Gov. Gretchen Whitmer appoints members to Michigan's first LGBTQ+ Commission
(CBS DETROIT) - Michigan's first LGBTQ+ commission has been officially formed.
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer appointed 13 members to the LGBTQ+ Commission earlier this week. Two of those members say they're excited to work on making Michigan a welcoming and safe place for all.
"We're going to look at what can we do to enhance the livelihoods, the community of the LGBT population from there," said commissioner Brandon Shamoun, who works at Wayne State University. "So I'm really excited to see what this evolves into."
The commissioners say that they haven't had their first meeting yet, so the goals of the commission haven't been codified yet. However, they hope to continue pushing for the improvement of life here in Michigan.
"What we're seeing on the ground here is the impact of the harmful rhetoric. Yes, we've made some great strides by amending our state civil rights law to include sexual orientation and gender identity. And we've stopped the harmful practice of conversion therapy against minors here in the state of Michigan. But there's so much more to be done," said Erin Knott, who serves as the executive director of Equality Michigan.
Each of the commission members will serve for four-year terms.