Owen Daniel-McCarter, who is now the first transgender man to lead an LGBT organization, was welcomed by community members at an Aug. 25 reception at the downtown headquarters of Access Living Chicago.
Daniel-McCarter was named executive director of Illinois Safe Schools Alliance ( the Alliance ) in June, replacing Anthony Papini, who left to take a new position in his native Washington state. He was introduced by Alliance board member Mary Morten as well as Avery Kaplan, an Evanston student who came out as trans while in the eighth grade.
Kaplan praised Daniel-McCarter's understanding of youth issues, noting that, "He doesn't talk down. He just talks to you. You never leave him in a bad mood, and he's always fun and loving."
Daniel-McCarter was previously the Alliance's policy/advocacy director and said that he was first impressed by the organization because he "saw the Alliance doing things differently than other mainstream organizations were doing at the time." He particularly praised the Alliance's efforts to think critically about the individual needs of young people and reach out to other organizations with overlapping missions.
He noted that he hoped to see the Alliance strengthen its role serving the entire state, not just the Chicago region, as well as working for school curriculums that don't prioritize hetero- and cis-normativity. He also said schools need to be encouraged to include LGBT histories in those curriculums.
"We know that young people are not learning our history," he said.
Among those in attendance at the reception were state Rep. Greg Harris, Equality Illinois CEO Brian Johnson and Daniel-McCarter's mother.
"I feel like all my favorite people in the world are here in the room with me right now," said Daniel-McCarter.
