Academy grows LGBTQ+ political voices to better serve Las Vegas

Editor's note: Este artículo está traducido al español.

Frankie Perez, a transgender man sitting on Metro Police’s Citizen Review Board, considers Silver State Equality’s LGBTQ+ Leadership Academy “a breath of fresh air” amid attacks on queer people in the United States.

“We are constantly seeing ourselves in the news … being demonized,” Perez said. “So it’s important that we have an outlet. We have a space to be able to say we want to be a part of this democracy and a part of this fight, and this is where we’re going to begin.”

The academy, in its second year, is a two-day crash course in late October on running for office and potential appointments to bodies like the review board, an appointed body of civilians that reviews complaints filed against Metro Police and reviews Metro’s Internal Affairs investigations. The academy hosts speakers on fundraising, dealing with the media and the challenges queer candidates for office face, said André Wade, Silver State Equality’s state director.

In the program, people who have run for office discuss the strain the process can have on families and the choice of how prominent queer identity will be in a campaign, Wade said. They also discuss handling potential questions from constituents, he added.

“We help people get an understanding of what they will be facing, what kind of decisions to make,” Wade said. “This time around, I’m sure we’ll have a totally different conversation about the political environment and the risks and challenges that are out there.”

On Inauguration Day in January, President Donald Trump signed an executive order stating the government recognizes two sexes and that they “are not changeable.” Trump has also pushed a ban on trans people in the military, and the Supreme Court recently ruled that states can legally bar trans care for minors.

The FBI found hate crimes related to LGBTQ+ identities made up about one-fifth of all hate crimes in 2024. Seventeen percent of hate crime victims in “single-bias incidents” were targeted because of their sexual orientation, and 4% were due to gender identity.

Kelley Robinson, president of the Human Rights Campaign, wrote in a statement after the data was released that it “revealed a national emergency hiding in plain sight.”

“Smears” by “anti-equality politicians” have a cost, she said.

Perez was one of the 11 people in last year’s LGBTQ+ Leadership Academy cohort.

The program is “not only inspiring and encouraging, but it’s motivating, and we really need that right now,” he said. “And, yes, I’m speaking for the community in general as far as needing that motivation, but I know I needed it.”

While representation has potentially become a cliché, Perez stressed that it “truly does” matter. Walking into the Metro Review Board, Perez said he wasn’t the only transgender person in the room.

While he didn’t know the other trans person too well — and was unaware of her spot on the board — Perez said seeing a fellow trans person “immediately put me at ease.”

“She said, ‘Come sit by me.’ And I felt like, ‘Thank you. Thank you for making me feel welcome,’” Perez said. “After that, it was just like ‘OK, and now I get to meet my other board members here and get to know them.’ Yeah, it mattered tremendously.”

Part of the reason Silver State Equality, founded in 2019 as an offshoot of Equality California, is doing work like the new academy is because there was no organization conducting it before them in the community, Wade said.

With that, he believes they’re still at the beginning phases of building a political community for queer people. Wade wants peers like Perez to be able to tell their own story and give tips for potential colleagues.

“In the next few years, we hope that there will be a group of folks who are a little bit more politically educated, motivated and ready to run for office, and (who) can lean on each other for support and guidance,” Wade said.

Wade also said the program itself wasn’t seeking particular policy positions from those interested in attending, but that they do review what people intend to do after the academy.

Perez recommended the academy for anyone who’s had “even the slightest thought” about getting involved in politics or contributing to a board like his position with Metro.

Wade added that the academy can help people make up their minds, and that he’s looking to have the program “capture people along the way” by having the academy run each year.

People might not be ready now but may be in three years, Wade said, and he wants the training to be there when they are.

“Last year they had amazing speakers that I don’t think I would have had access to just talk to and hear from without that initial meet-and-greet,” Perez said. “Go for it. Sign up, please, and you can thank me later.”