In what’s being called the rainbow wave, dozens of LGBTQ+ candidates captured historic wins in the 2020 U.S. elections, including the election of the first openly transgender person for a State Senate seat and the first gay and Afro-Latino and Black men elected to Congress.
William Robert is the director of LGBTQ Studies and an associate professor of religion at Syracuse University’s College of Arts and Sciences.
Prof. Robert says:
“I’m almost always thrilled when LGBTQ+ candidates win political offices. I say ‘almost’ because our identities are intersections. They’re never reducible to one category, like gender or sexuality.
“I know that many LGBTQ+ persons voted for Donald Trump and Mike Pence, whose records on LGBTQ+ issues are deplorable. That demonstrates that LGBTQ+ citizens aren’t a bloc of one-issue voters. They seem not to be a bloc at all, given how little national media attention they receive.
“What’s most exciting to me are how many LGBTQ+ persons of color won in yesterday’s elections and how their victories range from local to national positions. If the old saying is right, that ‘all politics are local,’ that gives me hope that LGBTQ+ persons can effect urgently needed sociopolitical change regardless of who’s president.”
To request interviews or get more information:
Daryl Lovell
Media Relations Manager
Division of Marketing and Communications
T 315.443.1184 M 315.380.0206
dalovell@syr.edu | @DarylLovell
The Nancy Cantor Warehouse, 350 W. Fayette St., 2nd Fl., Syracuse, NY 13202
news.syr.edu | syracuse.edu
Syracuse University
There’s a new father-son sportscasting team on the national scene, one with a decidedly Orange background: Ian ’90 and Noah Eagle ’19. Ian finished his second year as the lead announcer for the NCAA men’s basketball tournament and has crafted…
Newhouse School and University Professor Bob Thompson was recently featured on “NBC Nightly News” for his long-running lecture series that uses classic television to bridge generational divides and spark important conversation. The segment, produced by NBC’s Brian Cheung ’15—a University…
For the first time ever, Newhouse creative advertising students entered the Sports Clios and Entertainment Clios competitions and won big. Clios are regarded as some of the hardest awards for creative advertising students to win. At the New York City…
Maxwell School alumna Denise Kalette ’68 got her first byline at age 12, under a poem titled “The Poor Taxpayer” that she submitted to her local newspaper. In a few paragraphs of playful prose, she drew attention to an issue…
Fourteen student-athletes will experience Washington, D.C., next week as part of a new Maymester program hosted by the Syracuse University Institute for Democracy, Journalism and Citizenship (IDJC). The one-week program, Democracy Playbook: DC Media and Civics Immersion for Student-Athletes, will…
If you need help with your subscription, contact sunews@syr.edu.
