Welcome Thanks for visiting. We hope to inspire you regarding your rights as a human being, gay and straight, so that you may help ensure your family, friends, neighbors and fellow human beings enjoy the fullest opportunity to live in freedom on planet Earth. It is important to know that homosexual people originate in all cultures around the globe and exist in all eras throughout history. Homosexuality exists across the insect and animal kingdoms, including human beings, as an intrinsic part of Nature and the natural world. This knowledge and understanding is as important as knowing the world is round rather than flat, the Earth goes around the Sun rather than remaining stationary, our solar system spins inside a galaxy with countless other solar systems, and our galaxy is just one of billions of galaxies in the universe. These are all fundamental elements of the natural world no matter how much people wish it otherwise or cling to books written by ignorant ancestors thousands of years ago. Humanity literally fought to keep the world flat despite reality, mass-murdered human beings because a book written by ignorant dead bigots told them (still do in some parts of the world), and even waged wars to keep people in slavery (still do in some parts of the world) despite all human beings sharing the same heart, imagination, and dreams. Religion based on ancient people's writings has been a driving force behind atrocities and oppression, and also a force for liberty and justice because when all is said and done such religious endeavors are only as good or evil as the people pursuing them. Some say their deity is no more than what is found in the writings of ancient people. Others say their god is greater than any book written long ago could ever capture or contain. Every thinking adult knows that ancient writings can be used to justify any and all actions. There are even passages in three major religions that the gay community could use to justify wiping out all life in regions that violate the human rights of gay human beings, but the gay community has shown great restraint in not resorting to such measures. The writings of long-since-dead people are an unacceptable excuse for the continued violation of human rights. Discrimination, exclusion, and prejudice in the past never justify human rights violations now or in the future. Just what are Civil & Human Rights? Civil rights are rights belonging to a person by virtue of his or her status as a citizen or as a member of civil society. These include the equal treatment of all people with respect to the enjoyment of life, liberty and property and to the protection of law. Civil rights are a branch of Human Rights, which are universal, indivisible, inalienable rights guaranteed to every human being. Human rights are the greatest achievement of our species. They define the very fabric of civil society. Human rights are the birthright of every individual and last a lifetime. They exist to protect the similarities and differences of each unique human being. They provide the ultimate safeguard against one group of people (a majority) denying other people (a minority) their basic freedoms and equality. Every democracy and all other governments are sworn to uphold human rights which are proclaimed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the definitive worldwide standard of law and justice. All leaders and countries are obligated to fulfill human rights to maintain peaceful coexistence and to avert civil unrest - war, bloodshed, retaliation, economic instability, erosion of public trust, and general discord - in response to human rights violations. Human rights supersede any governmental constitution, law or decree. The safety and security of future generations rests upon each nation's ability to protect human rights, to respect human differences as well as similarities, and to ensure equality before the law. Governments that violate human rights will ultimately be replaced with ones that uphold the human rights of all people. LEFT: Signs of humanity. The lights of civilization glow across planet Earth, illuminating the world we all share. Get Involved Get active, join groups, participate in events! You can enrich your life and the lives of so many people by helping out organizations. Volunteer your time, energy, and enthusiasm. It is a great investment of yourself. CLICK HERE for the list of Gay Civil Rights Organizations Note from the Librarian: Appreciate the extraordinary achievement of community members and allies. Do not pass up the opportunity to get involved. Your quality of life is directly impacted by your willingness to actively participate. How To Improve The World Channel your outrage and energy into progress. You can do a lot to advance progress towards human rights recognition. Teach: Educate your friends and neighbors about human rights. Do not assume they know what human rights are or that human rights apply to everyone. Inform: Inform people about what groups exist. Individuals can benefit physically and emotionally by simply becoming aware of what resources are available to them. Routinely get the word out about civil rights groups, faith advocacy groups, education groups, and other organizations working towards fulfilling human rights. Persist: Visit politicians at the office and away to continually remind them that ongoing human rights violations are never forgotten until they are ended against family members and human rights are protected. There is no excuse for any politicians to perpetuate human rights violations so constantly remind them. Vote: Get the people around you registered to vote early. Do it now while you are thinking about it, and then regularly encourage those people to participate in every opportunity to cast their vote in an educated manner. Ask political groups where they stand on human rights issues. Relatively few people remain involved in democratic elections, so those who do make the effort to vote have a significant impact. By casting your vote, you can honor those human beings trapped in countries without fair and free elections. Communicate: Keep everyone talking and discussing human rights, equality and dignity. Provoke everyone around you into thinking about their own humanity and the common humanity of all people. Silence equals death, to quote the famous activists of our time. Keep the lines of communication open and active. Inspire: In a world that often tears people down, find ways to instill confidence and understanding. Inspire those around you to new heights of awareness and appreciation. Appeal to the honor, respectfulness and nobility of human beings. Such timeless qualities are never found through hate, discrimination, or human rights violations. Participate: Take advantage of opportunities to get involved. Whether you write to a newspaper, lend your support to a rally, join a group, or meet face-to-face with your elected officials, engage yourself in your community and in the world every chance you get. You are living proof that human beings can uphold human rights.

The Gay Civil Rights site is part of the Gay Library. Having served the world for twenty years, the Gay Library provides a workhorse of easy-to-use resources and information to encourage, empower and educate gay and gay-friendly individuals in 196 countries and territories. Visit the Gay Library family of sites:  Gay Library ||  Gay Film Festivals ||  Gay Community Centers ||  Gay Civil Rights ||  Gay Rights Organization ||  Gay Rights Human Rights Report ||  Gay Straight Alliance ||  Gay Destination ||  Gay Spouse ||  Gay Memorial ||  Gay Office