Press release
from the Campaign for Southern Equality
This Saturday, Oct. 6, from 12:30 p.m. to 5 p.m., at Blue Ridge Pride, the Campaign for Southern Equality’s volunteer Legal Team will provide free assistance to LGBT individuals completing a Health Care Power of Attorney form.
Many LGBT people either do not have the financial resources to hire an attorney or do not know about the vital protections that the Health Care Power of Attorney form can provide. This document helps to ensure that an individual’s wishes regarding medical care and treatment are respected, an important concern for LGBT people. On Saturday, attendees at Blue Ridge Pride will be able to complete this important legal document under the guidance of CSE’s volunteer Legal Team, then have it notarized on-site. The session will take approximately 30 minutes from start to finish.
“Buncombe County has the highest concentration of same-sex couples in North Carolina and there is a large LGBT community all across Western North Carolina. We feel privileged to serve our community in this way. Last year nearly 65 individuals completed Health Care Power of Attorney forms at our booth during Blue Ridge Pride and I cannot stress how important it is for every LGBT individual to have this form to provide basic legal protections,” said Rev. Jasmine Beach-Ferrara, Executive Director of the Campaign for Southern Equality.
CSE’s Legal Team includes area attorneys, paralegals and notaries who volunteer their time to help protect the civil rights of the LGBT community. Saturday’s event at Blue Ridge Pride is part of CSE’s ongoing series of Community Law Workshops, which provide free legal education and services to the LGBT community.
CSE is proud to partner with the following organizations, who are sponsors of our 2012 Community Law Workshop Series: Equality NC, Center for Participatory Change, Western NC Citizens to End Institutional Bigotry, Pisgah Legal Services, Cogburn & Brazil, P.A., Walton Law Office, Aaron Walker of Dameron Burgin, P.A., National Center for Lesbian Rights, Southern Poverty Law Center, Lambda Legal, and the ACLU of North Carolina.
Based in the South, the Campaign for Southern Equality (CSE) is a national effort to assert the full humanity and equality of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people in American life and to increase public support for LGBT rights.
www.southernequality.org.
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