Human Rights Campaign

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Human Rights Campaign
HumanRightsCampaign.png
Basic facts
Location:Washington, D.C.
Type:501(c)(4)
Top official:Chad Griffin
Founder(s):Steve Endean
Year founded:1980
Website:Official website


The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) is a 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization that aims to affect policies concerning lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) Americans through advocacy and lobbying.[1] The group's 501(c)(3) educational counterpart is the Human Rights Campaign Foundation. The group is also affiliated with the HRC Federal PAC.[2]

The Center for Responsive Politics has described HRC as liberal.[3]

Mission

As of July 2017, the website for The Human Rights Campaign listed the following mission statement:[4]

“

The Human Rights Campaign and the Human Rights Campaign Foundation together serve as America's largest civil rights organization working to achieve LGBTQ equality. By inspiring and engaging individuals and communities, HRC strives to end discrimination against LGBTQ people and realize a world that achieves fundamental fairness and equality for all.

The Human Rights Campaign envisions a world where lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer people are ensured equality and embraced as full members of society at home, at work and in every community.[5]

”

Background

Steve Endean founded the Human Rights Campaign Fund in 1980 as "one of the first gay and lesbian political action committees in the United States," according to the organization's website.[1] The original intent of the organization was to provide funding to legislators who enacted and supported gay civil rights legislation. The fund gained popularity, rising to the 17th largest independent PAC in the United States in 1982.[1] In 1995, the group dropped "fund" from its name and extended its work beyond political lobbying, creating the Human Rights Campaign Foundation. Additionally, the group expanded its research, communications, marketing, and public relations efforts.[1] HRC opened its headquarters in Washington, D.C. in 2003.[6]

Related groups

Human Rights Campaign can refer to one of a number of organizations with separate missions and activities. All of the HRC organizations focus on issues and policies related to LGBTQ individuals, but the separate organizations vary by the degree to which they can and do participate in politics.

Human Rights Campaign related groups
Human Rights Campaign Foundation Human Rights Campaign HRC Federal PAC
501(c)(3) 501(c)(4) PAC
HRC Foundation cannot engage in activities that are part of the electoral process. The organization may educate voters on issues but must avoid political activities that favor or oppose a candidate or have the effect of favoring or opposing a candidate. The organization focuses on educating the public about policies and perspectives it sees as discriminatory towards LGBTQ people. HRC can legally participate in political activity in support of or opposition to candidates for office. These political activities cannot be the organization's primary activities and cannot be direct donations to a candidate for office or a candidate's committee. HRC endorses candidates for office and runs advocacy campaigns supporting and opposing candidates based on their stances on policies concerning LGBTQ people. HRC Federal PAC is a federal political action committee. The PAC can spend money in electoral politics by donating to parties or candidates they support, subject to contribution limits defined by state and federal election agencies.

Work

Advocacy

According to HRC's tax filings, the organization "advocates for policies, regulatory changes and legislation that guarantees the legal equality of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) people."[7] HRC focuses on several different topics relevant to the LGBT community, including the following:[8]

  • Allies
  • Campus and young adult
  • Children and youth
  • Coming out
  • Federal advocacy
  • Hate crimes
  • Health and aging
  • HIV and AIDS
  • International
  • Marriage
  • Parenting
  • Religion and faith
  • State and local advocacy
  • Transgender
  • Workplace

Member services

As of 2015, the HRC had approximately 1.5 million members. The organization informs its membership about legislative issues and current events via action centers and social media.[7]

Congressional scorecard

The HRC publishes an annual congressional scorecard. The scorecard indicates each congressional member's support or opposition to a variety of issues that the HRC has identified as being important for the LGBTQ community.[9] Scorecards for the 108th through 114th congress can be found here.

Education

The HRC works to educate the public and the LGBTQ community about LGBTQ and public policy issues through various media outlets.[7]

Lobbying

According to the Center for Responsive Politics, HRC's lobbying efforts focus on the following issues: civil rights and civil liberties, education, family, abortion and adoption, foreign relations, health issues, housing, immigration, law enforcement and crime, taxes, and defense.[10]

Below are the federal lobbying expenditures made by HRC from 2010-2016.[11]

Lobbying expenditures for HRC, 2010-2016
Fiscal Year Amount Spent
2016 $890,000
2015 $1,180,000
2014 $1,200,000
2013 $1,610,000
2012 $1,370,000
2011 $1,560,000
2010 $1,980,000

