President Barack Obama has appointed Raffi Freedman-Gurspan as the White House's primary LGBT liaisonmaking her the first transgender person in the role, according to BuzzFeed. ( In addition, The Jewish Telegraphic Agency has noted that Freedman-Gurspan is a Jewish native of Honduras. )
Last year, Freedman-Gurspan became the first transgender staffer appointed to the White House, working as the outreach and recruitment director in the presidential personnel office. Freedman-Gurspan previously served as the National Center for Transgender Equality's ( NCTE's ) policy advisor for the Racial and Economic Justice Initiative.
Mara Keisling, executive director of NCTE said, "President Obama has said he wants his administration to look like America, and they have moved to include trans Americans. Raffi's skills and personality make her the exact right person for this important job."
The article is at www.buzzfeed.com/dominicholden/white-appoints-first-transgender-person-as-primary-lgbt-liai .
National Center for Transgender Equality statement: NCTE applauds appointment of White House LGBT liaison Raffi Freedman-Gurspan
Washington, D.C. — The National Center for Transgender Equality congratulates our former colleague Raffi Freedman-Gurspan on her appointment to the position of Outreach & Recruitment Director for Presidential Personnel and Associate Director for Public Engagement at the White House. In this role, Freedman-Gurspan will serve as the primary point of contact for LGBT organizations interacting with the White House. NCTE commends President Barack Obama for appointing Freedman-Gurspan to be the first out transgender White House LGBT Liaison.
"Raffi is a great choice. President Obama has said he wants his administration to look like America, and he is including trans Americans as part of that vision. Raffi's skills and personality make her exactly the right person for this important job," said NCTE Executive Director Mara Keisling.
Freedman-Gurspan has been working at the White House since mid-2015. Prior to her appointment to the White House, where she was the first ever out transgender staffer, she worked at NCTE and in the Massachusetts House of Representatives.
The National Center for Transgender Equality is the nation's leading social justice advocacy organization winning life-saving change for transgender people. As a national social justice organization, NCTE is devoted to ending discrimination and violence against transgender people through education and advocacy on national issues of importance to transgender people.