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
In a recent commentary for Breaking Defense, Sean O’Keefe, University Professor in the Maxwell School, noted the opening of President Ronald Reagan’s first inaugural address in 1981, where the Republican observed that the peaceful and orderly transfer of national authority…
Legendary music publishing executive and Life Trustee Martin Bandier ’62 has made a substantial gift to establish the most prestigious scholarship program available to students aspiring to careers in the music industry. The gift, the latest in support of Forever…
In keeping with the tradition of producing community-focused, quality journalism for Central New York, the news team at WAER 88.3FM, Syracuse University’s Public Radio Station, produced 48 stories related to the 2020 election in the final two months of the…
If members of the press are looking for insight and historical perspective on how the withdrawal of U.S. troops impacts the Middle East, and/or the report that President Trump considered attacking Iran to stop its growing nuclear program, Middle East…
The Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990 was ambitious federal legislation designed to promote employment inclusion, along with increased civic and social opportunity in other areas of daily life, by reducing attitudinal and structural barriers for people with disabilities….
If you need help with your subscription, contact sunews@syr.edu.
