; and (B) applicable speaker or exchange programs sponsored by the United States Government shall bring together civil society and governmental leaders to promote the recognition of LGBTI rights through educational exchanges in the United States and support better understanding of the role that governments and civil societies mutually play in assurance of equal treatment of LGBTI populations abroad. 6. Foreign assistance to protect human rights of LGBTI people (a) Global equality fund (1) In general The Secretary of State shall establish a fund, to be known as the Global Equality Fund , to be managed by the Assistant Secretary of the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, consisting of such sums as may be appropriated to provide grants, emergency assistance, and technical assistance to eligible civil society organizations and human rights defenders working to advance and protect human rights for all including LGBTI persons, by seeking to achieve the following: (A) Ensuring the freedoms of assembly, association, and expression. (B) Protecting persons or groups against the threat of violence, including medically unnecessary interventions performed on intersex infants. (C) Advocating against laws that criminalize LGBTI status, expression, or conduct or discriminate against individuals on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity, or sex characteristics. (D) Ending explicit and implicit forms of discrimination in the workplace, housing, education, and other public institutions or services. (E) Building community awareness and support for the human rights of LGBTI persons. (2) Contributions The Secretary may accept financial and technical contributions from corporations, bilateral donors, foundations, nongovernmental organizations, and other entities supporting the outcomes described in paragraph (1) , through the Global Equality Fund. (3) Prioritization In providing assistance through the Global Equality Fund, the Secretary shall ensure due consideration and appropriate prioritization of assistance to