Victory Fund, National LGBTQ Leaders, Host Forum on Equality, Supreme Court Cases

‘A Conversation on National LGBTQ Equality’ Will Benefit Montclair’s Peter Yacobellis

MONTCLAIR, NJ (May 11, 2020)—Peter Yacobellis, candidate for Councilor-at-Large in Montclair’s township council elections Tuesday, will be joining the LGBTQ Victory Fund and a panel of LGBTQ leaders Tuesday evening for an election night conversation on the state of LGBTQ equality in the United States, the importance of electing LGBTQ candidates to public office, and the two civil rights cases pertaining to LGBTQ workplace discrimination protections currently before the U.S. Supreme Court.

“A Conversation on National LGBTQ Equality, in Support of Peter Yacobellis, Montclair Council Candidate,” will feature Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney (D-NY); civil rights leader and author David Mixner; Joan Garry, Montclair resident and former president of GLAAD; and Teen Wolf and Queer as Folk actress Michelle Clunie. The event will be held on Zoom from 8-9:30 PM. Tickets can be purchased at https://secure.actblue.com/donate/equality2020. A Zoom log in will be sent to participants upon ticket purchase. Proceeds from the event will benefit Yacobellis’ campaign, Peter for Montclair. Complimentary tickets were made available to those who have been impacted by the COVID-19 crisis.

“I was called to public service originally by the fight for equality, and I cannot think of a better way to close my campaign than offering this forum on two decisions that will have tremendous impact on the lives of millions of LGBTQ Americans,” Yacobellis said. “I am incredibly honored to have the support of leaders of this caliber and am so grateful to them for hosting this important conversation on equality in America. I hope we will be joined by many others,” Yacobellis said.

The Supreme Court is expected to hand down rulings by June that will decide whether Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act—which bans employment discrimination based on race, religion, national origin or sex—also protects LGBTQ individuals from workplace discrimination based on their sexual orientation. One case involves two gay men who were fired from their jobs; the second case involves the firing of a transgendered woman. In both cases, the individuals were fired due to their sexual orientation, a fact that is not in dispute. Discrimination based on sexual orientation is currently legal in much of the United States where states have not enacted their own anti-discrimination laws.

Montclair’s May 12^th municipal elections are being conducted entirely by mail-in ballot due to the COVID-19 crisis. Ballots must be postmarked by May 12 to be counted. If elected, Peter Yacobellis will be the first LGBTQ candidate to be elected to Montclair’s Township Council.

For more information on Peter Yacobellis’ campaign, visit peterformontclair.com.

Contact the campaign at peter@peterformontclair.com