“While we are grateful for the meaningful updates to the Virginia Human Rights Act, the failure to include a sovereign immunity waiver is a punch in the gut to LGBTQ+ Virginians,” said Equality Virginia Executive Director Narissa Rahaman.
As leaders of state-based equality organizations from across the country, we stand together in solidarity with and support for the people of Kansas following the passage of SB 244, a dangerous and discriminatory law targeting the rights of transgender, nonbinary, intersex, and gender diverse Kansans. Our hearts are with you.
Dear Governor Spanberger, We are writing to express our strong support for HB 60, which prohibits discrimination based on PrEP use, blindness or partial blindness, mental or physical impairments, and domestic violence victim status in the issuance and pricing of life, accident, and sickness insurance. On behalf of Equality Federation and Equality Virginia, we urge you to sign HB 60, we believe that this legislation is a crucial step towards ensuring that all Virginians have access to the healthcare they need, regardless of their health status.
“We are pleased that the Virginia House of Delegates and Senate recognize the urgent need to restore funding to Virginia’s community-based organizations that provide Ryan White services to people living with HIV,” said Narissa Rahaman, Executive Director of Equality Virginia.
RICHMOND, VA — Today, Governor Abigail Spanberger signed House Bill 612 (Cohen), which advances a voter referendum to repeal the 2006 Marshall-Newman Amendment banning same-sex marriage and replace it with an affirmative right to marry for all Virginians. Narissa Rahaman, Executive Director of Equality Virginia, who attended the signing, released the following statement: “Twenty years after banning marriage equality, it’s time for our commonwealth to fully complete our evolution – and finish the job on protecting marriage equality for all…”
RICHMOND, VA — On February 2, over 60 LGTBQ+ Virginians and allies from across the Commonwealth gathered at the General Assembly Building in Richmond for Equality Virginia’s annual Lobby Day, urging lawmakers to support policies and a state budget that protects, affirms, and includes LGBTQ+ Virginians.
Originally published in the Richmond Times-Dispatch on February 18, 2026 Virginia’s HIV Safety Net is Fraying. Lawmakers Must Act. Karen Legato Executive Director, Health Brigade
This June will mark eight years since the U.S. Supreme Court declared marriage equality to be the law of the land, but Virginia still has a ban on same-sex marriage in its constitution.
In the landmark case Obergefell v. Hodges, the court found that the right to marry must be extended to couples of the same sex, and since then,
