and allies from all corners of Ohio after voters passed a constitutional amendment prohibiting same sex marriage and civil unions. Over a decade later, Equality Ohio’s work is broad and focuses on multiple aspects of LGBTQ equality in Ohio.

A primary issue of Equality Ohio’s is a lack of inclusion of LGBTQ people in the laws that make discrimination illegal in Ohio. Just four years after our founding we celebrated the Ohio House of Representatives passing what was then called the Equal Housing & Employment Act with 38 bipartisan co-sponsors. Unfortunately the bill died in the Senate.

In addition to working on nondiscrimination, Equality Ohio engaged in policy work to patch up a lack of inclusive laws. Equality Ohio worked with several cities (despite lawsuits) to establish domestic partnership registries––including two in public school systems. These registries allowed for local employers to have a way of officially determining who was eligible for company benefits. Once these registries were created, we supported revising tax structures which imposed additional burdens on same-sex couples.

Organization Information