Mayor Walsh Announces Syracuse Earns Top Score in LGBTQ Equality Index

Published on November 21, 2023

Mayor’s LGTBQ+ Advisory Board opens call for applicants 

Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh announced the City of Syracuse earned a top score of 100 in the Municipal Equality Index (MEI), a comprehensive nationwide assessment of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer (LGBTQ+) equality in municipal policies, laws and services. Syracuse is one of six cities in New York earning 100 out of 100 points in the MEI Index, which is conducted by the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), America's largest civil rights organization working to achieve equality for LGBTQ+ people. 

“Our vision is for Syracuse to be a growing city that embraces diversity and creates opportunity for all. The MEI Index score of 100 is an indicator of our relentless effort to achieve that vision,” said Mayor Walsh. “We will continue working to maintain our strong score in the Index, including consulting with the Mayor’s LGTBQ+ Advisory Board to further improve on our performance.” 

In New York, the Municipal Equality Index surveyed ten cities and awarded them scores out of a maximum of 100. The full 2023 MEI report, including detailed scorecards for every city and a searchable score database, is available online at www.hrc.org/mei.   

Mayor Walsh also announced the Mayor’s LGBTQ+ Advisory Board, established in June 2020 is seeking applicants to become members of the group. The Board is an avenue for representatives of the LGBTQ+ community to provide input and feedback to the City on matters of policy, programming, procedure and training. Application information can be found by visiting: https://www.syr.gov/Living/Our-Community/Volunteer/Resident-Engagement