Political activity

2018 elections

In July 2017, the Human Rights Campaign announced that it intended to bring on 20 additional staffers in preparation for 2018 elections in Ohio, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, Arizona, and Nevada. The $24 million effort was called HRC Rising. According to Politico, the organization planned to deploy what it called an "Equality Voter Model," which was developed to target LGBTQ voters and those who oppose candidates who do not align with HRC's policy positions. HRC President Chad Griffin stated, "It’s not enough to resist the hateful policies and attacks coming from the Trump-Pence regime — we’ve got to accelerate the pace of progress toward full equality and secure protections for LGBTQ people in states and communities across the country."[12]

2016 elections

Candidate contributions

During the 2016 election cycle, HRC contributed $502,526 to Democrats running for federal office and $23,025 to Republicans.[13]

Endorsed candidates

President

The Human Rights Campaign endorsed Hillary Clinton for the Democratic primary in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.[14]

U.S. Senate

The HRC endorsed the following U.S. Senate candidates during the 2016 election cycle.[15]

U.S. House

The HRC endorsed the following U.S. House candidates during the 2016 election cycle.[15]

2014 elections

Candidate contributions

In 2014, the organization gave $77,050 to Democratic candidates and $1,107 to Republican candidates, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.[3]

2012 elections

Candidate contributions

During the 2012 election cycle, HRC contributed $775,540 to Democrats running for federal office and $30,500 to Republicans, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.[16]

Leadership

The leadership at HRC consists of several boards, advisory councils, and committees. Among these are the board of directors, foundation board, board of governors, All Children-All Families national advisory council, business council, and the diversity and inclusion council. As of May 2017, the president of HRC was Chad Griffin.

Listed below is the board of directors as of May 2017.[17]

  • Ian Barrett (Austin, TX)
  • Bruce Bastian (Orem, UT)
  • Vanessa Benavides (Oakland, CA)
  • Scott Bishop (Charlotte, NC)
  • Chris Boone (Los Angeles, CA)
  • Paul Boskind (San Antonio, TX)
  • Todd Canon (Austin, TX)
  • Chris Carolan (Brooklyn, NY)
  • Tim Downing (Beachwood, OH)
  • Patty Ellis (Newton, PA)
  • Christopher Flynn (Boston, MA)
  • Chad Griffin (Washington, D.C.)
  • Suzanne Hamilton (Cleveland, OH)
  • James Harrison (Dallas, TX)
  • Tom Knabel (Minneapolis, MN)
  • Chris Labonte (Philadelphia, PA)
  • Ryan Levy (Houston, TX)
  • Justin Mikita (Los Angeles, CA)
  • DyShaun Muhammad (Minneapolis, MN)
  • Robert Newhart (Chicago, IL)
  • Bryan Parsons (San Francisco, CA)
  • Lester Perryman (New Orleans, LA)
  • Cheryl Rose (Columbus, OH)
  • Linda Scaparotti (San Francisco, CA)
  • Patrick Scarborough (Birmingham, AL)
  • Ames Simmons (Raleigh, NC)
  • Steve Sorenson (Newport Beach, CA)
  • Michael Smithson (Columbus, OH)
  • Meghan Stabler (Austin, TX)
  • Ben Waldman (Seattle, WA)
  • Tina White (Asheville, NC)

Finances

Sponsors of HRC include the following corporations:[18] American Airlines, Apple Inc., Coca-Cola Company, Microsoft, Nationwide Insurance, Target, Bank of America, Citi Bank, Lexus, Google, Hyatt, Nike, Tylenol, BP, Dell, Hershey's, IBM, Macy's Inc., Metlife, Shell and Starbucks.[1]

Listed below is the annual revenue and expenses of HRC for the fiscal years 2012-2015.

Annual revenue and expenses for Human Rights Campaign, 2011-2015
Tax Year Total Revenue Total Expenses
2015[7] $36,406,084 $37,334,012
2014[19] $37,406,706 $38,284,253
2013[20] $38,538,422 $35,393,692
2012[20] $36,537,048 $37,402,984

Tax status

The Human Rights Campaign is a 501(c)(4) tax-exempt nonprofit organization. Its 501(c) status refers to a section of the U.S. federal income tax code concerning social welfare organizations.[21] Organizations that have been granted 501(c)(4) status by the Internal Revenue Service are exempt from federal income tax.[22] Section 501(c) of the U.S. tax code has 29 sections listing specific conditions particular organizations must meet in order to be considered tax-exempt under the section. Unlike 501(c)(3) organizations, however, donations to 501(c)(4) organizations are not tax-deductible for the individual or corporation making the contribution. 501(c)(4) organizations may engage in political lobbying and political campaign activities. This includes donations to political committees that support or oppose ballot measures, bond issues, recalls, or referenda.

