New Suffolk advisory board to advocate for LGBTQ* residents

A new Suffolk County advisory board aims to advocate for LGBTQ+ residents and address issues that may otherwise be overlooked, especially as officials say there are no people in elected county office who openly identify as LGBT.

The Suffolk County Legislature unanimously approved creating the 13-member board on Dec. 21 for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and intersex residents to advise county officials on policies, legislation and services, according to the resolution.

Advocates said the measure provides a rare recognition of LGBTQ residents and their needs after years of fighting to be seen. They hope it will improve education and awareness for county officials, as well as act as a tool to bolster safety, increase funding for services and improve conditions in schools, workplaces, jails, health facilities and housing.

Elaine Felton, a retired county and Babylon Town worker who identifies as lesbian, said the effects of a lack of representation in government over the years "broke my heart." But the advisory board can help change that dynamic.

"We have an equal seat at the table, where our needs, our interests and our wants will be taken care of — and will be looked at for the first time through the eyes of people who live it," said Felton, 67, of Bay Shore.

LGBT Network director David Kilmnick said he proposed the idea for such an advisory board to County Executive Steve Bellone about a year ago. The county has about two dozen other advisory boards, including for Black, Hispanic, Asian, Muslim and Jewish residents, according to the county’s Office of Minority Affairs.

They provide a voice for those marginalized groups, and LGBTQ residents deserve one too, Kilmnick said, adding he hopes the board will empower more LGBTQ people to run for office.

Bellone said he recognized the lack of an LGBTQ+ board was a "gap that we needed to fill and correct" and "something that's overdue."

"We celebrate our diversity, and this is a way to make sure we're addressing the needs of a very important community within our county," Bellone said in an interview, noting officials are already regularly in touch with advocates.

The advisory board, while marking "tremendous progress," will provide county officials with "a perspective that otherwise might be difficult, if not impossible, for members of the legislature to hear and understand," said former Suffolk Legis. Jon Cooper, who served from 2000 to 2012. He said he believes he is the only openly LGBT person to have served in the county legislature.

"There is still prejudice and there is still discrimination, and there are still hurdles to full equality, and the only way for the legislature to really understand that is to hear directly from the LGBT community," Cooper said.

Other advocates echoed concerns about safety and discrimination.

"Am I afraid walking down the street holding my girlfriend's hand? Depends on where I am," Felton said.

The county police department did not provide statistics on LGBTQ hate crimes.

The county Human Rights Commission received about five complaints of discrimination related to sexual orientation, sex or gender identity in 2020, said executive director Dawn Lott. But that is likely an undercount that is "not reflective of the discrimination the LGBTQ community faces," she said.

Juli Grey-Owens, executive director of Gender Equality New York, said the recognition of an advisory board is important because "for years, we were ignored or acted as if we didn't exist."

Grey-Owens, whose nonprofit advocates for transgender, gender non-binary and intersex New Yorkers, said she hopes the board will help improve county employees’ awareness of "gender expansive" people and pronoun use.

She also hopes the advisory board can improve jail conditions. She said she is concerned that Long Island jails house people based on their sex at birth, not their gender identity, which can increase the threat of violence and assault.

Undersheriff Kevin Catalina said the sheriff’s office, using a policy written in March, primarily takes inmates’ gender identities into account when making housing decisions. But officials reserve the right to house them differently if they don't appear as the gender they identified as and seem to try "to take advantage of that policy and endanger other inmates."

Catalina said the county jails have housed about two inmates who identified as transgender in the past year or two, and both ended up in protective custody. One requested it, and the other had disciplinary issues, Catalina said.

Grey-Owens of Huntington Station said the sheriff’s policy is "loaded with a bunch of holes" because people cannot necessarily determine people's gender identity by their appearance and protective custody in solitary confinement can harm mental health.

Advocates expressed hope for the board and urged county officials to utilize it. No members have been appointed yet.

Legis. Kevin McCaffrey (R-Lindenhurst), who is expected to become presiding officer of the legislature next week, said: "It’s a community that for a long time has not heard had their voices heard, and I’m committed to making sure that they do."

By Rachelle Blidner

rachelle.blidner@newsday.com@rachelleblidner

Rachelle Blidner covers Suffolk County government, politics and breaking news.