Meet More LGBTQ+ Advocates for Change Working to Better Queer Lives

Florida’s Zander Moricz, 18, is a force. The youngest public plaintiff in the lawsuit against Gov. Ron DeSantis and the state of Florida over the “don’t say gay” law, Moricz was class president at Pine View School for four years and the first out gay class president in the school’s history. In 2019, Moricz founded the Social Equity and Education Initiative, which began in response to the “don’t say gay” legislation and has grown into a movement of over 1,000 organizers fighting to defend marginalized groups across the nation. Earlier this year, Moricz was told by his school that he could not mention his activism against the “don’t say gay” law in his graduation speech. In response, he worked with SEEI to send out 10,000 “Say Gay” stickers to be worn at graduation ceremonies across the state and raised $50,000 in three days to support young organizers. Also, in his speech, he used being curly-haired as a metaphor for being gay. “My activism is a form of self-defense,” Moricz says. “We need to treat every attack against human rights as an emergency — because it is.” Moricz’s activism isn’t stopping anytime soon; he is currently the campaign manager for a Sarasota County commissioner candidate who he hopes will become the first Democrat elected to the position in over 50 years.

New Jersey-born professional wrestler Sonya Deville, 28, is a mixed martial artist and WWE superstar who first made headlines in 2015 when she came out as gay while competing on WWE Tough Enough. The first out gay female wrestler in WWE history, Deville has since used her platform to push the WWE to be more inclusive and has spoken out in support of mental health access for the LGBTQ+ community. During Pride Month this year, Deville worked with the WWE to launch the WWE Together Pride collection; the net proceeds will be donated to GLAAD. “It’s important for me, as someone who was closeted until I was 21, to use my voice and platform I have now to speak for those who still can’t,” Deville says. “We have to be us because everyone else is already taken.” Since joining the WWE, Deville has competed on WWE Raw as part of the Wicked Absolution Trio alongside Paige and Mandy Rose, and later joined Rose on WWE Smackdown on team Fire and Desire. In 2019, Deville appeared on the reality show Total Divas.

Ose Arheghan graduated magna cum laude from Ohio State University this year with dual degrees in Chinese and political science. Although they just graduated from college, their list of accomplishments is long. “I fell into organizing as a student after learning and experiencing the ways systemic barriers can adversely impact a young person’s success,” Arheghan says. “I’ve always wanted queer young people, especially Black queer young people, to know that our struggles are not our fault. We have every right to take up space as we learn, grow, and develop as people.” In 2017, GLSEN named Arheghan Student Advocate of the Year for their work lobbying Congress on LGBTQ-inclusive sexual health education and speaking with Ohio state legislators about protecting LGBTQ+ youth in schools. While in high school, they also launched a year-long series on diversity for their school’s paper, where they highlighted LGBTQ+ voices to shed light on the experiences of the community. During their time in college, Arheghan was a Campus Ambassador for GLAAD and worked with Know Your IX, an organization that empowers students to advocate for their rights under Title IX.

In February 2021, Kierra Johnson made history when she became the National LGBTQ Task Force’s first Black executive director. As a bisexual woman, Johnson is also one of only a few queer women of color at the helm of a national LGBTQ+ organization. “I am honored to be in an ever-expanding movement of people dedicated to furthering civil and human rights for us all,” says Johnson, whose background is in reproductive justice. The work of the Task Force is not new to Johnson, who previously was the organization’s deputy executive director and also served on its board of directors and National Action Council. Since joining the organization, she has made a point to keep the Task Force’s work intersectional with campaigns to queer the census, defend abortion rights, and restore voting rights to returning citizens in Florida. “Leveraging our power, acknowledging our history, and affirming our lives and our joy 365 days a year is a practice of resistance and resilience,” Johnson says. “We can’t stop. I won’t stop. There is no end until the humanity of every person in this country is affirmed, protected, and celebrated!”