Va. lawmakers Roem, Ebbin, Henson headline Out for Harris launch party
ARLINGTON — LGBTQ Democratic Virginia state legislators Danica Roem, Adam Ebbin, and Rozia Henson headlined an Out for Harris coalition launch party on Thursday at Freddie’s Beach Bar and Restaurant in Arlington, Va.
Following remarks by Freddie Lutz, owner and namesake of the landmark 23-year-old LGBTQ establishment, the speakers highlighted Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Gov.
Tim Walz’s extensive track records of advancing LGBTQ rights while also stressing the urgency of get-out-the-vote efforts with just a few weeks remaining before early ballots will be cast in Virginia.
The lawmakers also shared reflections on their time as LGBTQ officeholders who each has made history with their elected positions: Roem, as the country’s first transgender state legislator, Ebbin, as the first LGBTQ representative in the Virginia house of Delegates, and Henson, as the Virginia General Assembly’s first gay Black man. “A historic first is first but not the last,” Roem said, adding that these wins often come with challenges, too — as Ebbin, her colleague in the state senate, experienced in the time between his groundbreaking election in 2003 and the LGBTQ representation seen in the state house today, with a total of nine out lawmakers now comprising Virginia’s LGBTQ legislative caucus. “When you put yourself out there, you wonder at what point the reinforcements are going to arrive,” she said, adding, with a smirk, “or if the closeted members who you’re serving with would just come out already.” Roem then shared her own coming out journey, starting with her coming of age in Northern Virginia.
