Courtesy Trans Pride
Groundbreakers
Zooey Zephyr
Meet one of the artists, disruptors, educators, groundbreakers, innovators, and storytellers who all helped make the world a better place for LGBTQ+ people.
Zooey Zephyr is an unrepentant optimist. Even after experiencing what many would view as a terrible year, the Montana House member — the first trans person elected to the legislative body — believes we’ve turned a corner on LGBTQ+ equality.
“Everywhere I travel, I see a queer community that is supporting one another through the hardships we are facing,” Zephyr says. “When I speak to people outside of the queer community, I see broad support for LGBTQ rights, and the polling supports this as well. We are facing an unprecedented level of attacks by the far right; however, broadly, this hate is being rejected.”
Zephyr came to national prominence this year not just because of her historic election as a bi trans woman, but because she bravely spoke out against legislation restricting gender-affirming health care in the state. Debating against the bill, which would eventually pass, Zephyr said to her Republican colleagues, “I hope the next time there’s an invocation, when you bow your heads in prayer, you see the blood on your hands.”
The House’s GOP majority, led by the far-right Montana Freedom Caucus, immediately censured Zephyr, effectively preventing her from speaking on the chamber floor for the remainder of her term, or at least until 2025, assuming she’s reelected. Zephyr’s constituents in the liberal city of Missoula largely rallied to her side, even as the legislator and her fiancée were repeatedly swatted by transphobes. Zephyr soldiers on.
“I am working with various groups to brainstorm policy proposals for the next legislative session,” she says. “Secondly, I am traveling the state of Montana as well as the country in order to build coalition and help ensure the good folks who want to get into office have the support they need in order to succeed…and I believe — with every fiber of my being — that every time we proudly state who we are, every conversation we have with a stranger, we move the needle on queer rights and that it won’t be long before those who push these attacks on our community will be relegated to the dustbin of history.” @zoandbehold
Groundbreakers
Janelle Rodriguez
Meet one of the artists, disruptors, educators, groundbreakers, innovators, and storytellers who all helped make the world a better place for LGBTQ+ people.
Photo by Patrick Randak
Janelle Rodriguez is the executive vice president of programming at NBC News, in which capacity she manages NBC Nightly News, NBC News NOW, as well as breaking news specials. It’s a notable year for the country’s longest-running evening newscast, which is celebrating its 75th anniversary.
In addition to upholding the gold standard of this time-honored brand, the out Puerto Rican executive is breaking new ground by building NBC News NOW, the fasting-growing U.S. streaming news network. Under her oversight last year, NBC News NOW had an impressive 50 percent year-over-year growth and broadened into national and international linear distribution.
As the world gears up for an action-packed 2024 that includes the Paris Olympics and a U.S. presidential election, Rodriguez is more than prepared to lead her teams in their coverage. It’s a responsibility she doesn’t take lightly.
“I get a front row seat to history every day and have the honor of working with the best journalists in the world to bring the news to our audiences everywhere,” Rodriguez says.
Previously, Rodriguez served as CNN’s vice president of programming. During her career, she’s won several Peabody Awards and five Emmy Awards for election night coverage and beyond. Her CNN team took home the prestigious Alfred I. DuPont Award for its reporting on the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami. And she’s routinely honored for her work by media outlets, being recognized by Variety’s Women’s Impact Report, Fast Company’s Queer 50, and CableFax’s Pride List.
Despite all her professional accomplishments, Rodriguez takes her greatest pride in her family. “Being a mom to my 10-year-old daughter is the greatest gift and hardest work of my life. I’m truly blessed,” she says.