Tuesday, April 27, 6 to 7:15 p.m.

LGBTQ+ people make up at least 5 percent of the U.S. population, but hold just .17 percent of elected positions, according to the UCLA Williams Institute. More political representation could help mitigate the recent attacks on LGBTQ+ Americans.

Yet there has been progress. A record number of LGBTQ+ candidates ran and won during the 2020 election, with at least 843 LGBTQ+ people elected to office, according to the LGBTQ Victory Institute.

Humanities Washington will hold a virtual discussion that explores the past, present, and future of LGBTQ+ political participation in America. How has the LGBTQ+ community historically been involved in, and excluded from, politics? What avenues are currently available to the LGBTQ+ community to affect sociopolitical change? And what steps must be taken in order to make our democracy more inclusive and safer for the LGBTQ+ community?

The discussion will feature Lady Anderson (she/her), director of Policy, Advocacy, and Community Engagement at Gay City; Cristina Ortega (she/her), president of Yakima Pride; Sen. Emily Randall (she/her), 26th Legislative District; and Debra Salazar (she/her), professor of political science at Western Washington University. Moderator will be Ramon Johnson (they/them), graduate student of Gender, Women and Sexuality Studies at the University of Washington.

Pre-register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_qlH-u9W1SymC-M6W-8AWjw