More than 500 bills have been introduced in state legislatures aimed at stripping away the rights of LGBTQ+ people. In addition, more than 125 bills seek to prevent trans youth from being able to access age-appropriate, medically necessary and potentially life-saving health care.

To us, the LGBTQ+ community is more than “a community.” It’s our colleagues, family, friends and customers — all of the individual human beings that we care deeply about. And as a parent, I strongly believe that decisions about what is best for a child should be made by that child’s loved ones, not legislators.

In response to these escalating attacks, we’ve made a $15,000 donation to the National Center for Transgender Equality, a social justice organization devoted to ending discrimination and violence against transgender people through education and advocacy across the country.

We’ve also made a $15,000 donation to the LGBT Network, a local New York Metro non-profit that is a home and voice for the community, their families and their support systems. Since its founding in 1993, the LGBT Network has been pioneering advocacy and social change to promote safe spaces to live, learn, work, play and pray.

We feel it’s important for us all to speak up against inequality and stand together against what is not right. The more we talk about these issues, the better all of our futures will be.