Equal Protections for All
Last updated on October 27, 2025
The ACLU of Arizona is collecting stories from LGBTQ Arizonans who have experienced discrimination. These stories will help educate Arizonans about discrimination against gay and transgender people.
We also want to hear from allies who believe in the values of hard work, freedom, and opportunity, and agree it’s time to end discrimination against LGBTQ people across the state. Whether you identify as LGBTQ or as an ally, your voice matters.
Have you been discriminated against at work for being LGBTQ? Have you ever been denied housing because of your sexual orientation or gender identity? Have you been refused service in a restaurant or other public business because of who you are? Stories of discrimination help us make clear that the lack of legal protections impacts LGBTQ people every day.
Rev. Javier Olivares
Read his story here.
Reverend Javier Olivares is with CrossRoads United Methodist Church in Phoenix, Arizona. Although then Gov. Brewer vetoed SB 1062, a controversial bill that would have allowed private individuals and businesses to use religion to discriminate, Rev. Olivares felt for the gay and Latino members of his congregation that would've felt doubly oppressed living in Arizona. A leader of the church, Rev. Olivares knows this is a new era and urges others to embrace these new times because according to him, God wants for all of us to be inclusive.
Reverend Javier Olivares is with CrossRoads United Methodist Church in Phoenix, Arizona. Although then Gov. Brewer vetoed SB 1062, a controversial bill that would have allowed private individuals and businesses to use religion to discriminate, Rev. Olivares felt for the gay and Latino members of his congregation that would've felt doubly oppressed living in Arizona. A leader of the church, Rev. Olivares knows this is a new era and urges others to embrace these new times because according to him, God wants for all of us to be inclusive.
Wendy Montgomery
Read her story here.
Wendy Montgomery aka “Mama Dragon” is a member of the Mormon Church. She lives in Chandler, Arizona and has a teenage son who is gay.
As a Mormon mother of a gay son, Montgomery says that her primary focus is keeping LGBTQ kids alive. She has dedicated her life to supporting these children and their moms in and out of the Mormon Church.
Wendy’s son is her driving motivation in her fight against the discriminatory practices towards the LGBTQ community. She believes that statewide nondiscrimination protections for all people is a “no-brainer” and does not understand why they have yet to be passed in Arizona.
Wendy Montgomery aka “Mama Dragon” is a member of the Mormon Church. She lives in Chandler, Arizona and has a teenage son who is gay.
As a Mormon mother of a gay son, Montgomery says that her primary focus is keeping LGBTQ kids alive. She has dedicated her life to supporting these children and their moms in and out of the Mormon Church.
Wendy’s son is her driving motivation in her fight against the discriminatory practices towards the LGBTQ community. She believes that statewide nondiscrimination protections for all people is a “no-brainer” and does not understand why they have yet to be passed in Arizona.
Angela LeFevre
Read her story here.
Angela LeFevre, a former Sedona city councilmember, has spent most of her life fighting against discrimination and prejudice.
LeFevre has always prided herself on judging people for who they are and not by what they look like, what religion they practice, or by their sexual orientation or gender identity. LeFevre understands what it is to be discriminated against. She remembers the negative comments she heard growing up when she walked to the synagogue on Saturdays.
LeFevre’s first chance to work for social justice was in politics as a member of the Labour Party in England, where she was born. When Angela moved to the United States as an adult, she was inspired by friends and co-workers to be an outspoken advocate for gay and transgender people.
One of her proudest moments was the passage of the Sedona Human Rights Ordinance, which ensures all people within the city, including gay and transgender people, are protected from discrimination in housing, employment, and commerce.
Angela LeFevre, a former Sedona city councilmember, has spent most of her life fighting against discrimination and prejudice.
LeFevre has always prided herself on judging people for who they are and not by what they look like, what religion they practice, or by their sexual orientation or gender identity. LeFevre understands what it is to be discriminated against. She remembers the negative comments she heard growing up when she walked to the synagogue on Saturdays.
LeFevre’s first chance to work for social justice was in politics as a member of the Labour Party in England, where she was born. When Angela moved to the United States as an adult, she was inspired by friends and co-workers to be an outspoken advocate for gay and transgender people.
One of her proudest moments was the passage of the Sedona Human Rights Ordinance, which ensures all people within the city, including gay and transgender people, are protected from discrimination in housing, employment, and commerce.
Rev. Aaron Strietzel
Read his story here.
Rev. Aaron Strietzel is the lead pastor at One Church, a non-denominational Christian church in Chandler. He and his wife, a naturopathic medical student, have two children.
A Colorado native, Rev. Strietzel grew up in an Evangelical church and attended private Christian schools during his youth. As he grew older, he developed new personal relationships and his views about sexual orientation and gender identity began to change. After hearing his gay and transgender friends’ stories and struggles, Rev. Strietzel began to question the ideas about gay and transgender people that had been engrained in him growing up.
Rev. Strietzel began to understand the rejection and exclusion that his LGBTQ friends and family felt from the Christian community. Their stories led him to understand that sexual orientation and gender identity are not a choice. These characteristics, he learned, cannot and do not need to be changed.
Rev. Strietzel has since dedicated his life to standing against discrimination and celebrating all people, regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity.
Rev. Aaron Strietzel is the lead pastor at One Church, a non-denominational Christian church in Chandler. He and his wife, a naturopathic medical student, have two children.
A Colorado native, Rev. Strietzel grew up in an Evangelical church and attended private Christian schools during his youth. As he grew older, he developed new personal relationships and his views about sexual orientation and gender identity began to change. After hearing his gay and transgender friends’ stories and struggles, Rev. Strietzel began to question the ideas about gay and transgender people that had been engrained in him growing up.
Rev. Strietzel began to understand the rejection and exclusion that his LGBTQ friends and family felt from the Christian community. Their stories led him to understand that sexual orientation and gender identity are not a choice. These characteristics, he learned, cannot and do not need to be changed.
Rev. Strietzel has since dedicated his life to standing against discrimination and celebrating all people, regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity.