Area individuals named to LGBTQ power list – Essex News Daily – Essex News Daily

ESSEX COUNTY, NJ — For the third year in a row, InsiderNJ has published its OUT 100 Power List, a tribute to influential LGBTQ people in New Jersey politics. Several area residents have been named to the list.

“This year’s list lets us venerate some amazing, brilliant LGBTQ people, veterans of the AIDS crisis, harnessing and channeling wisdom and expertise to battle COVID-19,” wrote Jay Lassiter, who compiled the list. “Many of the names below were called to action by America’s indifference to the AIDS pandemic. Every queer who died of AIDS meant one less mentor to teach and empower the next. The enormity of that loss haunts me, especially since I ‘came out’ at the height of the AIDS pandemic when many would-be mentors were either dead or too traumatized to contemplate nurturing the next generation. That’s why we’ll emphasize mentorship on this year’s power list.”

The list also recognized LGBTQ officeholders most poised to end up in Trenton or in Congress. Names to this sub-list are Bloomfield Council members Wartyna Davis and Rich Rockwell, who were called a “brilliant, dynamic duo.”

The following people were among those named to the 2020 power list:

  • At No. 23 is Dean Dafis. “Maplewood Councilman Dean Dafis is among the most compelling and persuasive voices in America against so-called conversion therapy, a barbaric practice where LGBTQ kids are tourtured, ostensibly to turn then straight. Conversion therapy is cruel and it doesn’t work. You can’t ‘pray the gay away,’” the listmakers wrote. “Mr. Dafis’ recent efforts to expand the Hetrick-Martin Institute means more health care options for Essex County’s LGBTQ community.”
  • At No. 26 is Peter Yacobellis, Montclair’s newest councilman. “I was 18 years old when Ellen DeGeneres came out,” Yacobellis said in his entry. “I had never heard of Harvey Milk when I was a kid and I didn’t truly understand what being gay meant until late in my teen years. There certainly were no prominent openly LGBTQ elected officials in my youth either. Today, mothers are writing me notes thanking me for being out and open in my run because of the example it gives to their children. What a beautiful evolution.”
  • At No. 32 is Shannon Cuttle, a member of the South Orange–Maplewood Board of Education. “A gatecrashing history-maker, Shannon Cuttle snagged the most votes — first place — in an eight-way race for school board to become New Jersey’s first transgender elected official,” the listmakers wrote. “Cuttle is a rising star in the state and national Democratic party, as evidenced by high-profile roles at this summer’s DNC.”
  • At No. 39 is Sharronda “Love” Wheeler. “A Newark native and member of the LGBTQ Democratic National Committee, Sharronda Wheeler was thrust into the activist life when she lost her only son to gun violence back in 2007,” the listmakers wrote. “A volunteer since 2013, Ms. Wheeler became president of Newark Pride Inc. in 2015. The event has blossomed under her leadership, attracting more participants and events than ever. Ms. Wheeler’s commitment to service includes her personal life — 15 years working in social service — and her personal time as well. Ms. Wheeler monitors LGBTQ teens, many since grown, and acts as a bridge that connects her community to resources and opportunities.”
  • At No. 55 is Brian Derrick, the finance director for Mikie Sherrill’s congressional reelection campaign. “Prior to leading Congresswoman Sherrill’s fundraising team, Mr. Derrick was the major gifts officer for Lambda Legal, an organization committed to liberty for LGBTQs and people living with HIV through litigation, education and public policy work,” the listmakers wrote.
  • At No. 61 is Julio Ceaser Roman III. “Julio Roman’s destiny as a fighter — and a carer — was forged very early. Mr. Roman, a fearless advocate and activist from Newark, was 11 years old when he helped his mother care for their Aunt Naomi as she died from AIDS,” the listmakers wrote. “That fateful experience propelled Mr. Roman to become one of New Jersey’s most respected AIDS activists. Mr. Roman currently directs community, LGBTQ and supportive services at the North Jersey Community Research Initiative, one of New Jersey’s largest and most comprehensive HIV/AIDS organizations serving the Newark metroplex.
  • At No. 66 is Elaine Helms, the founder of the Reaching Adolescents in Need Foundation in East Orange, which works to combat the high rate of prostitution among homeless LGBT minors. “It’s hard, gritty work and Elaine Helms is there in the trenches lifting up our most vulnerable youth and helping them reach their vast potential,” the listmakers wrote.
  • At No. 68  is Chris Cannella. “Cannella is a teacher by day and also a union potentate who was recently honored as a New Jersey Education Association Equality Champion for his work ‘to ensure equal rights for all students, including for LGBTQ-plus youth,’” the listmakers wrote. “A Bergen County and Lodi municipal Democratic committeeman, Mr. Cannella led a coalition of advocates who crafted LGBTQ-inclusvise educational curriculum in N.J. schools. Mr. Cannella is president of the Cedar Grove Education Association and also the second vice president of the Essex County Education Association.”
  • At No. 94 is Reggie Bledsoe, a former Newark Board of Education member. “As a school board member, Reggie Bledsoe fought to ensure that in every school in the Newark school district — NJ’s largest — there’s someone on staff who’s responsible for LGBTQ student concerns,” the listmakers wrote.
  • And finally, at No. 100, the list named “anyone still closeted.” Lassiter wrote: “Even in 2020, the closet remains a lonely, damaging place. With all the recent advances on LGBT rights, its easy to forget that there’s still plenty of anti-LGBT stigma out there. I hate to end on a down note, but it’s important to bear witness to that loneliness. We do that here.”

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