Pete Buttigieg’s husband talks election, LGBTQ+ rights in Grand Rapids

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — Chasten Buttigieg, author, activist and husband of U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, was in Grand Rapids Friday to discuss LGBTQ+ rights and the upcoming election.

He was joined by leaders like Human Rights Campaign President Kelley Robinson, State Rep. Kristian Grant, State Rep. John Fitzgerald and State Rep. Phil Skaggs for a roundtable discussion at the Grand Rapids Pride Center.

The conversation focused on how to secure legislative wins for the LGBTQ+ community, highlighting the importance of the November election.

“I’ve been telling everyone this year: Make politics boring again. We shouldn’t have to be glued to the television every day or to social media, wondering what rights are at stake,” Chasten Buttigieg said. “Politics is supposed to be about making your life easier and safer, whether that’s just navigating the process of changing your name and getting a piece of paper so that you can live your life more authentically.”

He said there are some important choices at stake this year, noting the president’s ability to nominate Supreme Court justices.

“I think what we all need to recognize … we as voters … is that winning requires vulnerability. And we are all made better when other people share their stories. I sort of think about politics like that game we used to play on the playground, when we would link arms together and send one person running across to break through,” Chasten Buttigieg said. “When you look at what’s at stake, it’s easy to say, ‘I can’t do this myself. I can’t solve all of these problems by myself, so I’m going to sit down.’ But if we’re playing that game and everyone says, ‘Well, it’s just too hard, I’m going to sit down,’ well, of course we won’t win. But when we recognize the intersectionality and we recognize that we are stronger together, then that link becomes just a little bit tighter.”

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