Muni Pride, the first LGBTQ+ networking group for the municipal bond industry, has doubled in size over the past two years as it expands beyond California.
The three San Francisco-based industry leaders who launched the organization in 2019 decided to rebrand from California Muni Pride to match the growing national reach of the group for people who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or queer, said Alexander Vaisman, a managing vice president and head of higher education at Build America Mutual.
The group, founded by Vaisman; Roberto Lee-Ruiz, a managing director at Stifel; and Luke Brewer, a vice president at RBC Capital Markets, will kick off Pride month with a
"The goal is to create safe spaces for LGBTQ+ people to grow in their career and the industry," Brewer said.
The national government first recognized June as Pride month in 1999 when President Bill Clinton issued a proclamation. Celebrations during the month acknowledge how transformative Manhattan's 1969 Stonewall uprising was for LGBTQ+ civil rights.
In his
Though the Muni Pride founders say they are of course aware of the
"It's been less of a focus on the negatives, and more on this is an element hitting our industry," Vaisman said.
The willingness to collaborate on events by affinity groups like Women in Public Finance and ethnic groups representing Latinos, African Americans and Asians has helped the group gain ground, Brewer said. They have also had LGBTQ+ people in other states step forward and offer to organize events in their cities and public finance firms have stepped forward to sponsor events.
Best Best & Krieger provided pro bono assistance to the group enabling it to incorporate as a tax-exempt 501(c)(6) organization, Vaisman said.
"With the outreach through the
GFOA also
Groups like Muni Pride can make a difference not only for LGBTQ+ individuals, but for firms looking to attract the next generation, according to its founders.
Having that sense of connection and seeing others in leadership who are LGBTQ+ or allies can make a difference for firms in attracting and retaining people, Vaisman said.
"It makes work a better place to be," Brewer said.
Vaisman recalled when he first started out 15 years ago the difficulty in identifying people in public finance who looked like him — or who maybe just weren't as open about who they are. He remembers wondering if his sexual orientation could hurt his ability to succeed.
"Those thoughts and feelings then just take up too much headspace," Vaisman said. "We want to take that out of the equation and allow folks to focus on what they need to be successful."
Unlike when the trio started out, "now you have people like Luke, Roberto and I showing that it is an industry you can succeed in, and here are possible tracks," Vaisman said.
All three have been named Bond Buyer Rising Stars.
"We also have people showing up who are strong allies and they want to showcase their support," Lee-Ruiz said. "Maybe they have someone in their lives, a sibling or a child, who is LGBTQ+, and this is their way of supporting people in the industry."
Though the pandemic slowed the growth of the organization when people could not meet in person, the trio made up for lost time when things began to open up.
They have held mixers in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Washington D.C. and Philadelphia in conjunction with other affinity groups.
In October, they held an event at Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe's New York office, which was co-sponsored and planned by the Northeast Women in Public Finance, at which Eric Gutshall spoke. Gutshall now works for the Biden administration, but at the time headed two Pennsylvania conduit financiers, the State Public School Building Authority and Pennsylvania Higher Educational Facilities Authority.
They are also talking to people in Chicago, Boston, Colorado and Portland, Oregon, about hosting events there.
The firm also has created a contact point at
Other changes afoot will include expanding the board beyond the three founders.
