Building true solidarity includes having critical conversations and engaging each other in learning how racism pervades our communities, organizations, and institutions. Anything short of this upholds the status quo which harms Black, Brown, and Indigenous people and other people of color.

Taylor Small is wasting no time in stepping into some pretty big shoes: at just 26 years old, she’s poised to become the first openly transgender woman in the history of Vermont to serve in its state legislature.

Taylor is interviewed by Ann Charles from All Things LGBTQ on Orca Media about her historic win in the Vermont Primaries representing Winooski and Burlington.

Stephanie Byers, seeking a seat in Kansas House, would be the first out trans legislator in her state. Vermont would have its first openly trans lawmaker in Taylor Small.

Today LGBTQ Victory Fund endorsed candidate Taylor Small won her primary for a Vermont state House seat and will almost certainly become the first out trans person ever elected to the Vermont state legislature.

With the potential for several historic firsts, these candidates are just a small number of those poised to make 2020 a groundbreaking political year.

Taylor Small has won her race for the Chittenden 6-7 House seat over opponent Jordan Matte, taking another step toward becoming Vermont’s first openly transgender state rep.

The Green Mountain State may make history as Vermonters will be able to elect an openly transgender lawmaker to the House. This comes as incumbent Rep. Diana Gonzalez decided to step down.

Vermonters have never elected an openly transgender lawmaker to a Statehouse seat. Small, an openly transgender woman, is running for a House seat vacated by Rep. Diana Gonzalez, P-Winooski, who decided not to run for re-election.

“To hold a marginalized identity while running for office is difficult, but the discouraging fact is that these hurdles do not disappear when elected; they are constant. It takes resilience to do this work and that is draining.“

We talk about healthcare and housing as a human right, minimum wage, education, and defunding the Vermont State Police as a practical means to provide better services for our community.

Taylor is interviewed by Ann Charles from All Things LGBTQ on Orca Media about her historic house run representing Winooski and Burlington.

“So often I think our history has been whitewashed in the way that we celebrate Pride and it feels like that movement is coming. That we are embracing the fact that it is not just about LGBTQ rights, but it is about our collective rights that we all deserve,” Small said.

LGBTQ Victory Fund, the only national organization dedicated to electing LGBTQ people to public office, has announced their endorsement of Taylor Small for Vermont House of Representatives. The endorsement signals Victory Fund’s confidence that Small is well-positioned to win the House race and will be a strong voice for equality once elected. Small would be the first openly transgender woman in the Vermont legislature if she wins her race, making this a historic run.

Though Vermont is a low prevalence state when it comes to HIV, these conversations, as well as access to safe and low barrier testing, are as important as ever. My friend and fellow Winooski resident, Cooper Anderson, offered his story to bring awareness to the impact here in Vermont.

When we defund police systems, we can invest in Black community-led education, health, and safety programs. This redistribution of funds will improve our schools and youth homelessness services, support solutions to the opioid crisis, enhance mental health response teams, and finance community violence prevention programs.

Taylor Small, Ember Quinn and Jamie Dufour are all first-time Democratic candidates vying for House seats in this August's primary election in Winooski, Milton and Manchester, respectively. If any one of them goes on to win in November, they will be the first openly transgender person elected to the Vermont Legislature.

I do not want to contribute to or strengthen a system where inequality is omnipresent, built up from its roots in colonialism and continued by each passing generation. This must be the generation that puts an end to this pandemic of hate, violence, and murder.

By integrating health-enhancing choices into transportation policy, we have the potential to save lives and money by preventing chronic diseases, reducing motor vehicle–related injury and deaths, and improving our environment. Accomplishing this will allow us to stimulate economic development and improve access to opportunity, health, and services for all Vermonters.