On the forefront of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender politics, Chrissy Gephardt came out in the 2004 presidential democratic primary as the openly lesbian daughter of Congressman Dick Gephardt.  The first openly gay family member of a presidential candidate in history, Gephardt is an accomplished spokeswoman for LGBT issues, and gave issues of equal rights and social justice a prominent place in the 2004 campaign. Gephardt reaches out to students in high schools, colleges and universities to encourage active participation at the polls and relates current political issues to the lives of young people.

 Most recently, Gephardt continued her involvement in LGBT and youth politics through her work as the Director of the Grassroots Campaign Corps for the National Stonewall Democrats, America’s only grassroots Democratic lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender organization. From 2004-2005, she was on the board of directors of the Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund, an organization that is committed to increasing the number of openly gay and lesbian elected public officials at the federal, state, and local levels of government. 

 Ms. Gephardt is an accomplished speaker for LGBT issues, women’s issues, and other causes related to social justice. Through her public persona, she is committed to furthering the cause of social justice in the LGBT community including voting rights, relational and familial rights, equality in employment and other legal rights.  She believes in working towards ensuring the vital participation of all people in the political process, particularly the youth of America. 

 Ms. Gephardt is a 1995 graduate of Northwestern University in Illinois and completed her Master of Social Work in 2001 from Washington University in St. Louis.  She is currently pursuing her law degree at Georgetown University Law Center in Washington, D.C. and expects to graduate in May of 2009.