PITTSBURGH — Seventeen community residents will be appointed to the city’s new LGBTQIA+ Commission and introduced to Pittsburgh City Council on Tuesday.
Mayor William Peduto announced the appointments on Monday for the commission to help the LGBTQIA+ community, with the idea of protecting and preserving LGBTQIA+ rights.
The Mayor created a LGBTQIA+ Advisory Council in 2016, and under legislation he introduced in June, he replaced it with a permanent commission within City Code, according to a news release. The commission will advise city government on plans and policy recommendations to address challenges facing the LGBTQIA+ community.
The appointees will be Kathi Boyle, Denise DeSimone, Jam Hammond, William Hileman, Sue Kerr, Councilman Bruce Kraus, Britton Mauk, Leonard Orbovich, Richard Parsakian, Dr. Christopher Robinson, Marcus Robinson, Dr. Sarah Rosso, Luca Salerno, Tiffini Simoneaux, Nekia Burton Tucker, the Reverend Deryck Tines and Guillermo Velazquez.
“This is a strong and impressive group, and will be extremely helpful in informing policies on LGBTQIA+ matters across City government,” Peduto said.
The mayor is also making appointments and reappointments to the Gender Equity Commission, the Shade Tree Commission, the Historic Review Commission, the Urban Redevelopment Authority, the Pittsburgh Land Bank and the Art Commission.
“It’s absolutely a step in the right direction. The mayor’s office as a whole recognizes the need to really include LGBTQ issues when talking about any sorts of diversity, representation or other similar types of issues,” newly minted commission member Sue Kerr previously said in July.
TRENDING NOW:
© 2020 Cox Media Group
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/XCUXZC2XYZHCRGNNGKFEX6U3LQ.png)
