Ohio Equal Rights is gathering signatures for two constitutional amendments that would protect LGBTQ Ohioans as the state has already passed multiple restrictions on transgender youth. Jeremy Pelzer, cleveland.comCOLUMBUS, Ohio -- A slate of bills in the GOP-led Ohio legislature shows why getting two amendments enshrining equal rights protections on the ballot is so important, said Lis Regula, co-chair of Ohio Equal Rights. One would add new equal rights protections to the Ohio Constitution, covering a wide range of protected classes including race, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, and more. The other would extend those equal rights protections to marriage, removing existing language from a currently unenforceable same-sex marriage ban. Across the country, Republican state lawmakers have introduced a wave of bills targeting the LGBTQ community.