Sarah Kate Ellis: Tackling Trans Rights and Advocacy Challenges

Sarah Kate Ellis: Tackling Trans Rights and Advocacy Challenges

Author: Jaimie Kelton – Queer Parenting & LGBTQ Families'. July 1, 2024 Duration: 35:36

Jaimie concludes the second annual Pride Extravaganza with Sarah Kate Ellis, CEO of GLAAD, discussing the organization’s efforts to combat misinformation and advocate for the LGBTQIA community. Together, they delve into current challenges, such as anti-trans sentiments infiltrating local school districts, and strategies for fostering understanding and inclusivity. Sarah highlights the importance of ongoing activism, voter engagement, and resilience in the quest for equality. 

Jaimie also details her personal experience with rising anti-trans sentiments in New York City's School District 2, highlighting the infiltration by groups like Moms for Liberty. Sarah Kate provides pragmatic advice on how to tackle such localized bigotry, emphasizing education, strategic questioning, and the importance of a unified front in the fight for equality. 

Stay informed and inspired by this empowering conversation, and stay tuned for more enlightening stories from The Queer Family Podcast.

🏳️‍🌈Thanks to California Cryobank (code LOVEISLOVE), and our ⁠⁠⁠Patreon⁠⁠⁠ supporters.

🏳️‍🌈Interested in advertising? Check out our packages ⁠⁠⁠here.⁠⁠⁠

🏳️‍🌈Key Takeaways:🏳️‍🌈 

  • GLAAD's Mission: GLAAD works to ensure a safe, equal world for LGBTQ individuals by leveraging large platforms and moments to shape narratives about the community.
  • Trans Community Advocacy: The episode delves deep into the political and social narratives affecting the trans community, stressing the importance of addressing misinformation.
  • Local Activism: Jamie shares her personal struggle with rising anti-trans sentiments in her children’s school district, underscoring the need for on-the-ground activism.
  • Educational Gaps: Sarah Kate highlights the significant lack of knowledge about the trans community, noting that more Americans claim to have seen a ghost than know a trans person.
  • Empowering Allies: Practical advice is given on how to engage allies and counter misinformation through inquisitive conversation rather than confrontational debate.


🏳️‍🌈About The Guest(s)🏳️‍🌈 Sarah Kate Ellis is the President and CEO of GLAAD, a leading LGBTQ advocacy organization. Under her leadership, GLAAD has leveraged major platforms and cultural moments to ensure fair and accurate representation of the LGBTQ community. She actively combats misinformation and works towards a safer, more equal world for LGBTQ individuals. Sarah Kate and her wife Kristen are also proud parents of twins, and their journey includes the unique experience of being pregnant at the same time.

🏳️‍🌈Resources mentioned in the episode: 

  • Sponsor: Visit https://www.cryobank.com/ and use promo code LOVEISLOVE for a free level 2 subscription to their donor catalog, or you can apply it to a level 3 subscription for a discount.
  • GLAAD Website: GLAAD.org
  • GLAAD Vote Resources: GLAAD.org/vote - Ensure you're registered, register others, and get involved in pro-equality initiatives.
  • GenderCool Project: youth-led movement helping to replace misinformed opinions with positive experiences meeting transgender and non-binary youth who are thriving.
  • Athlete Ally: Aims to end homophobia and transphobia in sport and to activate the athletic community to exercise their leadership to champion LGBTQI+ equality.


🏳️‍🌈If you like the episode, make sure to leave us a review and support The Queer Family Podcast on⁠⁠⁠ Patreon ⁠⁠⁠for as low as $2/month!

🏳️‍🌈We want to hear from you! Call us: 646-470-1840 ⁠⁠⁠thequeerfamilypodcast.com⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠thequeerfamilypodcast@gmail.com⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠IG⁠⁠⁠/⁠⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠⁠/⁠⁠⁠FB⁠⁠⁠/⁠⁠⁠TikTok⁠⁠⁠/⁠⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠⁠: @thequeerfamilypodcast

🏳️‍🌈Watch Video Episodes right now on ⁠⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠⁠ and on ⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠⁠

🏳️‍🌈Order the #ITOCT book based on this podcast on ⁠⁠⁠Amazon⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠IndieBound⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠Audible⁠⁠⁠.

