Two Forums, One Agenda

As the campaign trails continues for a large number of democratic candidates, 10 of the initial 20 have qualified for the September debates, and all are vying for the attention of the American voting population.

We have been listening to where candidates stand on issues like the economy, healthcare, immigration, women’s rights, and various other topics. We have seen a raucous two rounds of debates as the hopefuls spat at the camera, and at times each other, and the division between the candidates is, at times, as wide as the right-wingers and left leaners.

For many folks, we just want to know how these candidates plan on repairing the damage done by the current administration and continue down the road of progress in social and civil rights as we had been prior to 2016. Yet, many issues have yet to be addressed in depth, such as LGBTQ issues, and voters want to know what kind of consideration and protections they can be promised in 2020.

Luckily, there are now not one but two upcoming forums which will address queer issues exclusively.

According to Windy City Times, The Human Rights Campaign Foundation has partnered with CNN to host a nationally televised LGBTQ presidential “town hall” on Thursday, October 10. Press secretary of HRC Lucas Acosta said they have received notice from many of the top-polling candidates who plan to participate, including former Vice President Joe Biden; Senators Elizabeth Warren, Kamala Harris, and Amy Klobuchar; former U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julian Castro; and Mayor Pete Buttigieg.

While there are currently two republicans who are challenging Trump, HRC has stated they have not invited any of those candidates to participate in the forum on Thursday, October 12.

Prior to the nationally televised forum, the national LGBTQ media group GLAAD will partner with One Iowa, The Advocate, and Cedar Rapids newspaper The Gazette to hold their own forum on Friday, September 20. Why Iowa? It is the first state that will register its preference for a Democratic candidate during caucuses on February 3.

While we are still more than a year away from the elections, time is running slim for the candidates to make their platforms known and grab the attention of voters to stay in the race.