My first Creating Change was held in Bethesda, Md., in 1989. The highlight for me was gay male sex pioneer Eric Rofes and lesbian feminist activist Suzanne Pharr talking about the language of S/M sexuality and how it might be challenging or liberating to survivors of abuse.

At the time, I was working in the movement to end domestic violence, and their exchange blew the doors off of all my assumptions.

This year, the 20th Creating Change conference, was personally my eighth. I’ve grown up in the movement at these gatherings, and the conference has grown up, too. There are still thrilling, cutting-edge discussions like the one between Eric and Suzanne, amidst countless topical sessions for advocates working on many fronts within our movement — my favorite titles this year: “Are Immigrants the New Gay?” and “Queerspawn: Making a Difference” (if that doesn’t illustrate the breadth of our work, I don’t know what does). Over time, Creating Change has morphed into the movement’s annual strategy meeting. It’s where we come together to wrestle over the moment, to map the future, and importantly, to appreciate the beauty and the sexiness of our ideas and our commitment to justice.

So, as I return now to my relatively new perch as director of the Policy Institute, I feel honored to be carrying on this work in the shoes of those who have done so before me with such conviction and brilliance — John D’Emilio, Urvashi Vaid and Sean Cahill. And I feel energized by the infusion of new leadership and ideas that the conference brought me — including co-directors Paulina Hernandez and Caitlin Breedlove at Southerners on New Ground, and the compelling contribution of faith communities to the dialogue.

Let’s get to work!

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