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The Virginia Democratic State Senator Who Scores Worse on LGBTQIA+ Issues Than Republicans! [1]

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Date: 2023-06-12  

The Virginia Legislative session of 2020 was a remarkable year for progress in the Commonwealth. Thanks to the Blue Wave of 2019 in the VA Legislature, Democrats controlled the Governorship and both houses of the Legislature in this session.

Thanks to this, 2020 brought in a wave of progressive legislation on things like gun violence prevention, expanded voting access, and LGBTQIA+ protections to name just a few. As a known Chesapeake advocate for the LGBTQIA+ community (and School Board candidate in 2022), it pained me to see that “our” State Senator, Lionel Spruill Sr., was not one of the allies in this fight.

In fact, a Roanoke Times article shortly after the 2020 legislative session (see image) keyed in on this and used Spruill as the example of what it means to “take a walk” on votes.

As can be seen above, Equality Virginia — the commonwealth’s foremost LGBTQIA+ rights advocacy group who was heavily involved in the lobbying and construction of legislation during the session — ranked Sen. Spruill below TWO Republicans due to his refusal to stand up and support the LGBTQIA+ community.

This is not a new occurrence. It is, in fact, indicative of a legislator who simply will not support this section of our community. In his own words from a Washington Post article in 2014 after Del. Mark Sickles came out as gay, “If I was gay and came out like this guy did, I’d be done. My area, at the present time, most of them aren’t for it — especially the churches. So I remain neutral.”

Someone should have reminded then-Delegate Spruill of the famous Elie Weisel quote: “We must take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented.” As a community organizer, I have worked with numerous LGBTQIA+ affirming churches in the City of Chesapeake and South Hampton Roads, so I personally don’t buy this excuse. Not in 2014, not in 2020, and not in 2023.

As we celebrate Pride month in Chesapeake and Virginia and across the country, it is important to call out legislators who refuse to help such a vulnerable and victimized population. Without *active support* from state legislatures, especially in the current political climate where the Human Rights Campaign has declared a State of Emergency for LGBTQIA+ folx, we will continue to see legislative attacks on the LGBTQIA+ community.

Fortunately, allies and members of the LGBTQIA+ community who live in Virginia’s 18th Senatorial District have a choice on June 20th to vote for a candidate who actually *is* a supporter of the community. Not only does Sen. L. Louise Lucas have a perfect track record on Equality Virginia’s scorecards, voting for LGBTQIA+ affirming legislation 100% of the time, she has also been one of the top sponsors for Pride events in both Portsmouth *and* Chesapeake.

As a candidate for the House of Delegates myself (District 90, Southern Chesapeake), I want fellow legislators who will actively and emphatically support marginalized communities. Not those who “remain neutral” and allow oppression to thrive. We need legislators who stand up and fight, like Louise Lucas, and not ones who stand up to leave the room.

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[1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/6/12/2174900/-The-Virginia-Democratic-State-Senator-Who-Scores-Worse-on-LGBTQIA-Issues-Than-Republicans

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