Dear friends,
2016 was filled with challenging and trying times for our community.
But no matter what, All Out members continue to show up and power wins for love and equality. Here are some recent, amazing wins we wanted to share with you – direct results of that steadfast support.
When
two teenage girls in Morocco were facing three years in prison over a kiss, All Out members jumped into action. In partnership with the Aswat Collectif and Akaliyat in Morocco, we launched a global petition that was
signed by more than 103,000 All Out members.And this morning, we received some fantastic news: both girls were just found innocent and the charges were dropped by the court!
This is an amazing victory, but our work is far from over. We’ll continue urging Moroccan authorities to free all prisoners convicted because of their sexual orientation and to abolish the country's anti-gay legislation.
Malaak was a refugee from Iraq, on the run for 10 years. Because of her gender identity, she was repeatedly threatened and attacked in my her own home, sometimes by her own relatives. She was even tortured by the Iraqi police.
Through a partnership with the International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP),
over 1,000 All Out members donated enough to help Malaak receive safe housing while awaiting relocation to France. Here’s what Malaak had to say:
"[I] was facing a lot of harassment. The landlord would sexually harass me in front of my roommate. [With All Out's assistance], I was able to go back to Hamra before I traveled… It made me feel secure… They provided great support to me and other LGBT people. I didn't have the honor of meeting [any All Out staff members,] but I really appreciated their support and IRAP's as well."
As we head into a year where the safety of many is unknown, All Out remains committed to continuing to work with groups like IRAP in 2017 to fight for the rights and safety of our most vulnerable refugees.
From the entire All Out team, thank you SO MUCH for your support. Without you, these kinds of victories just wouldn’t be possible. We can’t wait to see what challenges we can overcome together in the months ahead.
In solidarity,
Matt and the rest of the All Out team.
