Karen Bass is the 43rd Mayor of Los Angeles and the first woman and second African American to be elected as the city's chief executive. Her career in public service has included front-line healthcare as a Nurse and Physicians Assistant, Community Organizing and founding the Community Coalition, and representing Los Angeles in the State Assembly and Los Angeles and Culver City in Congress. Bass sought to create an affinity group and mentorship for LGBTQ+ leaders on her mayoral campaign staff and has been a vocal advocate for the community with the legislation she has introduced at the state and federal level. Bass has led the charge on several seminal pieces of legislation and policy, looking to address the root causes affecting underserved communities, protecting vital services in California during the Great Recession, and the passage of what the Los Angeles Times called “the most significant child welfare policy reform in decades.”