National Center for Transgender Equality via APThe White House has hired its first openly transgender staffmember, officials said Tuesday, marking yet another recent milestone in the transgender community.
Raffi Freedman-Gurspan will serve as an outreach and recruitment director on President Barack Obama's staff, according to the New York Times. The publication also reports that Freedman-Gurspan previously worked as policy adviser at the National Center for Transgender Equality.
Her hiring solidifies the Obama administration's support for the LGBT community and comes on the heels of a number of transgender hires in the administration, although White House officials say Freedman-Gurspan will be the first to work in the White House.
White House senior official Valerie Jarrett said in a statement (per the Times) that Ms. Freedman-Gurspan "demonstrates the kind of leadership this administration champions."
"Her commitment to bettering the lives of transgender Americans, particularly transgender people of color and those in poverty, reflects the values of this administration," said Jarrett.
Additionally, National Center for Transgender Equality Executive Director Mara Keisling praised President Obama for the appointment.
"President Obama has long said he wants his administration to look like the American people. I have understood this to include transgender Americans," said Keisling. "That the first transgender appointee is a transgender woman of color is itself significant. And that the first White House transgender appointee is of a friend is inspiring to me and to countless others who have been touched by Raffi's advocacy."
Obama has continually pledged his support to the LGBT community. In fact, following the headline-making suicide of transgender teen Leelah Alcorn, the Obama administration called for an end to the practice of "conversion" therapy aimed at LGBT youth.
"The overwhelming scientific evidence demonstrates that conversion therapy, especially when it is practiced on young people, is neither medically nor ethically appropriate and can cause substantial harm," Jarrett said in a statement at the time. "As part of our dedication to protecting America's youth, this Administration supports efforts to ban the use of conversion therapy for minors."
"Tonight, somewhere in America, a young person, let's say a young man, will struggle to fall to sleep, wrestling alone with a secret he's held as long as he can remember," added Obama. "Soon, perhaps, he will decide it's time to let that secret out. What happens next depends on him, his family, as well as his friends and his teachers and his community. But it also depends on us—on the kind of society we engender, the kind of future we build."
President Obama also previously applauded Caitlyn Jenner's transition to a woman and her public debut on the cover of Vanity Fair.
"It takes courage to share your story," the Obama administration tweeted, via the 53-year-old commander in chief's @BarackObama account, adding, "Your story matters in the fight for LGBT rights—share it here: https://ofa.bo/s6mA ."