After a three-week period, the Office of LGBT Affairs closed applications for the city’s new Commission on LGBT Affairs on the Nov. 4 deadline.
After receiving 147 applications, the Office of Diversity & Inclusion, the Office of Public Engagement and the Office of the Mayor will be looking at the applications to make a decision on who will be the right fit for the Commission. The commission will include 15-25 members.
A timeline for decisions was not finalized as of presstime.
“We’re all over here working as diligently as possible because it’s something that is of critical need and will be an incredible source of continued advocacy, especially in this climate that we find ourselves in now,” said Nellie Fitzpatrick, director of the Office of LGBT Affairs.
A statement released by the city last month said the commission will “reflect the diversity of the LGBT community, including members who represent the transgender, gay, lesbian, bisexual, asexual, queer, and intersex communities, as well as diversity in ethnicity, religion, race, gender, disability, profession, citizenship status, socioeconomic status, geography, housing status and age. The Commission will include or consult with experts in relevant fields, such as racial justice, housing, youth development, HIV prevention, mental health, business, law and policy.”
When it comes to selecting members, Fitzpatrick said the team is “looking for the true breadth of diversity not only in things such as race, national origin, ability, disability, religion, age, socioeconomic status, geographic location but also areas of expertise and what that can offer to the community as a whole in advocating within government structures.”
Fitzpatrick said they are looking to “increase lines of communication both into government and in pushing information out of government.”
As for the issues the group will be tackling, Fitzpatrick said it will be the Commission’s decision to figure out which are the most important.
“I think it’s very clear that our community as a whole has a lot of work to do first and foremost in combatting the issues of racism, classism and sexism; and the various places that those dangerous “isms” find themselves and the barriers that they create,” she said.
Fitzpatrick noted there have been other advisory groups and committees within city governments in the past. However, this new initiative will be the first commission on LGBT affairs established after the Office of LGBT Affairs became a permanent part of government.
“It’s the next critical step in continued building of permanent structures to support and advance LGBT civil rights here in our city,” Fitzpatrick said.