Overview
The OPEN resource network will host its annual pride celebration featuring a prominent advocate for the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgendered (LGBT) community, Jarrett Barrios, as guest speaker. A networking reception will be held from 4:30pm-5:00pm, followed by remarks from Mr. Barrios on how we can work together in creating equality.

In 1998, Mr. Barrios was the first Latino and first openly gay man elected to the Massachusetts Senate. He currently serves as the president of the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) and was the former president of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Massachusets Foundation. As a state senator, Barrios successfully lead the legislative effort to protect marriage equality in Massachusetts. In the legislature, he pioneered the legislative approach to anti-bullying education, succeeded in codifying the state Gay and Lesbian Youth Commission to prevent teen suicide and make schools safe for LGBT youth. Mr. Barrios graduated magna cum laude from Harvard and received his juris doctor, with honors, from Georgetown University Law Center.