NC, Mississippi Laws Hurt LGBT Soldiers, Marines

AMERICAN VETERANS FOR EQUAL RIGHTS

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

April 8, 2016

RE: NC, Mississippi Laws Hurt LGBT Soldiers, Marines

Contact: AVER Public Affairs, Denny Meyer 718.849.5665 publicaffairs@aver.us

AVER President, Steve Loomis, LTC, USA, (Ret) 505.301.1737

US Marine Corps (USMC) Marines, 3rd Marine Regiment (MAR REGT), Marine Corps Base Hawaii (MCBH) Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii (HI), stand at attention during the 64th commemoration of the December 7, 1941, attack on Pearl Harbor, HI. The ceremony held annually to honor those who served during the Japanese surprise attack on Pearl Harbor. Date Shot: 7 Dec 2005. DoD photo by: JO2 RYAN C. MCGINLEY, USN.

US Marine Corps (USMC) Marines, 3rd Marine Regiment (MAR REGT), DoD photo by: JO2 RYAN C. MCGINLEY, USN.

Atlanta, GA (APR 8, 2016) – American Veterans for Equal Rights (AVER), the nation’s Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Veterans Service Organization, strongly condemns the discriminatory legislation passed by the North Carolina and Mississippi state legislatures which legalizes the denial of services to the many LGBT United States military personnel and veterans living in those states. Especially in North Carolina, home to the nation’s largest military base, Fort Bragg, and Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, these laws post a clear message to the honored LGBT Soldiers and Marines stationed in the state that “Your Kind Not Welcome.” The dedicated men and women who serve to defend our nation’s freedom deserve better than laws which undermine the very liberty they so faithfully protect. These laws hurt those who serve, hurt their families, and weaken communities. Such laws are unworthy of a free nation and a united people who value “liberty and justice for all.”