The #lgbtq community is ushering in big wins during the 2020 election and it’s a wave of change across the United States indeed.
Florida has rewritten its history by electing two Black queer politicians, Shevrin Jones and Michele Rayner-Goolsby, to serve in the state legislature.
Michele Rayner-Goolsby an “unapologetic Black woman,” as she describes herself has made history as the first out LGBTQ Black woman elected to Florida’s House of Representatives.
Rayner-Goolsby won in Florida’s District 70, which comes on the heels of winning the Democratic primary. She remained unopposed in the general election.
In August, after her historic win, the top attorney wrote in a tweet, writing, “Y’all. It just hit me. I’m the first openly Black queer women ever elected in Florida-at any level.”
She continued: “Our team was led by a Black woman. It was anchored by women and women of color. We won because we defined ourselves for ourselves.”
In a release after she won the Democratic primary, Rayner-Goolsby said her victory “represents a new day.”
“We’ve run a campaign focused on putting people over politics and that’s rooted in a commitment to working with and for residents until the change they seek is a reality,” she said. “This win proves that this community is…tired [of] business as usual and ready for change, and I’m so grateful and humbled that the voters of District 70 have elected me to represent them in Tallahassee to move us closer to the change we all deserve.”
Award winning Attorney Michele Rayner-Goolsby is the founder and principal attorney of Civil Liberty Law. The highly sought-after attorney been selected as a “Rising Star” by Super Lawyers and is a Top-Rated AVVO attorney, and has garnered many community awards.
She has also been featured on Dr. Drew, HLN, CNN, NewsOne, The Huffington Post, The Root, and various national and local radio, television and print media.
Prior to forming Rayner Robinson, Attorney Rayner honed her legal skills as a criminal defense attorney for the State of Florida. She later continued her career working with two well-established law firms in the Tampa Bay Area and establishing her own successful solo practice.
Fellow Democrat Shevrin Jones was elected Florida’s first openly gay state senator.
