AUSTIN, Texas — Texas is a hot bed for different opinions – and many of those can affect the way people live their lives.
Ricardo Martinez, CEO of Equality Texas, joined KVUE Daybreak to discuss how the organization helps Texans in the LGBTQ community, including the upcoming launch of a new fellowship.
Yvonne Nava: How do you think recent legislation in Texas will affect Pride in Austin this summer?
Ricardo Martinez: "That's a great question. I think, you know, generally, Pride celebrations remind us that despite the state of affairs, the attacks on our community, the overall political climate, that – sometimes, you know, community members may feel like our backs [are] up against the wall – we haven't lost that fight. Pride reminds us, both the festival and the march, that the visual representation, the thousands of people across Texas and here in Austin that are doing the work to ensure that the worst case scenario doesn't actually come to fruition."
Nava: As we get closer to the election, how is Equality Texas a resource for voters?
Martinez: "So, we have staff members all over Texas right now that are really hitting the community, meeting them where they are, registering people to vote, disseminating information about who from our representatives really has their back and ensuring that we can elect pro-equality candidates."
Nava: Do you have special events or anything in particular planned around the election, per se?
Martinez: "Not necessarily at the moment, right? I would urge folks to just tune in to our website at EqualityTexas.org. There is a resource that points folks to events, local events. All of those events, as we get closer to election, will be listed there. We do have community events that are happening. We'll have a booth at Pride where we will connect directly with folks, giving them an opportunity to have more information about events that are coming up as well."
Nava: Can you list off a couple of things that you all provide, [that] Equality Texas provides people that kind of seek out y'all's help?
Martinez: "So, we're the largest statewide organization that focuses on LGBTQ equality here in Texas. And what we do is educate, engage and mobilize folks around advocacy, right? So, we meet people where they are in terms of their advocacy journey.
"So, for many folks, advocacy seems like a lot, right? But we make it tangible. So, we have a program that is about to launch in September called the 'Equality Fellows' program. And it teaches folks leadership skills. It gives all of the skills, the education and the tangible skills, for folks to create change wherever they are. And folks from Austin can apply and take part of it, but also any Texan from across the state.
"For many of us, Pride remains this opportunity that, you know, a reminder that when people come together, we can do a lot. And I think it's an incredible time. And we look forward to seeing as many people as possible at our booth and marching with us on Saturday."
Nava: Speaking of the fellowship, it sounds very interesting. I know a lot of people at home are interested. How can you apply for that?
Martinez: "If you go to EqualityTexas.org, as soon as you navigate to our home page, you'll see something about it."
Nava: I know you've been the CEO there for Equality Texas for three years. What does it mean to you to be part of this organization?
Martinez: "It means everything. If anything, if I've learned anything about Texans in the three years that I've been here, is that when it gets tough, Texans get tougher. And that's why we are marching all across Texas, including this weekend in Austin, under the banner that, 'The only thing bigger in Texas is pride.'"
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