After ringing in the new year, you might want to wake up on January 1st to tune into the 130th Tournament of Rose Parade on New Year’s Day. Floats, and horses, and band after band? Well, yes, but this year the parade will be make a historic stride for the LGBTQ+ community as it will celebrate the first ever out member of the LGBTQ community to be crowned.
Los Angeles Blade reports that Louise Siskel of San Marino, California will proudly head the Rose Parade court on January 1, 2019. Siskel is a senior at Pasadena’s Sequoyah High School, is a member of the debate team and judicial committee, is involved in YMCA Youth & Government, and has researched breast cancer under Dr. Shehla Pervin at The Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science. She has even worked on research projects with NASA. According to the Pasadena Tournament of Roses Marketing & Communications department, Siskel has openly identified with the LGBTQ community as bisexual.
In addition, Siskel is also the first Jewish queen to be crowned and the first queen with glasses to be crowned in the history of the Tournament of Roses.
Siskel told the Pasadena Star News:
What was important to me throughout the interview process was that I was completely transparent about who I was, about the things that I value, and about the things that I advocate for,
I feel lucky that I was selected by the committee for those reasons. That, to me, gives me great faith in the organization and a great amount of respect for the committee. I’m inspired constantly by people’s dedication and hope, and joy for life
I encourage everyone to stay engaged and active within your community, advocate and fight for the things you believe in, regardless of whether other people respond or care about those things in the way you do.
I think it can be easy to get discouraged when people don’t share the same passion for your values or for the things that you care about, but I hope that people continue to fight for the things that are important to them, regardless of the support they see from others.
Tune in on Tuesday, January 1, 2019 at 8:00 a.m. to watch Siskel and the the rest of the Rose Parade Court make their way down Colorado Boulevard at the 130th Tournament of Roses.
h/t: Los Angeles Blade, Pasadena Star News
She sounds like a very
She sounds like a very admirable person.