TAB L E OF
CONTENTS 02
Digital Power & Impact
04
Community Power & Impact
04
Deep Canvasing
06
Volunteering
08
Political Power & Impact
12
Donor Power
14
Your Call to Action
In the first eight months of this year, 15,000 people stood up for LGBTQ+ rights in Missouri. They used their voices to speak truth to lawmakers in Jefferson City, submitted written testimony opposing anti-LGBTQ+ bills, volunteered their time at local Pride events so we could be present, knocked doors with us to talk with their neighbors about trans rights, and invested their dollars to support this transformative work. While the threats to our democracy grow and the number of bills filed attacking LGBTQ+ Missourians increases each year, there’s a simple truth that is so clear to us now more than ever:
We are winning. And it’s
because of you. PAGE 1
Digital Power & Impact Digital advocacy is a key component to how people use their power. Within PROMO’s community alone, 33% of all people who took action with us so far in 2025 did so digitally. The tools
we’ve implemented make it easier for advocates like you to plug in and choose the engagement level that makes sense for them. Because of our intentional investment into digital
organizing alongside the hire of our organization’s first Digital Equality Organizer, we welcomed 1,500 new members who took action with PROMO for the first time.
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A SON AND HIS MOTHER I went to a house that was answered by someone familiar to me, a gay man that used to live in Springfield that recently moved away with his husband and kids. He was visiting his parents for a family event and called his mom to the door. Unlike her son, she was vocally uncomfortable with supporting her trans family member. While we didn’t get to finish our conversation, the son told me that coming to the door sparked a huge conversation with his whole family. And his mom, for the first time, was able to keep her cool instead of getting defensive — she was willing to listen to the truth and correct information about healthcare for trans youth. Because we knocked that door, we created an opportunity for larger conversations that will continue to grow and change the heart and mind of that mother. PAGE 2
DIGITAL POWER & IMPACT
We welcomed 1,500 new members who took action with PROMO for the first time From sharing their stories to submitting written testimony, here are a few ways digital advocates used their power:
8,379 615 PEOPLE
PEOPLE
105
14
SUBMITTED ONLINE WRITTEN TESTIMONY to the Missouri House of Representatives against antiLGBTQ+ legislation set for public hearings.
SIGNED OUR PLEDGE TO DEFEND TRANS RIGHTS and 38% of those signatures opted in to immediately be part of our community organizing efforts.
ATTENDED OUR WEBINAR to learn how to write testimony and advocate for LGBTQ+ rights in the Missouri State Capitol.
SHARED THEIR STORIES about why earned paid sick leave is important to LGBTQ+ people, stories which were read by our champion Senators during the debate on repealing Proposition A.
PEOPLE
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PEOPLE
community Power & Impact In 2024, our field team grew exponentially, increasing our organization’s capacity to connect with LGBTQ+ Missourians and our allies throughout the state. This team has since mobilized hundreds of community members in three main ways: (i) completing two rounds of deep canvassing and preparing for a third this fall, (ii) launching monthly community meetings for the Springfield and St. Louis regions to build durable power, and (iii) organizing volunteers for volunteer nights to help our team be more deeply embedded into the local community.
Of those who started at a five (those “unsure” or “in the middle”),
of
them move in a positive direction towards understanding trans people and their healthcare needs.
This number breaks down to even more impressive numbers with
Deep Canvassing Led by our St. Louis and Southwest Missouri regional Equality Organizers, eight paid canvassers, three practicum students and fellows, and 50 volunteers knocked thousands of doors in the last two rounds of deep canvassing. They were able to have hundreds of conversations with people around one question: “Do you think the government should control gay and trans Missourians’ access to healthcare?” One strong indication that our work is changing the hearts and minds of folks in Missouri pops up when we look at those who describe themselves as “unsure” or “in the middle.” Canvassers ask the question above and then ask the individual(s) to rank themselves on a scale from 1-10: one being in favor of the government controlling our bodies and healthcare choices and 10 being in favor of complete bodily autonomy for all.
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moving at least two points
toward less government control (from a five to a seven), and an additional
moving all the way to 10,
the most bodily
COMMUNITY POWER & IMPACT
A BLACK WOMAN IN THE TRUCKING INDUSTRY
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One of the most impactful conversations I had was when we were phone banking. We had some terrible weather on one of the days we were set to go out and door knock, so our deep canvassers called neighbors instead to talk to them about trans rights. I spoke with a Black woman in the trucking industry who faced discrimination in the white male dominated industry. She was able to connect with the discrimination faced by queer and trans Missourians through her own lived experiences. We built empathy in that 15 minute conversation and ended it by having her be squarely supportive of trans folks and their rights.
A major shoutout goes to the eight transgender and nonbinary adults guiding this work as members on our Deep Canvassing Community Advisory Committee.
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COMMUNITY POWER & IMPACT
These conversations with our neighbors are fueling change throughout Missouri. They are humanizing the experiences of genderexpansive people by building empathy through shared values and countering misinformation and political dog whistles. A major shoutout goes to the eight transgender and nonbinary adults guiding this work as members on our Deep Canvassing Community Advisory Committee. Sixty percent are Black trans women and represent areas such as Kansas City, Mid-Missouri, Southwest Missouri, St. Louis, and the Bootheel. All members of the
advisory committee are compensated for their time and guidance.
79
50
VOLUNTEERS
44
VOLUNTEERS
37
CAME TO ONE OF OUR NEWLY LAUNCHED COMMUNITY MEETINGS in Springfield and St. Louis to learn how to get plugged into the work
JOINED US FOR OUR DEEP CANVASSING POWER WEEKENDS to knock doors and have conversations with their neighbors.
ATTENDED ONE OF OUR VOLUNTEER NIGHTS to send postcards to Missourians, organize our database, or phone and text bank.
JOINED US AT A LOCAL PRIDE CELEBRATION to help us be present in their area and inform more people about ways to take action.
PEOPLE
Volunteering Volunteers are the power behind our organization. The reason PROMO’s team can accomplish so much is largely due to the humans who donate their time and skills to us. Here are the various ways community members, LGBTQ+ and allies alike, have come together to strengthen our work:
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VOLUNTEERS