In June, Columbus City Council President and out LGBTQ+ official Shannon G. Hardin promised to create an LGBTQ+ affairs commission, responsible for advising lawmakers, city officials and the public around issues, policy and legislation affecting LGBTQ+ Ohioans.
On Tuesday, the newly formed, 13 member Columbus LGBTQ+ Affairs Commission held its first meeting.
“This commission might be new, but you are not individually new to this work,” Hardin said, addressing the 13-member commission directly. “The diversity of this commission should also be its strength.”
Commission chair Jasmine Roberts-Crews said members will work to establish a “framework and foundation” for the group, which will meet once per month.
Who is on the LGBTQ+ Affairs Commission?
Jasmine Roberts-Crews
Roberts-Crews is a lecturer at The Ohio State University (OSU)’s College of Arts and Sciences School of Communication.
“I want to make sure our commission, as we’re looking at these focus areas, that we are addressing the most marginalized within our community,” Roberts-Crews said. “That includes transgender people of color, elderly queer folks and our queer youth.”
Tyson Crenshaw
Crenshaw is Director of Safety for Equitas Health – the state’s largest provider of HIV/AIDS care and largest recipient of federal HIV/AIDS funding. He is also a paramedic with an extensive background in fire and EMS education.
“I’m a parent, and that’s what brought me to this space – to be able to impact what the world is going to look like for them,” Crenshaw said.“My wife is here, my kids are here. To be a Black, trans community member and to be able to sit at this table? Never thought it would happen.”
Siobhan Boyd-Nelson, Esq.
Boyd-Nelson is the former Deputy Director of statewide LGBTQ+ civil rights advocacy group Equality Ohio.
She currently serves both as president of the board of directors of Black, Out, & Proud and as a member of the board of directors at LOVEboldly, an LGBTQ+ faith-based non-profit.
Boyd-Nelson said she is excited to “continue [her] learning and growth as a member of this community.”
Riley Williamson
Williamson is a sophomore undergraduate student at the Ohio State University (OSU) currently working as a resident assistant (RA) in the gender neutral living community.
“I’m working with a lot of Ohio State’s more vulnerable LGBTQ+ populations,” Williamson said. “It’s really cool to be a young person in this community and get to meet so many older LGBTQ+ people who know so much.”
Julia Applegate
Applegate is senior lecturer in OSU’s Department of Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies.
“I come here as a lesbian, as a genderqueer, as a dyke and as an activist,” Applegate said. “My personal interests in terms of this commission are around health matters and aging – particularly for lesbians.”
Jaylah Hollins
Hollins is a Columbus native and social work student at Columbus State Community College.
“I have a lot of friends and family members that still reside [in Columbus,” Hollins said, “To be able to be in this room and represent some of those people is such a resounding moment in my life.”
Peaches Calhoun
Calhoun is a long-time community activist currently serving as secretary for the Area Commission under the Columbus Department of Neighborhoods.
Calhoun also operates the non-profit group Humanity First Ohio, which aims to provide civics education to voters across the state.
“I believe I’m part of a team here that has demonstrated the strength, the courage, the grit to be able to get in and do what we need to do,” Calhoun said.
Thomas Savage
Savage is the director of education and engagement for the Alcohol, Drug and Mental Health (ADMH) Board of Franklin County.
“It’s tremendously important for youth to see the type of representation on this commission,” Savage said. “I could not say enough great things about what I hope to accomplish alongside this group.”
Jamie Lenzo
“I’m here partly because of that journey with my babies,” said Lenzo, who is an education program manager at OSU and the parent of two transgender children.
“To say this year has been rough is an understatement,” Lenzo said. “But being an ally, I feel like I have access to things that sometimes the [LGBTQ+] community does not. I do not take that lightly and I am super excited to get to work.”
Jimmie Vera
Vera is a Puerto Rican-American dance educator and entrepreneur with a focus on creating Brown spaces and uplifting Brown performers.
“I’m here to represent all of the Club Kids, ballroom scene kids, pageant performers,” Vera said. “Our rights in Ohio are being questioned as far as drag being banned in the state of Ohio.”
Robert Leis
Leis is a Kansas transplant and founder of the Columbus chapter Stonewall Sports, a national LGBTQ+ sports league.
“Over the years I’ve learned how best to uplift the voices of marginalized communities and those folks that I call my family,” Leis said. “I’m super excited to get to work with all of you.”
Jonathan Keilholz
Keilholz is a Cincinnati native and freelance journalist with a background in marketing and storytelling.
“I understand the power of a strong story,” Keilholz said. “I hope I can use that skill on this commission.”
Blaine Saito
Saito is a professor of tax law and study at OSU, and was born and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii.
“I joke that I am a gay, asian, Jew – which also means I have a lot of guilt and shame,” Sainto said. “As a result, I would like to try and create a space where people don’t necessarily have to feel that in our community.”
What does the commission do?
While advisory boards do not directly author legislation, they provide important guidance for Ohio local and state lawmakers, typically around issues that affect specific groups or communities.
In Franklin County, the Commission on Immigrant and Refugee Affairs (CIRA)‘s has had particular influence on immigration law at the Ohio Statehouse.
“Collectively, as a whole, you have a lot of authority and power to advocate for [LGBTQ+ Ohioans],” Columbus city attorney Robert Tobias told commission members.
Tobias has worked for the city attorney’s office for 33 years, 26 of which he spent as a prosecutor.
“A group from the commission going to the Statehouse and making a statement during testimony? That’s powerful,” he said. “It’s just a matter of messaging and making sure the public understands what you do.”
Members will not have dedicated city email addresses. However, any emails they send or receive related to the commission will be subject to public records requests.
Commission meetings must be held in a physical space that members of the public can access and attend. The commission has not yet established if it will adopt a virtual meeting policy. 🔥
ignite action
- Ohioans can contact members of the Columbus LGBTQ+ Affairs Commission via email at LGBTcommission@columbus.gov.
- If you are a young LGBTQ+ person in crisis, please contact the Trevor Project: 866-4-U-Trevor.
- If you are an transgender adult in crisis, please contact the National Trans Lifeline: 877-565-8860
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