Jahaira Gonzalez is a proud Afro-Latina, native Puerto Rican transgender woman from the Bronx, New York, and a dedicated community advocate with over a decade of service. As Director of Outreach & Prevention Services at Destination Tomorrow, The Bronx LGBTQ Center, she leads initiatives focused on HIV prevention, sexual health education, and community.

In addition to her outreach work, Jahaira manages a food pantry and clothing distribution program supporting individuals facing food insecurity and provides Narcan training to help combat the opioid crisis in New York City. She is deeply committed to helping people navigate and access essential services, working to remove barriers and ensure others do not experience the hardships she faced growing up. Through her work, Jahaira continues to uplift, educate, and empower marginalized communities.

Congresswoman Sarah McBride was elected to Congress in November 2024 and represents the state of Delaware as its sole member of the House of Representatives, becoming the first openly transgender person elected to Congress. Congresswoman McBride was the first transgender state Senator in U.S. history, serving the First State Senate District of Delaware from 2020 to 2025. She has worked as a public servant and advocate for decades.

As a state senator, McBride distinguished herself as a leading health advocate by expanding access to care and strengthening public health systems, including passing the landmark Healthy Delaware Families Act, providing paid family and medical leave, and the Protect Medicaid Act of 2024.

For over 20 years, Asha Lyons has dedicated her career to supporting marginalized communities through social work, public health, research, and anti violence advocacy. A trans woman of Latin and Caribbean descent, she brings a trauma informed, anti oppressive, and gender affirming approach to her role as the Licensed Social Worker for the Gender Affirmation Program (GAP) at VNS Health, where she supports trans and nonbinary patients post-gender affirmation surgery. She also serves as Vice Chair of the Bronx LGBTQ Task Force, at the office of Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson, continuing her commitment to advocacy and community empowerment.

Admiral Rachel Levine, MD, is the highest-ranking openly transgender government official in U.S. history, serving as the 17th Assistant Secretary for Health from March 2021 to 2025, under President Joe Biden. In 2021, Dr. Levine was commissioned as a four-star admiral in the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, becoming the first openly transgender four-star officer in any of the U.S. uniformed services. Her clinical and public health work has helped people dealing with a range of medical issues, including eating disorders, the opioid crisis, and COVID-19. She is vocal advocate for LGBTQ+ youth, emphasizing that gender-affirming care is essential, life-saving healthcare.

Dr. Levine previously served as the Pennsylvania physician general from 2015 to 2017 and as secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Health from 2017 to 2021.

Porsche Jones is an inspiring advocate, speaker, and community leader who embodies resilience and service every day. Featured in HBO’s The Stroll and honored by the New York Historical, she uses her voice to amplify the stories of transgender women and sex workers while championing animal welfare and community empowerment. As a Community Health Outreach Worker at Amida Care, she helps members of the health plan optimize their care and support.

A two-time The Generations Project Genny Award winner, Porsche continues to uplift others and create lasting change wherever she goes.

For over 30 years, Diana Feliz Oliva has worked towards health justice for LGBTQ+ people and communities impacted by HIV. She was the first openly transgender/HIV+ person to graduate from Columbia University, work at Gilead Sciences, and lead an LGBTQ+ center in Fresno, California. As the leader of Casita Feliz and the creator of initiatives like Gilead Sciences’ TRANScend Community Impact Fund, the spaces she builds expand access and increase support for TGNB people.

Her leadership and care have transformed communities locally, nationally, and internationally.

Cecilia Gentili was a force like no other—a visionary, a fighter, and an unwavering advocate. She dedicated her life to uplifting trans immigrants, sex workers, people experiencing homelessness, and those facing addiction, always standing up for the most vulnerable. Cecilia was a mother to many and a true community powerhouse for TGNB and sex workers’ rights, touching countless lives through her work at GMHC, Apicha Community Health Clinic, a clinic for sex workers at Callen-Lorde Community Health, Decrim NY, and Trans Equity. With sheer grit and creative vision, Cecilia raised millions for trans public health, pioneered policies to protect the trans community, and even created the first-ever Trans Music Festival.

A writer, performer on the iconic show Pose, and a true icon herself, Cecilia had an impact that extended far beyond what words can express.

As the founder of The Global Trans Equity Project and the National Director of Policy & Strategy for the National Trans Visibility March, Dr. Elijah works hard to dismantle stigma and transform systems through policy, research, and education.

His leadership and experience as a Black trans man uplifts the voices of TGNCNB+ people and inspires conscious love, inclusion, and joy.

One of the most prominent figures of the gay rights movement of 1960s and 1970s New York City, Marsha P. Johnson was an important advocate for homeless LGBTQ+ youth, those affected by HIV and AIDS, and gay and transgender rights. After fighting on the front lines of the Stonewall uprising in 1969, Marsha became an activist and co-founder (with Sylvia Rivera) of Street Transvestite Activist Revolutionaries (STAR), a place where young transpeople living on the street could feel safe.

She died in 1992 at the age of 46, under suspicious circumstances, a case that remains unsolved. In 2020, New York State named a waterfront park in Brooklyn after Marsha.

Born in El Salvador and a New Yorker for over 16 years, Denise Gutierrez is a fierce advocate for the transgender community. Her advocacy journey began in 2014, when she worked to empower Long Island’s trans community. Now the Program Manager of Community Healthcare Network’s Transgender Family Program, Denise has spent five years connecting TGNCNB people to the health care, legal services, and mental health support they need to thrive.

Her leadership is rooted in her commitment to inclusion, education, and fostering a supportive society for all.