Equality under the law is never instantaneous. The struggle for civil rights and civil liberties for women and racial, ethnic and sexual minorities are measured in decades. As the modern lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rights movement approaches its fortieth year, many advances have been made, yet obstacles still remain. As Directory of the Lesbian & Gay Rights and HIV/AID Project, Matt Coles has witnessed and participated in some of the biggest advances and some of the most disappointing setbacks for this movement. In his talk, Matt addresses some of the most relevant and pressing social issues of our day, and give his first-hand impressions of where we are and where we are heading.

Bio: Matthew Coles is the author of "Try This At Home--A Do It Yourself Guide to Winning Lesbian and Gay Rights" and has been Director of the ACLU's Lesbian & Gay Rights and HIV/AIDS Projects since 1995. Previously, he was involved in the landmark Supreme Court case Romer v. Evans and argued challenges to the military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy. Additionally, he drafted and worked to pass several of California's first non-discrimination and domestic partnership laws

This event took place on August 9, 2007 at the Google New York office.