In April 2025, SEIU Local 1000 Lavender Committee members Jared Reece and Nicole Crist, who also serve as Co-Presidents of the SEIU International Lavender Caucus, were honored to participate in the Intersectionality Leadership Panel at the annual SEIU AFRAM (African American Caucus) Convention in Chicago. This panel was part of a groundbreaking initiative by SEIU International to increase intentional collaboration and representation across all its identity-based caucuses, including AFRAM, Lavender, Latino, API, Native American, and Disability, ensuring intersectional solidarity and shared advocacy throughout our union movement.
Through this panel, Jared and Nicole were able to uplift the lived experiences of LGBTQ+ workers, particularly Black queer and trans workers, who often navigate dual systems of marginalization in the workplace. Their participation helped frame LGBTQ+ issues not as isolated concerns, but as inherently connected to racial, economic, and workplace justice. By bringing a Local 1000 perspective into this national space, they ensured that the realities and needs of our California-based LGBTQ+ membership, many of whom are Black, brown, and working-class, were represented in the broader SEIU dialogue.
This visibility strengthens Local 1000’s presence and leadership in the national labor movement, but more importantly, it brings back invaluable tools for cultural competency, anti-racism training, and inclusive member engagement. Attending and speaking at AFRAM allowed our representatives to form new cross-caucus alliances, share best practices from our Local, and learn directly from others doing transformative work across the country. These relationships and strategies are already helping shape more inclusive programming within Local 1000’s own Lavender Committee and broader union infrastructure.
Furthermore, by showing up visibly and vocally as LGBTQ+ leaders in a predominantly African American space, Jared and Nicole modeled the power of intersectional allyship, a value core to both Local 1000 and SEIU’s mission. Their contributions to the panel encouraged difficult but necessary conversations around how identity, labor, and equity intersect, and how our union can better center those at the margins.
In short, Local 1000’s participation in this event was a powerful reminder that LGBTQ+ justice and racial justice are inseparable. It’s through these national partnerships and shared spaces that we build a more inclusive, educated, and united labor movement, one that fully reflects and protects the diverse members of Local 1000.