Senators have confirmed the nomination
of John Coppola, an openly gay candidate, to serve on the National
Museum and Library Services Board.
In a unanimous vote Tuesday, the Senate
confirmed Coppola to serve in President Barack Obama's administration
for a term expiring in December 2013.
Coppola has consulted on strategic
planing and professional training for museums throughout Latin
America and the Middle East since 1996. He has organized and managed
exhibits for the Museum of Latin American Art, Smithsonian Latino
Center, National Museum of Women in the Arts at St. Thomas
University, and Stonewall Library & Archives.
The Stonewall
Library & Archives, located in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, is
dedicated to documenting the cultural and social history of gay,
lesbian, bisexual and transgender Americans with an emphasis on the
southeastern United States. The museum's collection boasts more than
5,000 items.
Coppola worked on a permanent exhibit
for the museum titled Days
without Sunshine that focuses on the anti-gay crusade of
Anita Bryant. Bryant, a
former beauty queen, led a “Save our Children” crusade during the
late 70s against gay rights in Florida. The campaign's theme and
messages have since been recycled and adapted for use by social
conservatives opposed to gay rights throughout the country.
The appointment is among a growing list
of openly LGBT nominees to be confirmed by the Senate, including the
judicial appointment of Marisa Demeo to the D.C. Superior Court
and Laura
Duffy as U.S. attorney for the Southern District of California in San
Diego.
Coppola was nominated by Obama in
January.
The Presidential
Appointments Project, a community driven effort coordinated by
the Gay &
Lesbian Victory Fund, was responsible for bringing the three
appointees to the attention of administration officials.
“John is one of a growing number of
LGBT appointees to federal boards and commissions,” Denis Dison, a
vice president at the Victory Fund, told On Top Magazine in an
email. “The Presidential Appointments Project is seeking more LGBT
applicants who, like John, are willing to serve on these important
panels and help shape federal policy.”