Nathan Harris, Development Director of the Transgender Law Center, LGBT Leadership Photo by Theo Rigby

Strengthening LGBT Leadership

Leadership is a necessity, not a luxury, for the LGBT movement

According to a 2009 report by the Movement Advancement Project, building leadership talent should be a long-term priority.

Being on the right side of history isn’t always enough. To win real change against determined opposition, organizations and movements needs resources, strategy, and hard work. What ties these factors together? Strong leaders. That’s why the Haas, Jr. Fund is committed to helping build leadership capacity in the movement for gay and lesbian equality.

This 2009 study by the Movement Advancement Project supports the need for this work, and argues that training great leaders and building leadership talent should be long term priorities for the movement. As Haas, Jr. Fund senior and program directors Linda Wood and Matt Foreman wrote in the report’s foreword, “For four decades, the signature achievements of the LGBT movement have garnered headlines. Building LGBT leadership talent is much quieter, but no less important, work.”