Ellie Perez leads The LGBTQ+ Center Long Beach
Los Angeles, CA — Today, Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn appointed Latina LGBTQ+ community leader Ellie Perez to the first-ever Los Angeles County LGBTQ+ Commission. The Commission was created in June with a motion authored by Supervisor Hilda L. Solis that Hahn coauthored. The 15-member Commission will advise the Board of Supervisors on issues facing LGBTQ+ residents in Los Angeles County.
Perez is an experienced management professional, educator and LGBTQ+ advocate. She currently serves as Interim Executive Director of The LGBTQ Center Long Beach.
“Ellie’s commitment and leadership within the LGBTQ+ community are informed by her own experiences, and that driving passion is evident throughout her career. What she is going to bring to the Commission as a lesbian woman and mother of a trans child is extremely unique and valuable. I’m grateful that she has accepted this invitation,” said Hahn.
Perez has a long history of volunteering and advocating for others. In May of 2020, she and her wife Angela founded the Safe Spaces Alliance, a Long Beach City initiative dedicated to curating and promoting LGBTQ+ safe spaces and LGBTQ+ and ally-owned businesses.
“I am humbled and honored to be appointed to Supervisor Janice Hahn’s LGBTQ+ Commision. Having a seat at the table will allow me to collaborate with others who seek to move our LGBTQ+ community closer to equity and equality,” said Perez.
The LGBTQ+ Commission will provide recommendations on policies and budget priorities at a time when LGBTQ+ people face mounting challenges. According to the LA County Commission on Human Relations’ 2021 Hate Crime Report, 89% of the hate crimes towards gay men were of a violent nature and 93% of anti-transgender crimes were violent – a rate of violence higher than any other marginalized group recorded by the report. Nationwide, hundreds of anti-LGBTQ+ bills have been introduced at the state and local levels.
Hahn’s other appointment to the LGBTQ+ Commission is Huntington Park city councilmember and Latino Equality Alliance executive director Eddie Martinez.