Victory in the News

Chris Seelbach's victory a milestone for gays in Cincinnati

The bar, Milton's Prospect Hill Tavern, was packed for the victory party for the man who'd become Cincinnati's first openly gay City Council member.

People cheered. And it seemed as if everyone on Election Night was offering to buy Chris Seelbach a drink. 

Electing the first openly gay council member, others say, means more than the fact that Cincinnati's long-held conservative reputation apparently is evolving.

It also changes the perspective at City Hall and shows other LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) individuals that it's OK to live an authentic life, to show who you really are and still be able to participate in government, said Denis Dison, vice president of communications for the Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund, a Washington nonprofit that promotes LGBT candidates. 

Houston Mayor Annise Parker Wins Reelection

Houston mayor Annise D. Parker has won reelection despite low approval ratings and antigay rhetoric leveled against her by a challenger. 

Next month Parker hosts the 27th International Gay & Lesbian Leadership Conference in Houston. “It’s a great opportunity for elected and appointed GLBT leaders from around country, and the world, to get together and share tips support each other,” she said.