Montana Senator Christine Kaufmann, one of three LGBT members of the Montana legislature and cofounder of the Montana Human Rights Network (MHRN), and Jamee Greer, an organizer and lobbyist with MHRN will speak tonight on “The Next Twenty Years: Achieving Equality for All Alaskans” at a reception and community event at the Hangar in Juneau.

This event is part of Women’s Summit 2012 put on by the Alliance for Reproductive Justice and cosponsored by the Juneau Pro-Choice Coalition, Alaska Women’s Lobby, Alaska Women for Political Action, Business and Professional Women—North to the Future,  Alaskan AIDS Assistance Association, and YWCA Alaska. The Summit is going on all day on Thursday and Friday, March 15 and 16, at the Baranof Hotel in Juneau, with the theme “The Next 20 Years: Achieving Equality for All Alaskans.”

The Montana Human Rights Network (MHRN) is a grassroots, membership-based organization of over 1400 members headquarters in Helena, Montana’s capital.  MHRN has its roots in local groups which formed in the late 1980s to counter hate activity in their communities from white supremacist groups. Activists from these groups came together in June 1990 discuss effective strategies for statewide activity countering bigotry, and the Montana Human Rights Network was founded as a result. Over the years, as hate groups have appealed to the “hot-button” social issues of the mainstream, the MHRN has expanded its program to counter the efforts of the militias, freemen and other “patriots,” anti-Indian groups, anti-environmental activists, and the religious right in Montana.  Among MHRN’s programs is the Equality Project, which organizes to pass policies and legislation that fully inclusive of the LGBT community in Montana.  The Equality Project is seeking to pass a nondiscrimination ordinance in Helena.

According to a bio on Kaufmann’s website:

For 18 years Christine was director of the Montana Human Rights Network where she organized communities to speak out against bigotry and harassment, conducted research on right wing extremism, and advocated for public policy reform that respected human rights. She has written numerous articles on hate violence, right-wing extremist groups, and the mainstreaming of their ideas in Montana. Since 1985, she has worked as a director, community organizer, public speaker, lobbyist and project manager for various human rights, environmental, women’s, and gay and lesbian rights organizations.

Kaufmann has represented Helena in the Montana Senate since 2001.

• Date/time: Thursday, March 15. Reception at 6:30 PM, speakers at 7:00 PM.
• Location: Hangar on the Wharf, 2 Marine Way, Juneau, AK (see map)
• Cost of admission: Free.
• Further info: see the Alliance for Reproductive Justice website.

Photo credit: Montana State Senator Christine Kaufmann, 20 August 2009. Photo by National Economic and Social Rights Initiative (NESRI) via Flickr; used in accordance with Creative Commons license.