It’s a Noun! It’s a Verb! It’s … GLAD Answers!

Post by Laura Kiritsy

Earlier this month we unveiled GLAD Answers, a reboot of our Legal Info Line, the information and referral service GLAD has run since the organization was founded. After 35 years, it was time to freshen things up a bit. Given that these days many people contact us by email and live chat, the idea of an “Info Line,” which conjures up a telephone in the minds of most, seemed a bit outdated. The name GLAD Answers better encapsulates what this service does: no matter how you get in touch with us, if you’ve got questions we’ve got answers.

Personally, I love the clever construction of GLAD Answers. As Carisa Cunningham, our director of public affairs and education is fond of saying, “It’s a noun! It’s a verb!”

Along with the snappy new name and this awesome new logo, 

we’ve added some other new features that will enable us to help more people throughout New England who have questions or concerns about their legal rights as LGBT people :

·         A dedicated URL, www.GLADAnswers.org

·         An enhanced live chat function

·         A new, direct email address: GLADAnswers@glad.org

·         Use of an interpretation service for non-English speakers

Know Your Rights: Protections Against Employment Discrimination

One of the great things about living in New England is that all six states offer anti-discrimination protections for LGBT employees and workers who are living with HIV.  Most workers are “employees at will” and can be fired or discriminated against by their employer for any reason or no reason at all.  However, states have identified “protected characteristics” and made it illegal to fire or discriminate against an employee just because they possess, or are perceived to possess, one or more of those characteristics.  For lesbian, gay or bisexual (LGB) workers, the protected characteristic is “sexual orientation,” for workers living with HIV, “disability,” and for transgender workers, “gender identity.”