When it comes to city government, Judy Rice has seemingly done it all. She served as treasurer for the City of Chicago under Mayor Richard Daley, was the first female commissioner of both the Chicago Department of Transportation and the Chicago Department of Water, worked as director of the Department of Revenue and practiced law as assistant corporation council, among other things.
But this fall, Rice is adding two firsts to her resume. She is running for judge in the Cook County Circuit Court 7th Subcircuit, and she coming out as a lesbian.
Rice has long been active in the city's LGBT community. She co-chaired the 2006 Gay Games Champions program. She has attended numerous community events, including galas for Equality Illinois, Center on Halsted and the Lesbian Community Care Project. She is currently the senior vice president and head of community affairs & economic development for BMO Harris Bank.
Windy City Times caught up with Rice to talk about her bid for the bench, her history in Chicago's LGBT community and why, after more than three decades in the community, she is coming out now.
Windy City Times: So why are you pursuing the bench? Why this race?
Judy Rice: I have been a lifelong Chicagoan, and I really love the city, love its people. I feel that public service is something that I've been called to do. I've had a great time working for BMO Harris Bank … but what I have missed is public service. The decisions that judges have to make are very important. I feel like that I would like to use the skills that I have, legal, community and personal, to bring that to the bench.
WCT: How long have you been in the subcircuit?
JR: I moved into the subcircuit in July, into the West Loop. That was important for me as well because this subcircuit has been very hard-hit by crime, by drugs, by other things that affect urban life. I wanted to be somewhere that I could make a difference with those things. My father [Fred Rice] was the commander of [the] police district for years where I am running. My mother [Thelma] was a Chicago Public Schools teacher. So even though I grew up on the South Side of Chicago, I have very strong ties to this community.
WCT: You have long been active in Chicago's LGBT community.
JR: Yes.
WCT: Can you talk about your involvement in the community?
JR: I think it is a very strong community. I've been very happy to be a part of it. We rally together on many issues. I first started going to the Pride Parade probably some 30 years ago. At that time, you saw just several thousand people outside. For me to see a million Chicagoans come out and rally behind this community. … We've rallied around the ability to marry each other and to create our families with children and partners, and I think we have made some great strides in that across the country, and we're going to see it here in Illinois as well.
There are so many reasons why it's always been important for me to be involved in the community, and see the progress that we've made over the years.
WCT: So, you are running as an out candidate, is that correct?
JR: Yes, I am. It's a factor about me. There are many factors about me, the fact that I'm African-American, that I'm female, that I'm a lesbian, that I'm an attorney, that I've been in business school. It's not something that is the primary focus of my role, but it's a factor about me, and at this point in my life, it's one that I'm open about. And so the answer to your question is, yes.
WCT: You have strong ties in the community. Did you feel pressure from the community to come out over the years?
JR: I think that people have always known who I am, the people who know me. I've never hidden who I am from people who know me. I wouldn't say it's any pressure. It's me feeling that it's important that we raise our hands at this point in time because people need to understand that LGBT are around them everywhere in the community. Maybe they're doctors, maybe they're lawyers, maybe they're sons, maybe they're daughters. So, the more than we can show that, the better it is going to be for our community.
WCT: Could you have imagined 30 years ago when you started attending Pride that it would be possible to run as an out candidate for judge?
JR: I could not imagine at all. I was a scared, young person to be out on the street and be physically identified. So, look at the change that we have had and that we've come to through the work of many people who are a lot more brave and a lot stronger than I ever have been.
WCT: Do you have a partner?
JR: I do. [Her name is Barb Heller.] She's a physician, and she is a great support for me, also. We've been together for 10 years, and we just enjoy our friends, enjoy the city, enjoy going to events together.
WCT: You, of course, worked under Mayor [Richard M.] Daley for a number of years. What do you think his legacy was for LGBT people? Do you see yourself as part of that?
JR: I don't think my role was specific to LGBT issues, but I knew at all times that I had the support of the mayor as an individual. … I think my proudest moment with him was when we were in a court judgment and he was asked to talk about the Boy Scouts and how did he feel about their position not to allow gay men to be scout leaders. And I thought that he would maybe waffle or say something to get off the subject. I was so proud when he said straightforward, "I think they're wrong." He said, "I don't think that they understand that a gay man is not a criminal and that child sexual abuse is a crime, and that are many types of men, even straight men, fall into that or could commit that type of crime."
That really brought what he had indicated to me on a personal level. It really brought home the depth of his support.
WCT: Beyond marriage rights, what do you see as deprivations under the law for LGBT people?
JR: I think it's important that we secure human and civil rights for every individual and for individuals in our community. People should not be afraid at their job of bringing their whole self to work. People should not feel threatened where they live. People should have access to appropriate healthcare. So these are all things that I think are civil rights, are justice issues that we have to work on in our community and other communities as well.
WCT: What issues do you think face transgender people in the courts?
JR: I think we see a lot of them. Everywhere that you go, you're asked to identify yourself. So one problem and one issue those would bring for individuals who are transitioning or have transitioned are in the workplace. Are they going to be accepted? Are they going to be able to be terminated from their jobs because they're transitioning? So those are the types of issues that we have to make sure people are safe, that they have their civil rights.
WCT: What is the bottom line for you? Why vote Judy Rice for judge?
JR: I think people get someone who knows the community, who knows the issues that we are going through in the community, who is fair, who will listen, who will try to make well-reasoned decisions on behalf of people who are a part of them, who will be open. Those are all the qualities that you want in a judge. I also feel that that diversity of my experience and the diversity of my career is important in helping to make those decisions.
More on Rice is available on her campaign website at www.judyriceforjudge.com .