See also: 501(c)(4) organizations on Ballotpedia

Noteworthy events

Obergefell v. Hodges

In Obergefell v. Hodges (2015), the United States Supreme Court ruled that same-sex marriage is protected under the 14th Amendment and Due Process Clause. The case involved plaintiff Jim Obergefell, an HRC member.[23] In a 5-4 ruling, the court decided that same-sex marriage bans are unconstitutional, and same-sex marriages performed out-of-state must be recognized in other states.[24] On March 6, 2015, HRC submitted a document entitled "The People's Brief" to the Supreme Court, calling for nationwide marriage equality.[25] According to the HRC website, this document had more signatories than any other amicus brief submitted to the Supreme Court, with 207,551 signatures.[25] HRC's national effort for marriage equality began at the state level. These campaigns originated in 2006 when Massachusetts was the only state to recognize same-sex marriage. HRC specifically worked to support marriage equality in New Hampshire, Iowa, the District of Columbia, New York, Maine, Maryland, Washington, Rhode Island, Delaware, Minnesota, New Jersey, Illinois, and Hawaii through investments and field campaigns.[23]

Employment Non-Discrimination Act, 2013

HRC also supported the passage of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act of 2013. This legislation prohibits employers "from engaging in employment discrimination on the basis of an individual's actual or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity."[26] HRC invested $2 million in a 12-week campaign in support of the bill.[23]

"Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy repeal

The repeal of the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy took place in December of 2010. HRC lobbied for the repeal of this policy by mobilizing 20,000 veterans, advertising in national and local publications, sending over 625,000 emails to members of Congress, sending 19 million emails to members of HRC, and conducting over 1,000 campaigns in the District of Columbia.[27] This policy, enacted in 1993, said that military applicants "should not be asked about their sexual orientation."[28] The reversal allowed LGBT individuals in the armed forces to openly declare their sexual identities.

Recent news

The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Human Rights Campaign. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.

Human Rights Campaign - Google News

See also

External links

Footnotes

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Human Rights Campaign, "Our History," accessed July 2, 2015
  2. ↑ Human Rights Campaign, "Federal PAC," accessed May 5, 2017
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Open Secrets, "Human Rights Campaign," accessed July 6, 2015
  4. ↑ Human Rights Campaign, "Mission Statement," accessed July 11, 2017
  5. ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
  6. ↑ Human Rights Campaign, "Our Building," accessed July 2, 2015
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 Guidestar, "Human Rights Campaign IRS Form 990 (2015)," accessed May 5, 2017
  8. ↑ Human Rights Campaign, "Topics," accessed July 1, 2015
  9. ↑ Human Rights Campaign, "Congressional Scorecard," accessed May 5, 2017
  10. ↑ Open Secrets, "Human Rights Campaign Issues," accessed May 5, 2015
  11. ↑ Open Secrets, "Annual Lobbying by Human Rights Campaign," accessed May 5, 2017
  12. ↑ Politico, "Human Rights Campaign launches $26 million 2018 effort," July 11, 2017
  13. ↑ Open Secrets, "Human Rights Campaign Recipients, 2016," accessed May 5, 2017
  14. ↑ The Huffington Post, "Hillary Clinton Scores Endorsement From Biggest LGBT Rights Group," January 19, 2016
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 Human Rights Campaign, "Human Rights Campaign Announces First Round of House and Senate Endorsements," accessed May 5, 2017
  16. ↑ Open Secrets, "Human Rights Campaign Recipients, 2012," accessed May 5, 2017
  17. ↑ Human Rights Campaign, "Boards," accessed May 5, 2017
  18. ↑ Human Rights Campaign, "Corporate Partners," accessed July 2, 2015
  19. ↑ Guidestar, "Human Rights Campaign IRS Form 990 (2014)," accessed May 5, 2017
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 Guidestar, "Human Rights Campaign IRS Form 990 (2013)," accessed May 5, 2017
  21. ↑ Internal Revenue Service, "Social Welfare Organizations," accessed January 14, 2014
  22. ↑ Internal Revenue Service, "IRC 501(c)(4) Organizations," accessed July 10, 2014
  23. ↑ 23.0 23.1 23.2 Human Rights Campaign, "Our Victories," accessed July 8, 2015
  24. ↑ SupremeCourt.gov, "Obergefell v. Hodges No. 14-556," accessed July 8, 2015
  25. ↑ 25.0 25.1 The People's Brief, accessed July 9, 2015
  26. ↑ Congress.gov, "S.815 - Employment Non-Discrimination Act of 2013", accessed July 9, 2015
  27. ↑ Human Rights Campaign, "Repealing 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell,'" accessed July 9, 2015
  28. ↑ The Washington Post, "A history of 'don't ask, don't tell'", accessed July 9, 2015
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