NEW YORK/SAN FRANCISCO – Marriage Equality USA (MEUSA) has appointed Denise Norris to its board of directors. MEUSA said in a press statement, “As a recognized leader in the transgender community, Denise brings a great depth of advocacy and organizing experience in the workplace, community, and beyond — as well as a commitment to building a holistic movement for all LGBT-aligned individuals.”
“Marriage equality is a fundamental part of the human experience across all of history and around the world. It has been and should continue to be a basic right enjoyed by all genders in all combinations,” said Denise. “I am excited to join the Marriage Equality USA board of directors and help articulate that the root of gender and orientation discrimination is based in the social expectation that people need conform to a set of rules that dictate how men and women must behave.”
She added, “The sole basis for denying marriage equality is that real equality would violate the rule that families can only exist between a man, a woman and the children they bear between them. People who identify as Transgender, Intersex, GenderQueer, or one of the many variations of how individuals express their gender, struggle against this form of discrimination every day.”
“Having leadership and boards that meaningfully reflect our diverse community matters,” said MEUSA Executive Director Brian Silva. “Denise’s leadership will help us improve our work educating on the critical intersections of marriage equality and transgender equality issues, as well as supporting the transgender community beyond marriage, where we are able.”
Norris is currently the lead for global transgender workplace inclusion at Accenture, a global management consulting firm with over 250 thousand employees world-wide. Her roots in the transgender community extend back more than 20 years from co-founding the Transexual Menace in 1993 to the creation of the Institute for Transgender Economic Advancement in 2014. Her vision for the future is that we will no longer be separated by letters like L, G, B and T, but will become one community united in seeking equality for all genders and all orientations.
“MEUSA is particularly excited to engage Denise’s experience and passion for advocacy as we continue to support initiatives such as the federal fully inclusive Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), Gender Expression Non-Discrimination Act (GENDA) in New York and legislation for trans-inclusive safe schools in California,” concluded MEUSA Board President Jane Wishon.
