LGBTQ+ Rights

LGBT Rights

The ACLU of Florida works to create a Florida free of discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. This means a Florida where LGBTQ+ people can live openly, where our identities, relationships and families are respected, and where there is fair treatment on the job, in schools, housing, public places, health care, and government programs.

Since taking its first LGBT rights case in 1936, the ACLU has been involved in many high-profile legal challenges to discriminatory laws and policies that impact the LGBTQ+ community. The ACLU of Florida recently enjoyed a major victory for LGBT rights by challenging and succeeding in overturning the state’s discriminatory law banning gay men and lesbians from adopting.

The ACLU’s LGBTQ+ rights strategy is based on the belief that fighting for the society we want means not just persuading judges and government officials, but ultimately making society safer for and more inclusive of LGBTQ+ people. To end discrimination, the ACLU seeks both to change the law and to convince Americans that sexual orientation and gender identity discrimination is wrong.

The Latest

News & Commentary
Placeholder image

What the Marriage Equality Backlash Taught Me About the Fight for Trans Rights

Anti-trans laws aren’t just about bathrooms or sports, they’re about systematically pushing trans individuals out of public life.
News & Commentary
Bacardi Jackson Headshot

Bacardi Jackson: "We are seeing a concerted effort to erase the history of certain people"

Bacardi Jackson is an attorney and executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida. She's a powerful voice in the fight against book censorship in Florida and in defense of democracy.
News & Commentary
Placeholder image

The Supreme Court Cases to Watch

This term, the court will issue decisions impacting immigration, free speech, religious liberty, LGBTQ rights and voting rights.
News & Commentary
Placeholder image

‘Devastated’ and ‘Hopeless.’ Researchers Speak Out on Funding Cuts

The National Institute of Health (NIH) abruptly cancelled millions of dollars in grants for research that it claims are related to “gender identity” or “diversity, equity and inclusion.” The ACLU sued.