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10 LGBTQ people changing the face of politics today

Attitude 101 empowered by Bentley celebrates LGBTQ trailblazers.

By Jamie Tabberer

Following on from the success of last year’s inaugural list, Attitude 101 is back and once again we’re celebrating 100 LGBTQ trailblazers across 10 categories, and one person of the year. This time around we’re proud to be empowered by Bentley

The categories are Sport; The Future, supported by Clifford Chance; Science, Technology, Engineering, and Maths; Media and Broadcast; Travel; Film TV and Music, supported by Taimi; Business, Financial and Legal; Third Sector and the Community; and Fashion, Art and Design supported by Klarna. Our Person of the Year is game-changing rapper Lil Nas X.

You can check out the full list and interviews with some of those included in the Attitude 101 issue – out now to download and to order globally. Check out the Politics category below.

Jayne Ozanne – campaigner against ‘conversion therapy’

High-profile evangelical Anglican Jayne Ozanne has been at the forefront of the campaign to ban ‘conversion therapy’ while also speaking out against the ignorant attitude of equalities ministers Liz Truss and Kemi Badenoch about their ignorant attitudes. It is a personal crusade for Jayne, who tells the new issue of Attitude: “I spent 40 years struggling with my faith and sexuality and went through ‘conversion therapy’ for 20 years, which sadly took me twice to hospital.”

Nyke Slawik – German politician

Slawik, 27, is one of the first trans women to win parliamentary seats in a German national election. She also serves the Green Party, securing a seat via the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia. Slawik fights for self-identification and human rights and the dignity of queer and trans people. Moreover, Slawik wants a more radical approach to climate politics and a swift transition to climate neutrality. Following her party’s election success this autumn, it is currently in talks to enter a coalition with the Social Democrats (SPD) and the Free Democrats (FDP).

Owen J Hurcum – Mayor of Bangor

According to reports, when Owen J Hurcum assumed office as Mayor of Bangor, Wales, back in May, they became the first non-binary mayor of any city in the world, attracting plenty of media attention in the process. Did we mention they’re from the London suburb of Harrow? What’s more, at just 22 when they were unanimously elected, the Bangor University graduate – who helped organise the town’s first Pride celebration in 2019 – became the youngest person in history to hold a mayoral position in Wales. Now 24, they are determined to bring “fresh ideas” to the position. A face of the future for sure.

Mike Freer – Equalities Minister & Conservative MP for Finchley and Golders Green

Conservative MP Mike Freer is the Minister for Equalities with a specific LGBT remit. He is the lead minister on the proposed ban of conversion therapy and is working with Lord Herbert as he delivers the UK’s first global LGBT rights conference in summer 2022. Freer has long been an advocate for the LGBTQ community: he campaigned for the HIV-preventing drug PrEP, for HPV vaccination for boys as well as girls, and was an early backer of the campaign for equal marriage.

Hannah Blythyn – Welsh MS & Deputy Minister for Social Partnership

The first out lesbian elected to the Welsh Parliament, Hannah Blythyn is Deputy Minister for Social Partnership and heads up the Welsh government’s work around LGBTQ+ equality. She is the Member of the Senedd for the Delyn constituency in Northeast Wales and was first elected to the then Assembly in 2016 and reelected to the Senedd in May. Hannah previously won the ‘One to Watch’ award at the ITV Wales Politician of the Year Awards, and as the former co-chair of LGBT Labour, she was part of the campaign for equal marriage.

Tessa Ganserer – German politician

Growing up in the Bavarian Forest, Tessa Ganserer trained as a forester before uprooting to join Germany’s Green Party in 1998. From 2013 to 2021, she was a member of the Bavarian State Parliament. After coming out publicly in 2018, Ganserer became the first out transgender member of a German parliament. Ganserer and fellow Green Party member Nyke Slawik blazed trails this year as the first trans women to win parliamentary seats in a national election and are now members of the German Bundestag. The politician, who is married with two children, is committed to improving living conditions for queer people.

Andrew Pike OBE – Director of the GREAT Campaign

Andrew Pike OBE leads the government’s flagship GREAT campaign, an initiative designed to showcase the United Kingdom as the most creative country in the world and the best place to trade, invest, study, visit and work. A diplomat by background, Pike previously oversaw Visit Britain’s ground-breaking ‘Love is GREAT’ campaign, highlighting the UK as a welcoming destination for LGBTQ people. As GCHQ’s first Director of Communications, in 2015 he lit the iconic building in rainbow colours for The International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia.

Luke Pollard – British Labour & Co-op politician

Luke Pollard is a British Labour and Co-operative politician, who has been the MP for Plymouth Sutton and Devonport since 2017. He was also the Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. He has been vocal on issues such as trans equality and the inclusion of LGBT+ books in school libraries. In February, Luke generated headlines after hitting back at homophobic comments in response to a Valentine’s Day photo with his boyfriend. He told Plymouth Live: “I feel very sorry for the people who led the attacks, they must be pretty lonely if seeing other people happy is a threat to them.”

Nick Herbert – Special Envoy on LGBT Rights & the Rt Hon Lord Herbert of South Downs CBE PC

Appointed Special Envoy on LGBT+ Rights in May, Lord Herbert is also chairing the government’s LGBTQ-focused Safe to be Me: A Global Equality Conference next June. His role involves progressing legislative reform, tackling violence and discrimination, and ensuring equal access to public services for LGBT people. In addition, he chairs the Global Equality Caucus, which unites international elected representatives to promote LGBT+ rights. He served as an MP for 14 years and is a former chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Global LGBT+ Rights.

John Nicolson – SNP MP

John Nicolson presented for LBC and ITV, has reported for Newsnight and Panorama, and as the host of Breakfast on BBC One, he was the first-ever BBC network TV presenter to come out as gay, back in 1999. Fast-forward 22 years, and after first being elected to Westminster in the 2015 SNP landslide, he is now the party’s Shadow Culture Secretary. John introduced the Turing Private Members’ Bill to pardon gay men found guilty of crimes no longer on the statute book, and as a longstanding champion of LGBT rights, he recently argued for reform of the Gender Recognition Act

Check out the full, detailed list in the Attitude 101 issue, which is out now to download and to order globally. The Attitude 101 issue includes the FREE Attitude 2022 calendar, presented in association with Taimi.

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