I have spent the past two months working with the Fundraising and Public Outreach team at the Human Rights Campaign headquarters in Washington DC. HRC is the nations largest LGBTQ advocacy organization in the country and holds over 30 gala dinners and dozens of smaller events a year. A majority of my time is spent ensuring that these events have all the tools they need to run smoothly and promote HRC ‘s message. I spent most of the beginning of the semester working on HRC’s largest event of the year, the National Dinner Gala. This is held at the Washington DC Convention Center and is a hot ticket event here in DC. The keynote speaker this year was Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, musician and advocate Ricky Martin, and actress and advocate Dominique Jackson from the FX show Pose. I worked closely with the events team during the dinner and auction making sure everything went well, and I still had time to meet Chasten Buttigieg! Other major events I have contributed to are the Chefs for Equality gala in DC and the HRC/CNN Presidential Town Hall in Los Angeles.
My work with the events team has been simultaneous with my advocacy work that HRC expects out of all their employees. They ensure that all staffers are up to date on news regarding the LGBTQ community and its movement to equality. Right before I started my position, HRC welcomed a new president, Alphonso David. Alphonso has high expectations for the organization, particularly its work with transgender rights. HRC has had its criticism for focusing its advocacy on mainstream issues that predominately impact wealthy or white members of the LGBTQ community. With the rise in violence against trans women of color, President David has ensure that HRC will become a front runner in the fight for safety and equality for all. This lead all of the HRC staff to march at the Supreme Court on October 8 to show our support for Amiee Stephens and her case. Amiee lost her job in 2013 because she came out as a trans woman. HRC wanted to show support for her case and emphasize to the court that the LGBTQ community is here and watching. On a fun note, during this march I got to see Laverne Cox (from far away but she’s more gorgeous in person), and briefly meet trans advocate and drag performer from Season 9 of Rupaul’s Drag Race, Peppermint!
While I work a full Dolly Parton 9-5 during the week, I take advantage of my evenings and weekends to explore DC and make the most of my time here. DC is a fascinating city with an abundance of international influence and a million things to do. As my internship is unpaid, I frequent the monuments and Smithsonian galleries because they are free and fun! My personal favorite is the Renwick Gallery right across the street from the White House. They have a Burning Man exhibit right now that I try to see once a week before they literally burn it down. After taking Dr.Nichol’s intelligence class, the DC Spy Museum is a must on my to do list, but I am waiting for my parents to visit because the tickets are $20. In addition to the galleries, I am trying to enjoy as much food as possible while in DC. There is so much international cuisine here that it is often hard to pick. However, I think that the Chefs for Equality event was my peak dining experience. When I was in between tasks, I enjoyed countless bite-sized servings of food I could never afford and a spiced gin and tonic that I fear I will never be able to replicate.
As a perk to the internship program, HRC assigns every intern a mentor beyond their department and supervisor. I was fortunate enough to be assigned trans advocate and HRC communications liaison, Charlotte Clymer. When I got the email about being paired with Charlotte, I thought that the name sounded familiar. Then I realized it’s because she has a Twitter account with over 25o,000 followers! Needless to say I was a tad nervous at our first lunch meeting but Charlotte immediately squashed that with her down to earth nature. She is also from the Austin area and obsessed with the royal family, so she and I had plenty to gab about over sandwiches. I am really looking forward to working with her this semester and enjoying the rest of my time here in DC!
This was at the Supreme Court March on October 8 
This was at the HRC National Dinner (hopefully this link works)
