Being an openly gay and black politician would have never been thought of years ago. In this blog post, I will discuss black gay politicians in Congress.
Throughout history, homosexuality has been viewed as negative. Not too long ago same-sex marriage was illegal and hate crimes were even tolerated against LGBT persons. In today’s time being gay is less stigmatized so much so that more politicians have come out of the closet. There have been only openly white gay politicians in Congress till now. In this blog post, I will discuss two openly black gay Congressmen.
Openly black gay politicians in Congress
Ritchie Torres
One of the black gay politicians in Congress is Ritchie Torres. Richie Torres is a gay Afro Latino from the East Bronx, NY. Ritchie’s mother is African American and his father is Puerto Rican.
Ritchie didn’t have an easy life growing up. Torres was raised in the Throggs Neck Houses, an NYCHA housing, in a single-parent household with his twin brother and sister. Torres had a step father who passed Any person that lives in the housing projects could attest to the horrible conditions. The walls are filled with mbold, there are constant leaks, and roaches are everywhere. I used to live in the projects and still vividly remember what it was like living there. Every night I prayed in my mind that I would move out.
Many black men who were raised in NYCHA housing don’t make it out. They either go to jail or end up dead. Despite coming from a rough environment Ritchie was able to not become a statistic. Ritchie graduated from Lehman High School. He went to pursue an undergraduate degree at NYU but had to cut his path short to take care of his mental health which he openly admitted to. Ritchie stated that he dealt with depression as he struggled with his sexuality.
In the New York Times article, “He’s Gay. His Main Opponent Makes Homophobic Remarks”, it’s mentioned that Ritchie Torres first discovered his sexuality while in junior high school. However, he didn’t come out of the closet till he was in high school. He told his mother he was gay who was very supportive but his twin brother wasn’t as supportive. As with many gay men of color, Ritchie didn’t become openly gay until near adulthood.
Richie became more open with his sexuality once started his career in politics. At the age of 17, Ritchie became the district manager for Community Board 10. As district manager, he was expected to advocate for residents of the community. He later became a City Council member at the age of 25. In 2013 he made political history by becoming the first openly gay elected official in the Bronx and the youngest Council Member in New York City. Just last year he eventually ran for the 15th Congressional District against Ruben Diaz Sr. Even though they are both Puerto Rican Ritchie and Ruben clashed. Ritchie is openly gay and Ruben is a straight man who’s against homosexuality and even voted against same-sex marriage. Despite dealing with homophobia Ritchie won the primaries and was elected into Congress. After the victory he said:
“Tonight we made history”
Ritchie Torres
While in office Ritchie has not forgotten about the black LGBTQ community. Being black and gay is an extreme struggle. As a black man in the US, you will with racism and prejudice from the time you’re born to the day you die. As a queer man, you not only deal with homophobia from society but many times for your own family as well. Ritchie knows this struggle. He has helped the lives of many homeless LGBTQ youths by helping create a homeless shelter in the Bronx.
Ritchie currently serves as the Vice-Chair of the Committee on Homeland Security. He represents the poorest Congressional district in the United States.
Mondair Jones
Mondaire Jones is another gay black politician in Congress. One commonality between him and Ritchie Torres is that they are both of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) which is an organization that represents working class people. Mondair also shares some of the same life struggles. Mondaire came from a single-parent household and lived in Section 8 Housing. Despite the environment, he grew up in Mondaire obtained his high school diploma at Spring Valley High School, and pursued higher education. Mondaire obtained a bachelor’s degree at the prestigious university Stanford University. He worked under the Obama administration in the Department of Justice.
In November 2020 Mondaire Jones had the election results in his favor. He won the New York 17th District Seat and became the first openly gay black Congressman. In this words:
“…I never knew someone like me could run for Congress”
Mondaire Jones
Mondaire serves leadership roles in Congress including Co-Chair of the LGBTQ Equality Caucus and Freshman Representative to Leadership. He has two office locations from where he can be contacted: the Washington DC office at 1017 Longworth HOB and White Plans District Office located at 222 Mamaroneck Ave.
Like Ritchie, Mondaire has fought for LGBTQ rights. He supported the Equality Act
as cited on Congress website “promotes discrimination against based on sex, sexual orientation ,and gender equality”. The passing of the act meant that lesbian, transgender, non binary, and other LGBTQIA+ persons could work where they want and go to places at their will.
While Mondaire is open about his sexuality there is not much public information about his dating life including whether or not he has a partner or husband. This is definitely out of the norm since politicians have a bad reputation for having scandalous hookups.
For more information about Mondaire’s biography and background you can go to Mondaire’s wikipedia or his website jones.house.gov
Why we need black gay politicians?
My agenda is not to support a new world order of gay men. But I do feel that there need to be more black gay men in government leadership roles. In those roles that can influencer more positive changes in black LGBTQ communities. For instance, while in office Ritchie Torres was able to help create the Bronx shelter for LGBTQ youth.
Wrap up
There have been several openly gay politicians in Congress. Brian Simms is the first openly gay Congressman from Pennsylvania, Mark Takano is the first openly gay Asian Congressman and Jared Polis is the first openly gay Congressman from Colorado.
Both Ritchie Torres and Mondaire Jones are historical figures in politics and black LGBTQ history. They are the first openly gay black members in Congress. They have made big impacts in their communities, especially for LGBTQ persons, by serving leadership roles within different LGBT committees. Through persons like there’s hope that racism, violence, and discrimination against LGBT and persons of color in this country could dramatically.
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