Providence receives perfect score for LGBTQ policies for third time

PROVIDENCE AGAIN received a perfect score for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer equality in the fifth annual Municipal Equality Index from the Human Rights Campaign Foundation, which conducted the assessment in partnership with the Equality Federation Institute. / COURTESY HUMAN RIGHTS CAMPAIGN FOUNDATION
PROVIDENCE AGAIN received a perfect score for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer equality in the fifth annual Municipal Equality Index from the Human Rights Campaign Foundation, which conducted the assessment in partnership with the Equality Federation Institute. / COURTESY HUMAN RIGHTS CAMPAIGN FOUNDATION

PROVIDENCE – For the third year in a row, Providence received a perfect score for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer equality in the fifth annual Municipal Equality Index from the Human Rights Campaign Foundation, which conducted the assessment in partnership with the Equality Federation Institute.
The report, released Monday, assesses LGBTQ equality in 506 cities across the nation, including eight in Rhode Island.
Here is how the other cities scored:

  • Warwick, 70
  • Pawtucket, 65
  • East Providence, 60
  • Kingston (a village in South Kingstown), Narragansett and Newport, 48
  • Cranston, 36

The average score for cities in Rhode Island is 59 out of 100 points, which falls above the national average of 55, according to the report.

“Despite another year of legislative attacks on LGBTQ equality, we are not merely holding our ground; we also continue to make significant gains across the country,” Rebecca Isaacs, executive director of the Equality Federation Institute, said in a statement.

Since the index’s debut four years ago, the number of cities earning perfect scores has more than quintupled. In addition, the report said that cities that have been rated all five years of the MEI have improved their scores by about 20 points over that time.

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The MEI rated 506 cities: the 50 state capitals, the 200 largest cities in the United States, the five largest cities or municipalities in each state, the cities home to the state’s two largest public universities (including undergraduate and graduate enrollment), 75 cities and municipalities that have high proportions of same-sex couples, and 98 cities selected by members and supporters of HRC and Equality Federation state organizations.

Cities were rated on criteria including: non-discrimination laws; municipal employment policies, including transgender-inclusive insurance coverage and non-discrimination requirements for contractors; inclusiveness of city services; law enforcement, including hate crimes reporting; and municipal leadership on matters of equality.
The Human Rights Campaign is the educational arm of the nation’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender civil rights organization.

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