Basic Rights Education Fund

This #GivingTuesday we're celebrating some major victories this year. Our work is far from finished, and we will continue to work towards achieving not only legal equality, but also LIVED equality for all Oregonians.

Lived equality is about freedom.  Freedom to be who we are, to live free of discrimination, to take care of ourselves and our families. Lived equality is the opportunity to live fully, freely and safely.

Check out our videos for a moving update!

About us:

The mission of Basic Rights Education Fund (Basic Rights) is to ensure that all lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) Oregonians truly experience equality. We grew out of the community response to anti-gay ballot measures that plagued our state for more than twenty years. We take a movement-building approach focusing on three program areas including our work in: Racial Justice & Alliance Building, Transgender Justice and we also won the freedom to marry in 2014.

Our Racial Justice & Alliance Building program centers the leadership and experiences of LGBT people of color, while building a powerful movement within LGBT and communities of color in Oregon. We have provided our racial justice education series to more than 1,000 LGBT and allied activists to promote community action in campaigns led by people of color.

Our Transgender Justice program seeks to build a strong, vibrant movement for trans justice in Oregon. We led Oregon to become the first state to clarify that painfully common transgender-specific health insurance exclusions violate Oregon law, dramatically increasing access to trans-inclusive health care in our state and are working to educate providers and patients of the newly won trans-inclusive health care coverage through the Oregon Health Plan and other public insurance programs administered by the state.

We are working to ensure that all of our children are safe in school, free from bullying. We are beginning to lay the groundwork, building the coalition and engaging stakeholders in determining the best way to strengthen and improve enforcement of anti-bullying policies in schools across the state.

We are ensuring that all Oregonians are protected from discrimination and that no one is treated differently, just because of who they are or who they love.

Following our victories we have the momentum to build power, defend the progress we have made, and create new policies that promote fairness and equality.  If there were ever a time to give generously, that moment is now. With your help-and only with your help-we can achieve both legal and lived equality for ALL Oregonians!

Basic Rights Education Fund is a member of the Equality Federation.