Mamdani's New Office of LGBTQ Affairs Should be Replicated in Every U.S. City
Spencer Macnaughton | Uncloseted Media Weekly Newsletter
On March 13, Zohran Mamdani signed an executive order establishing New York City’s first ever Mayor’s Office of LGBTQIA+ Affairs.
The office’s activities include “assisting agencies in developing and supporting liaisons to the LGBTQIA+ community,” “advancing measures to ensure agencies do not engage in discrimination,” “developing legal resources to ensure the City’s sanctuary protections for LGBTQIA+ individuals are upheld” and “providing support for LGBTQIA+ people and their families fleeing anti-LGBTQIA+ oppression.”
Mamdani appointed Taylor Brown to lead the agency, making her the highest-ranking transgender person in the history of New York City government.
Mamdani, who has an excellent track record on LGBTQ issues, wrote on X after signing the order: “Queer New Yorkers deserve to be not just protected, but celebrated in this city. Together, we will fight for their right to live a life of dignity, safety, and unabashed pride.”
While more cities and counties have in recent years made similar efforts, many cities—large and small—still have no government bodies designed to address LGBTQ issues.
But in the places that do exist, they’ve had a meaningful impact.
During the COVID-19 pandemic—which disproportionately impacted queer people—Philadelphia’s LGBTQ affairs office released a COVID-19 resource guide for LGBTQ people, which included lists of queer-friendly food pantries and health care services as well as resources for free and reduced Wi-fi from LGBTQ community centers and programs. They later collaborated with the city’s Human Resources Department to develop guidelines and trainings for better supporting trans employees after city workers reported difficulties.
In Santa Clara County, Calif., their office is pushing back against the federal government’s attacks on the trans community. Last year, their advocacy helped push the county’s executive director to recommend carving out $1.27 million from the budget for Valley Medical Center’s Gender Health Center amid federal cuts to gender-affirming care.
In Atlanta, their office helped to establish an annual LGBTQ Cultural Humility Training for city employees and elected officials. They also aided in allocating $100,000 for HIV program resources and in creating Youth Pride, a festival and summit for LGBTQ youth.
As the federal government continues its unprecedented attack on the LGBTQ community, it’s imperative that politicians at the local level implement stopgaps like offices of LGBTQ affairs to help their queer constituents. And even when Trump is gone, targeted resources that are created by advocates who are explicitly elected to look out for LGBTQ people are critical.
We just launched the first episode of our new podcast: “UNCLOSETED, with Spencer Macnaughton”! You can watch the first episode, where I interview Katy Faust, the new leader of the campaign to overturn gay marriage in the U.S, here:
On Monday, March 30, the Canadian Queer Chamber of Commerce is hosting its inaugural Economic Development & Growth Exchange in Ottawa. The event will include networking with LGBTQ entrepreneurs and innovators, a panel on queer tech and AI and more. You can register for the event here: https://queerchamber.ca/event/q-edge/
![Meet Katy Faust, the New Leader Coming for Gay Marriage [WATCH]](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!ZHv9!,w_140,h_140,c_fill,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb82609cc-a906-4b4f-9cfa-ff84501cc4a4_1286x636.png)
Black Trans Activist and Drag Performer Shyyell Diamond Sanchez-McCray Killed in Virginia (Them)
Sanchez-McCray, a title holder in many pageants, was 42.
‘It’s a Nightmare’: The Human Toll of the Catholic Church’s Trans Healthcare Ban (Trans News Network)
Missing hormones. Canceled surgeries. Bureaucratic denials. Late last year the Catholic Church banned all trans healthcare across its sprawling networks.
Senate blocks Trump-backed trans sports ban in Republican voting bill (The Advocate)
Democrats reject effort to add restrictions on transgender athletes to the SAVE Act as debate drags on.
Ann Arbor local and state elected officials call for Monroe athletic director to be reinstated (Michigan Advance)
Over 30 elected officials and local leaders from the Ann Arbor area sent a letter on Thursday to the Monroe Public Schools Board of Education and Superintendent Andrew Shaw calling for the district’s athletic director, Chet Hesson, to be reinstated.
Transgender girls told to leave Girlguiding groups by September (BBC)
The organisation that oversees girl guide groups in the UK has said transgender girls must leave the organisation by September.
Over the next week, be on the lookout for new Uncloseted reporting:
🆕 SATURDAY: While HIV treatment has developed significantly over the years, the laws haven’t caught up. Over 4,000 Americans have been forced to register as sex offenders because of their HIV status, with laws still on the books allowing it in five states. Jake Angelo investigates the human cost of these laws.
🆕 TUESDAY: In a guest essay, Elizabeth Smith shares her perspective as the sibling of an identical twin who transitioned. Smith writes: "My brother’s metamorphosis into his true self has taught me much about the transgender community that was previously unknown to me."
Thanks for reading! Feel free to email me with questions, complaints and story ideas!
Spencer Macnaughton, Editor-In-Chief — spencer@unclosetedmedia.com
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The highest ranking *openly* transgender person in NYC government. You don't know that there have not been other trans people that have ranked higher who were not open about their identity.