Sunday, March 25, 4-5:30pm, David’s United Church of Christ [UCC], 80 W. Columbus St., Canal Winchester, Ohio

J. Bennett (Ben) Guess, executive director, ACLU of Ohio, will be the keynote speaker for the kickoff of a new PFLAG Columbus meeting in Canal Winchester, Ohio. He will speak at the inaugural meeting on Sunday, March 25, at 4pm, at David’s United Church of Christ [UCC], 80 W. Columbus St., in Canal Winchester, Ohio.

“It is an honor to have Dr. Guess, a nationally known advocate for the rights of marginalized persons, at our newest meeting,” said Jaron Terry, president of PFLAG Columbus. A prominent civil liberties activist, Ben Guess held a number of high-level positions at the United Church of Christ [UCC] national headquarters, in Cleveland, for 17 years, before coming to Columbus in July 2017 to head the ACLU of Ohio. He is a board member of the National LGBTQ Task Force in Washington D.C. and has a deep background in moving the needle forward for LGBTQ health and justice. He was significantly involved in _UCC v. Cooper_, the federal lawsuit that helped to bring marriage equality to North Carolina.

“The ACLU of Ohio is a courageous defender of civil liberties, a relentless advocate for racial, social and economic justice, and a fierce defender of the Bill of Rights,” says Dr. Guess. He will discuss these and other topics that dovetail with the mission of PFLAG Columbus, which is to provide support, education, and advocacy toward the vision of a world where diversity is celebrated and all people are respected, valued, and affirmed, inclusive of sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, race, sex, age, or any human characteristic.

Hosted by PFLAG Columbus.