About
Equality Arizona is a nonprofit organization that works to ensure that LGBTQ+ Arizonans are treated equally under the law, our full human and civil rights are upheld by every level of government, and we have the same rights and obligations as every other citizen of our state and nation.
Equality Arizona is a multi-entity organization made up of a 501(c)(3), the Equality Arizona Foundation; a 501(c)(4), Equality Arizona; and the Equality Arizona Political Action Committee. We operate under the collective name, Equality Arizona, as the advocacy and political representatives of LGBTQ+ Arizona.
Our Mission
We build the political power of LGBTQ+ Arizonans. Our mission is simple and focused. By building the political power of LGBTQ+ Arizonans we work for wide range of issues that reflect the values and needs of LGBTQ+ Arizonans.
Our Values
We value pluralism, liberty, diversity, and active civic engagement. Further, we understand these as core tenets of a free and fair society.
Core Beliefs about the Purpose of Government
We believe that our local, state, and federal governments have an obligation to recognize the full civil and human rights of all Arizonans and Americans, including LGBTQ+ people.
Leadership
Michael S.C. Soto
President | he/him
Michael S.C. Soto serves as the President of Equality Arizona, the state's oldest and leading statewide LGBTQ+ civil rights organization. Michael has decades of history with Equality Arizona in many roles, from intern and volunteer to the chief executive officer. Michael, once again, leads Equality Arizona so that this 30-year-old organization can provide a sustainable and inclusive political home for LGBTQ+ Arizonans and our allies.
Michael is a long-time leader in the LGBTQ+ movement in Arizona and the nation. He has focused his work in red and purple states where he has seen pluralism and liberty for all exist in real life – where neighbors don’t have to live like one another to value one another’s contributions to the community and treat one another with respect and dignity. Michael truly believes the old adage - all politics are local – and what adrienne maree brown teaches - that patterns arise in systems. With this in mind Michael believes to his core that the best solutions for our biggest challenges and problems facing humanity today are found first in local communities and can be scaled with the wisdom of people from every walk of life to meet any challenge.
He is a graduate of ASU with a Bachelor of Arts in Women and Gender Studies and a Master of Science in Justice Studies. Michael is currently a PhD student in Justice Studies at ASU, where his studies focus on pluralism as the antidote to political polarization and extremism. He believes to his core that justice is a lifelong process and hopes to make some meaningful contribution to creating a more just society during his lifetime.
History
From Founding to Today
Equality Arizona was founded at the height of the HIV/AIDS epidemic to fight for the rights of people living with AIDS and for the decriminalization of LGBTQ+ lives. Our founders were loving called the “Bill’s”, because all six of these men were named Bill. Our state and the LGBTQ+ Arizonans that came after the Bill’s all owe a debt of gratitude to these brave men who stood up as out gay men and openly advocated for legal protections for LGBTQ+ Arizonans, during a time when being out was not what it is today.
In the late 90’s and early 2000’s, we fought for the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" and the archaic laws that criminalized LGBTQ+ relationships, challenged laws that would have defined marriage as "one man and one woman", and campaigned to win marriage equality for the entire community.
Throughout the early 2000’s and 2010’s we worked for marriage equality in Arizona and federally, to secure adoption and foster care rights for LGBTQ+ families, and to win non-discrimination protections for LGBTQ+ Arizonans in employment, housing, and public accommodations, winning ordinances in city after city and beginning to lay the groundwork for statewide protections a coalition of other statewide LGBTQ+ organizations.
Most recently, in the late 2010’s and so far in the 2020’s we have continued to work with an incredible coalition of statewide LGBTQ+ organizations to win non-discrimination ordinances in 11 cities in Arizona, covering more than 50% of the population and introduced and had a first ever hearing in the legislature for a statewide non-discrimination bill. We co-founded a national coalition with One Community that works to support LGBTQ+ civil rights work in red states and in co-leading this coalition we played a crucial role supporting Arizona’s senior U.S. Senator, Kyrsten Sinema, in an effort that resulted in codifying the first federal LGBTQ+ civil rights law, the Respect for Marriage Act. Additionally, we have played a significant role in Arizona electoral politics, helping to galvanize voters of every party to vote for pro-equality and pro-pluralism candidates, resulting in more representative government for a diverse Arizona.