MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Two newly elected transgender members of the Minneapolis City Council hugged, shared a high-five and enjoyed cheers from onlookers as they met at City Hall.
Andrea Jenkins and Phillipe Cunningham take office in January. They say their historic wins are a victory for equality in the U.S.
Jenkins and Cunningham know their way around City Hall. Jenkins, a 56-year-old transgender woman, spent years as a policy aide to two previous council members. Cunningham, a 29-year-old transgender man, worked in the mayor’s office.
Cunningham says when voters found out he was transgender and black — and that his husband also is transgender — they said, “That’s who I want to represent my neighborhood.”
Jenkins says their election is a signal that “hatred and bigotry in this country will not stand.”
This is a nice, feel-good story. Congratulations to the two new election winners.
Priceless.
Such a wonderfully enlightened state. Hard to imagine they share borders with Wisconsin, Iowa, and the Dakota twins…
Big smile here.
Slowly, inch by inch, we are clawing our way up the social evolutionary ladder.
Some parts of it are enlightened.