The National Lgbtq Workers Center Aims To End Harassment On The Job

I remember the first time someone harassed me at work for being queer.

The Center, a first of its kind resource for queer workers of all stripes, aims to empower workers to stand up for their workplace rights, particularly freedom from the discrimination I experienced that summer.

As part of their mission to empower the queer workforce—almost 9.7 million people, according to the Center’s estimates—the Chicago chapter maintains a 24-hour worker’s rights hotline for queer people who are in need of assistance, also a first of its kind.

The Center’s LGBTQ+ economic justice summit is its cardinal event, held over two weekends in September. In the past, the summit has boasted programming related to worker and tenant rights, as well as yoga sessions, DJ sets, and a poetry slam. And like all of the Center’s work, the summit’s events and services are aimed at the entire queer community, with a particular focus on improving conditions for Black trans workers.