Victory Fund Makes History: Names First Female and First Black President

Today the Victory Fund and Institute, an organization aimed towards getting LGBT leaders elected to public office, named its first female—and its first black—president, Aisha C. Moodie-Mills, according to a release. 

Moodie-Mills has been an integral part of LGBT policy in DC since 2009, where she played a huge role in legalizing gay marriage in the District, and then was one of the first couples actually married. Her experience comes from years of consulting and fundraising for members of Congress and advocacy groups, including the Congressional Black Caucus. In 2010, she moved to the Center for American Progress, where she spearheaded the FIRE initiative, which explores the intersections between race, class, and sexuality.

 As president, Moodie-Mills will provide a vital and different perspective as a black member of the LGBT community. In an interview, she told Buzzfeed News, “I was impressed that they, as a … not really diverse group…how they came to it themselves that they need to do something different and that they needed to think much longer into the future — a 20-year plan — and that this 20-year plan needs to reach people that they’ve never reached before.”

Her focus, she told Buzzfeed, will be on increasing LGBT representation and conversations in Southern and plains states where LGBT visibility has always been low and discouraged. She also mentions her desire to put more women and transgender individuals on the ballot throughout the country.

We can’t think of anyone better suited for the role of President at the Victory Fund and Institute than Aisha C. Moodie-Mills. Sarah Kate Ellis, President and CEO of GLAAD said it best as quoted in Victory’s press release this afternoon: "Aisha is a tireless leader whose experience and wisdom will catapult the Victory Fund into its next critical phases. As a veteran of national politics and a savvy media spokesperson for the LGBT movement for over a decade, I have no doubt Aisha will electrify the organization and continue its legacy as a key player in moving LGBT equality forward."

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