Wednesday, June 18, 2025
5 p.m. Pacific/6 p.m. Mountain/7 p.m. Central/8 p.m. Eastern
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In a moment when queer and trans lives are under attack, we turn to those who’ve been here before. Join LGBTQ-RAN board members Sharon Groves and Cedric Harmon in dialogue with three of our elders—Rev. Harry Knox, Rev. Louis Mitchell and Bishop Tonyia Rawls—about how they faced crisis, carved out joy, built movements, and survived. Their stories—of resistance, imagination, and care—remind us that we come from a lineage of strength. This will be inspiring conversation with LGBTQ+ religious elders as they reflect on what sustained them then—and what we need to carry forward now.
Rev. Harry Knox began his faith organizing work with Equality Georgia and Equality Florida in the 1990s. In 2003, he became the national program director for Freedom to Marry. In 2005, he became the founding director of the Religion & Faith Program for the Human Rights Campaign Fund. Knox created resources for and built coalitions of persons of faith throughout the U.S. to mobilize for LGBTQ equality. He was appointed to the White House Council on Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships by President Barack Obama in 2009, where he played an important role in development of civil rights legislation.
Rev. Louis J. Mitchell has been active in community care since the late 1970’s. Focused on health and healing, self-determination, and respect for all, with a focus on trans folks of all identities and their families. He currently serves as the Senior Pastor of Rincon United Church of Christ in Tucson, Arizona. He is a co-founder of Transfaith with Mx. Chris Paige. His greatest joy is his child, Kahlo and being a part of his life! He believes in the restorative power of truth telling.
Bishop Tonyia Rawls founded the Freedom Center for Social Justice in Charlotte, North Carolina, in 2009. Called to ministry at a young age, Rawls drew on her business acumen to develop expositions for Black-owned businesses in the 1990s. Rawls then became a cleric in the Unity Fellowship Church Movement, opening their first affirming congregation in the Bible Belt of the South. She founded Sacred Souls United Church of Christ in 2015 and currently serves as Pastor Emeritus. She later became one of the co-founders of The Black Mountain School of Theology and Community, an experimental seminary experience that trains seminarians and activists together, deepening impact as both groups learn and grow together. She holds several national leadership roles within progressive organizations and institutions that promote justice, equality and protections for marginalized communities.
Moderators
Rev. Cedric A Harmon is committed to creating a more equitable and just society and believes each person’s voice and actions are necessary to achieve success. Having served as co-founder and executive director of Many Voices: A Black Church Movement for Gay & Transgender Justice for more than a decade, Cedric has been a central voice for equality nationally and internationally, particularly in historically Black religious settings. Cedric is a widely known facilitator, speaker, writer, and skilled advocate. He studied Mass Communication at Emerson College, Boston and theological training at Wesley Theological Seminary, Washington, DC.
Dr. Sharon Groves has spent 20 years working at the intersection of faith and justice as a strategist, justice worker, faith organizer, coach, writer and fundraiser. Among other engagements, she serves as the senior partnerships strategist for the Revolutionary Love Project with Sikh activist Valarie Kaur. She previously worked at Auburn Seminary staff as Vice-President for Partner Engagement. She is the former Director of the Religion and Faith (RFP) Program at the Human Rights Campaign. Under her leadership, Sharon doubled the RFP staff, built a scholarship and mentorship program for LGBTQ religious scholars, and oversaw organizing efforts in several states.