Normal Heart Community Ventures GLBT nonprofit New Mexico and West Texas

Equality New Mexico, formerly the Coalition for Equality in New Mexico and Basic Rights New Mexico, was founded in 1993 in the shadow of the second defeat of legislation attempting to amend the New Mexico Human Rights Act to prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.

The intent was to create a shared statewide vision for gay and lesbian civil/human rights and to provide a unified political voice for New Mexico's gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender communities.

In the spring of 2003, people like you helped EQNM and our allies win passage of a Hate Crimes Act and an amendment to the Human Rights Act (HRA) making New Mexico one of the first states in the U.S. to include both gender identity and sexual orientation in both of these laws.

In July 2003, Basic Rights New Mexico formed to counter efforts by right-wing activists to overturn this recently passed legislation by gathering signatures for a November 2004 ballot referendum. Then in 2004, thousands of fair-minded New Mexicans from all corners of the state helped EQNM to successfully hold off a statewide, anti-gay ballot initiative to repeal the newly amended HRA

Equality New Mexico is an advocacy organization that uses both community outreach and the political process to promote civil rights, to end discrimination, and to further the general welfare of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities in New Mexico.

Specifically, Equality New Mexico's mission is to achieve full equality for all New Mexicans so members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities can live without oppression. Our vision is dignity, opportunity and power accessible to all. To that end, Equality New Mexico educates, organizes and advocates for full human and civil rights for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender New Mexicans and their allies.

Alexis Blizman - Executive Director
Alexis moved to Albuquerque in August 2005 to take on the position of Executive Director of Equality New Mexico. Prior to starting at Equality New Mexico she practiced civil litigation and family law at the Law Offices of Brian J. Moran in Alexandria, VA.

Alexis grew up in Farmington Hills, Michigan. While earning her BA in Political Science at Wayne State University in Detroit, she reinvigorated and became President of the Wayne State Young Democrats and through that work became active in paid and volunteer work on local, state, and national campaigns. In 1993 she helped to found the GLBT Caucus of the Young Democrats and in 1994 helped to get the caucus full voting rights.

Blizman received her JD degree at the George Washington University Law School in Washington DC in May 2003. While in law school she served as the Director of Graduate Affairs of the Student Bar Association and the Chair of the Law School’s chapter of Lambda Law. While in law school, she maintained her connections with the Young Democrats and the national Democratic Party.

In 1999, she became a Democratic National Committeewoman and then in 2000 became a member of the Democratic National Committee’s Gay & Lesbian Leadership Council. In September 2002, she completed a legal internship at the American Federation of Government Employees in their Women’s and Fair Practices Department where she worked on prosecuting EEOC discrimination claims. In October 2003 Blizman joined the Law Offices of Brian J. Moran in Alexandria VA as an associate attorney where she worked in the fields of Domestic Relations, Civil Litigation, Criminal and Business Law. During this time, Blizman remained committed to the political process, volunteering on several campaigns, working with GAYLAW, and continuing to serve the Young Democrats of America as their General Counsel.