LGBT people are making political history around the world and right here in our own backyard.
Voters in Zurich recently elected Corine Mauch as mayor. Mauch is the first openly lesbian mayor of a major European city as well as the first female mayor of the largest city in Switzerland. Interestingly, Mauch is also the first mayor to have played in two rock bands. In the 1990s, according to OpEdNews.com, she played with The Hoover and with Fallacy.
Here in the United States, President Obama has appointed a number of LGBT people to positions of authority. The April issue of the Advocate has an article about many of the appointees, including far more in depth information than I can include here.
Appointees include:
Anthony Bernal - Scheduler, Office of Dr. Jill Biden
Jeremy Bernard - White House Liaison, National Endowment for the Humanities
John Berry - Director-Designate, Office of Personnel Management
Brian Bond - Deputy Director, White House Office of Public Liaison
Ebs Burnough - Deputy Social Secretary, Office of the First Lady
Michael Camunez - Domestic Policy Cluster Head, Presidential Personnel
Brook Colangelo - Chief Information Officer, White House Office of Administration
Jeffrey S. Crowley, MPH, Director of Office of National AIDS Policy
Marisa Demeo - Associate Judge, DC Superior Court
Fred Davie - Policy Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships
Fred Hochberg - Chairman-Designate, U.S. Export-Import Bank
Shin Inouye - Director, Specialty Media
Elaine Kaplan - General Counsel, Office of Personnel Management
Brad Kiley - Director, White House Office of Management and Administration
Kei Koizumi - Assistant Director for Federal Research and Development, Office of Science and Technology Policy
Karine Jean-Pierre - White House Liaison, U.S. Department of Labor
Kathy Martinez - Assistant Secretary of Disability Employment Policy, Department of Labor
David Medina - Deputy Chief of Staff, Office of the First Lady
Alison Nathan - Assoc. Counsel, Office of White House Counsel
Dave Noble - White House Liaison, National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Mark Perriello - Director of Priority Placement, Presidential Personnel
Campbell Spencer - Regional Director, Office of Political Affairs
Nancy Sutley Chair, White House Council on Environmental Quality
Moe Vela - Director of Operations, Office of the Vice President
While President Obamas hasnt been able to make every LGBT person happy with how quickly he has moved on several key LGBT issues, including Dont Ask Dont Tell and the Defense of Marriage Act, he is certainly demonstrating that he can bring a diverse group of people to the table. President Obama has included far more LGBT members in his staff than previous presidents. With direct representation at many levels, it is far more likely that LGBT concerns will be heard and addressed.
Be on the lookout in coming months for profiles of some of these appointees.