New to the political scene, Representative Taylor Small was elected in November 2020 and now serves as Vermont's first out transgender legislator and one of seven in the United States. Representative Small has been a strong advocate for marginalised, especially LGBTQ+, people in both her professional and personal lives, as a health & wellness program director for Pride Center of Vermont and a local drag entertainer. In her first year in office, Representative Small was able to pass a bill into law banning the use of the 'LGBTQ+ Panic Defence' in Vermont with unanimous support from the House, Senate, and Republican Governor.
Outside of the legislature, Taylor delivers cultural humility training for healthcare and human service providers across the state with a priority for rural and smaller practices and has now trained over 2,000 providers in her tenure. She also worked to expand the Vermont Diversity Health Project, an online database for LGBTQ+ Vermonters to find safe and affirming health & wellness providers near them and updated the program to include a map feature that now includes over 240 providers.
