| Jarrett Tomás Barrios | |
|---|---|
| Barrios addressing GLAAD, 2009 | |
| Member of the Massachusetts Senate from the Middlesex, Suffolk and Essex district |
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| In office January 2003 – July 2007 |
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| Preceded by | Tom Birmingham |
| Succeeded by | Anthony D. Galluccio (D) |
| Member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives from the 28th Middlesex district |
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| In office January 1999 – December 2002 |
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| Preceded by | Alvin Thompson |
| Succeeded by | Seat was changed in October 2001 Redistricting plan |
| Personal details | |
| Born | October 16, 1969 |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | Doug Hattaway (divorced) |
| Residence | Cambridge, Massachusetts |
| Alma mater | Harvard College (B.A.) Georgetown University Law Center (J.D.) |
| Religion | Catholic |
Jarrett Tomás Barrios (born October 16, 1969) is a politician, activist, and executive, currently serving as the chief executive of the American Red Cross of Eastern Massachusetts.[1][2] He was a member of both the Massachusetts House of Representatives and the Massachusetts Senate and became the first Latino and first openly gay man elected to the Massachusetts Senate.[3] He subsequently served as president of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Massachusetts Foundation and, later, of the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD).[3]
The son of a Cuban-American carpenter and a Cuban-American social worker in Tampa, Florida, Barrios moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts at the age of 17 to study at Harvard College, after graduating from Jefferson High School in Tampa. After graduating in 1990 with high honors and working for the Boston City Council, he obtained his law degree with honors from Georgetown University.
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In 1998, Barrios began his legislative career when he was elected to the Massachusetts House of Representatives. The first major legislation he wrote was a law requiring hospital emergency rooms to provide interpreter services for non-English speakers. He also authored legislation creating a statewide affordable housing trust and establishing a low-income housing tax credit, which provides an incentive for developers to create affordable housing. He was the prime sponsor of a bill that enhanced state disaster relief efforts in coordination with the American Red Cross.
In 2002, the voters of the Middlesex, Suffolk and Essex District - including parts of Boston, Cambridge, Somerville, Everett, Revere, Chelsea and Saugus - elected him to the state Senate, and he was re-elected unopposed in both 2004 and 2006.
As a state senator, Barrios successfully helped lead the legislative effort to protect marriage equality in Massachusetts, and is best known for a globally televised speech where he spoke on discrimination faced by his own family.[4]
Barrios chaired the Committee on Public Safety and Homeland Security. He authored legislation creating a state witness protection program and establishing an anti-gang violence grant program known as the Shannon Grant. He also authored one of the nation's most comprehensive identity theft laws, which provided new protections to consumers whose personal data is stolen from retailers or other third parties. Barrios wrote a law updating state fire codes in the wake of a deadly night club fire in neighboring Rhode Island. He also authored an "anti-bullying" bill, which only passed the state Senate, directing schools to respond more aggressively to student reports of violence and "cyber bullying."
On other issues, Barrios authored a law designed to protect homeowners from foreclosure and to crack down on unscrupulous subprime lenders. The law created a first-in-the-nation requirement that mortgage bankers and brokers abide by the state Community Reinvestment Act, which previously applied only to credit unions and banks. He led Senate passage of legislation promoting "environmental justice," addressing health care disparities among minorities, and strengthening enforcement of "buffer zones" around women's health facilities.
On May 22, 2007, Barrios announced that he would be resigning from the Senate to become the president of the state's largest health foundation, the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Foundation.[5] The foundation focuses on expanding access to health coverage and medical care for state residents. It plays a central role in the implementation of the state's universal health care program, providing data and analysis on the program's performance and convening health care stakeholders to address emerging issues.
After arriving at the foundation, Barrios launched two new policy initiatives. The Care Beyond Coverage initiative is analyzing barriers to health care faced by people who have health insurance. The Community Health Mapping Project is linking data on health outcomes with environmental risk factors and other social determinants of health, such as violence and air quality.
Barrios became president of GLAAD in September 2009, making him the only bilingual leader of a national LGBT organization.[6]
Barrios resigned from his position on June 18, 2011, following allegations of impropriety by some former board members after GLAAD issued two statements supporting the merger of one of its corporate donors, AT&T[7], with T-Mobile and questioning the merits of network neutrality. Both statements were promptly retracted by the organization. The press releases were criticized by Michelangelo Signorile.[8]
Barrios has founded three nonprofit organizations.
Barrios was a co-author of the Dallas Principles.
Barrios married communications consultant and Democratic political operative Doug Hattaway in 2004. The couple divorced in 2010.[9][10]