Posted on 08/06/2018 6:12:09 PM PDT by lightman
Pa. Gov. Tom Wolf on Monday created the Pennsylvania Commission on LGBTQ Affairs.
"The creation of the commission on LGBTQ Affairs is one step of many we have taken to ensure obstacles are removed for anyone who is facing an unfair disadvantage based on sexual orientation, gender identity and expression," Wolf said in a press release. "It's a step we took together with our stakeholder and advocacy groups and one that those involved asked for - a commission to help coordinate and drive statewide equality efforts."
The 40-member commission, believed to be the only one in the country, will be led by executive director Todd Snovel. Most recently, Snovel was the Assistant Dean for Engagement and Inclusion at Lebanon Valley College, where he led the team working with students in the co-curricular experience and initiated campus-wide efforts in equity, diversity, and inclusion. He also teaches college-level courses on the studies of genders, sexualities, and identities. He was the 2014 recipient of the Athena Award from the Lebanon Valley Chamber of Commerce and received the Wheeler Freedom Award in 2015 for his support of the LGBTQ community in Lebanon County.
The Pennsylvania Commission on LGBTQ Affairs commissioners are:
Chair - Anne Wakabayashi
Co-Vice-Chair - Shaashawn Dial
Co-Vice-Chair - Tyler Titus
And, in alphabetical order, the rest of the group: Ben Allatt, Rich Askey, Mark Barbee, Chris Bartlett, Rosemary Browne, Patricia Bucek, Kathy Cameron, Joanne Carroll, Marc Coleman, Katharine Dalke, Jim DePoe, Sen. Lawrence Farnese, Rep. Dan Frankel, Elicia Gonzales, Amber Hikes, Jodi Hirsh, Malcolm Kenyatta, Michele Kessler, Jason Landau Goodman, Maryellen Madden, Jere Mahaffey, Michael Mahler, Adil Mansoor, Adanjesus Marin, Sean Meloy, Gerald Montano, Sebastian Pelaez, Brian Patchcoski, Sarah Rosso, Kristin Seale, Adrian Shanker, Henry Sias, Rep. Brian Sims, Sean Strub, Roberto "Tito" Valdes, Harry Young and Heshie Zinman.
Two of the legislative members appointed to the commission lauded Wolf for its creation.
Frankel, from Allegheny County, is the House Democratic Caucus Chairman and the co-chairman of the LGBT Equality Caucus in the legislature. He said the panel is "a good step forward to determine needs for LGBT residents. But some things we already know: The legislature should pass the Pennsylvania Fairness Act. This bipartisan bill would include sexual orientation and gender identity or expression in the types of discrimination banned statewide in the workplace, housing and public accommodations. It's still legal in much of Pennsylvania for people to be denied a job or a place to live just because of who they are, and that's wrong."
Sims, a Philadelphia Democrat and the first openly gay lawmaker in Pennsylvania's history, was included in USA Today's Face of Pride national project in late June. He thanked Wolf for having "consistently supported equal rights for LGBTQ Pennsylvanians, and today's announcement confirms that."
The Pennsylvania Commission on LGBTQ Affairs joins the governor's existing commissions: African American Affairs, Asian Pacific American Affairs, Latino Affairs and the Commission for Women.
You state “Thank G-d for term limits.” That may be good...that may be bad.
That rule could (and does) eliminate some good conservative politicians and kicks them out of office...only for some liberal nut to fill their position. And...of course it also discourages some well qualified conservatives not to even try to run for office since they will automatically be out of a job years down the line with no options after that.
Another sickening, perverted legacy that Wolf leaves on PA. Swell.
PA has not had a good conservative governo in my half century-plus. We used to have a one term limit...got changed in the 70’s.
Gaystapo star chamber.
"Unfair" according to whom?
If they experience a disadvantage, perhaps there is a good reason for it.
Did I miss where the article says Tom Wolf is a democrat?
“could they have possibly left any offended or oppressed people out?”
The disabled, or different commissions for different types of disability.
PennLive ass/u/med that all of the readership was local and thus knew that Wolf is a donk.
Functions of the commission as outlined in the executive order:
Advise the Governor on policies, procedures, legislation and regulations that impact LGBTQ individuals and communities;
Develop, review and recommend to the Governor policies in the areas of health and human services, housing, education, employment, business formation and other relevant areas which impact LGBTQ individuals and communities;
Provide appropriate assistance and advice to the Departments of General Services and Community and Economic Development, and work with the Bureau of Workforce Planning, Development, and Equal Employment Opportunity, within the Office of Human Resources and Management, in the Governor’s Office of Administration, to strengthen the enforcement of the Commonwealth’s antidiscriminatory hiring, retention and promotion policies;
Serve as a liaison to federal, state and local agencies to ensure that programs affecting LGBTQ individuals and communities are effectively utilized and promoted;
Serve as a resource for community groups and provide forums for developing strategies and programs that will expand and enhance the civic, social, educational, cultural and economic status of LGBTQ individuals and communities;
Identify programs, scholarships, mentoring programs, sources of funding or other resources for the benefit and advancement of LGBTQ individuals and communities; and
Promote the cultural arts of LGBTQ communities throughout the Commonwealth.
Communicate activities and initiatives of state government that impact or otherwise may affect LGBTQ communities in the Commonwealth.
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