🏳️‍🌈Edited by Jerson Barajas. Theme song: ⁠⁠⁠Tiffany Topol⁠⁠⁠\ Logo art: Daneen Stevenato.

🏳️‍🌈Buy our merch ⁠⁠⁠here.⁠⁠⁠

🏳️‍🌈For a full transcript of this episode and more info about the host visit our ⁠⁠⁠website



Our Sponsors:
* Check out Outdoorsy and use my code QUEERFAM for a great deal: https://www.outdoorsy.com


Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Hosted by queer mom Jaimie Kelton, The Queer Family Podcast-LGBTQ Families & Queer Parenting Stories offers a weekly space that is both uproariously funny and deeply genuine. Each episode features conversations with LGBTQIA+ parents, hopeful parents, and their allies, delving into the specific joys and hurdles of building a family outside of traditional frameworks. You’ll hear firsthand accounts of the paths to parenthood-from adoption and fostering to IVF and surrogacy-and the everyday realities of raising kids in a world that can still feel unfamiliar. This podcast moves beyond theory, focusing on lived experiences that cover everything from health and fitness routines that work for queer families to navigating complex conversations about sexuality and society with children. The goal is straightforward: to share stories that normalize these experiences, elevate diverse voices, and celebrate the full spectrum of queer family life. Tuning in means connecting with a community, finding resonance in shared challenges, and gathering a lot of practical wisdom-and laughter-along the way. It’s a resource and a companion for anyone curious about or living within the beautifully expansive definition of a modern family.
Author: Language: en-us Episodes: 100

The Queer Family Podcast – LGBTQ Families & Queer Parenting Stories
Podcast Episodes
Surrogacy Without the Waitlist: Inside Be Parent with Founder Naia [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 42:37
Jaimie talks with Naia, founder of Be Parent Surrogacy, about international surrogacy options, what intended parents can expect when working with an agency, and how Be Parent supports LGBTQIA+ families with transparency,…
Anish & Miguel: A Surrogacy Masterclass from Berlin [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 56:37
Anish & Miguel are two dads in Berlin who recently welcomed their son, Alexander, through agency-based surrogacy. And listen — some of us (cough… Jaimie… cough) approached queer family building with good vibes and very f…
Ash on Queer Birth Justice, Pregnancy & Palestine [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 56:14
Midwife, parent, nurse, educator, and proud Palestinian Ash joins Jaimie for a powerful, expansive conversation that connects queer birth work, liberation, bodily autonomy, and the politics of modern healthcare. From bec…
No Accidents Here: Alon Rivel on Intentional Gay Parenting [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 53:02
Alon Rivel joins Jaimie for a brutally honest, funny, and heartfelt conversation about what it really takes—emotionally, financially, and spiritually—to build a queer family through surrogacy. From his surrogate’s iconic…
Mark & Eoin: Two Irish Dads, Two Daughters, and a Fight for Change [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:12:36
Meet Mark and Eoin, two Irish dads proving that queer family building is both an act of love and of advocacy. Their path to fatherhood took them from Ireland to New York and Texas—navigating surrogacy independently, hono…
From Cult Upbringing to Queer Co-Parenting [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 55:45
What happens when you grow up in an evangelical cult, spend years closeted, marry to appease your family, and still find your way to queerness, healing, and chosen family? Therapist and author SC Nealy (they/she) joins J…
Breaking the Binary: Maya Gonzalez and the Gender Wheel [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 57:11
In this mind-expanding conversation, Jaimie sits down with Maya Gonzalez — genderqueer artist, author, publisher, educator, parent, and creator of The Gender Wheel — an innovative, nature-based framework that reimagines…