Robert Garcia, Congress' First Gay Immigrant, Is Becoming the Queer Role Model He Never Had (Exclusive)

Sitting at The Stonewall Inn 54 years after it ignited the Gay Liberation Movement, Rep. Garcia discusses the escalating fight for LGBTQ+ equality — and how he plans to help from inside the U.S. Capitol

U.S. Rep. Robert Garcia carried a protestor's spirit into Pride Month this year, aware that in spite of the annual parades and celebrations that bring some levity to the moment, many queer and trans people stand fearful of the future right now as far-right, anti-LGBTQ rhetoric seeps into mainstream.

"Our community's under such attack — especially our trans community and our young people," the 45-year-old congressman tells PEOPLE. "We've got to get back to those Pride roots, especially now, in this moment."

Related: Biden Reaffirms Commitment to LGBTQ+ Community as Pride Month Begins, Denouncing ‘Hateful Laws’ and Violence

Garcia — who was sworn-in as the first gay, immigrant member of Congress in January — is sipping a beer at The Stonewall Inn, where Pride originated following the namesake 1969 Stonewall riots. A lot has changed since the unassuming gay bar was enshrined into history, but exactly 54 years later, a new wave of oppressive laws and harmful misinformation continue to control the conversation around LGBTQ+ rights.

"Broadly, one of the things that our community's got to figure out now is we have marriage, which is great" — Garcia himself wed his longtime boyfriend in 2018 — "but that's not everything," he explains. "The LGBTQ+ community is all of us. It's not just gay people that want to get married, it's also trans people. And we cannot allow extremists to try to separate trans people from our community."

"Trans people, drag queens, these folks have always been at the forefront of protests and philanthropy and supporting the community, and so I think now is an opportunity for the rest of us to step up and support those parts of our community that are being attacked," he adds.

Garcia believes that educating the nation on LGBTQ+ issues as misinformed legislation flies through statehouses is a good first step toward changing the tides, whether that's amplifying queer and trans people's stories or encouraging allies to stand in for their LGBTQ+ friends in circles where bigotry and false narratives run rampant.

Related: 'Drag Race' Star BenDeLaCreme Says Anti-LGBTQ+ Legislation Aims to Take U.S. Back to Pre-Stonewall Days

Only six months into his congressional tenure, the former Long Beach, California, mayor understands that he possesses a rare opportunity to bring a queer perspective to the U.S. Capitol.

While he hopes to also build a legacy around immigration reform and pandemic prevention during his time in office — immigration is the prime issue that motivated the native Spanish speaker from Peru to seek higher office — he made a decisive choice from the get-go that as one of only 10 openly LGBTQ+ representatives in the House, he would use his seat at the table to counter extremist messaging from his colleagues on the right.

Related: Human Rights Campaign Declares First-Ever 'National State of Emergency' for LGBTQ+ Community

One of those far-right colleagues is Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, an inflammatory figure in the House and an outspoken opponent of LGBTQ+ rights. Garcia finds himself the only Democrat on all three of the same House committees as Greene — and while he admits it's a challenge, he has already learned to make the most of it, using his microphone to balance her bigotry with respect.

In one instance, after Greene said that a lesbian stepmother was "not a mother," Garcia denounced her belittling remarks. That exchange inspired Garcia to introduce the "Honoring All Families" resolution, which aimed to affirm that all types of families, particularly "LGBTQ+ families and families who adopt," are legitimate and deserve recognition.

Asked about whether he's willing to reach across the aisle to craft legislation, Garcia doesn't hesitate to say "of course" — with one caveat: "If you can't respect my basic humanity, then I don't want to work with you."

Related: Marjorie Taylor Greene Posts Transphobic Tweet on First Day of Pride Month

Aside from committee hearings and caucus meetings, Garcia has used floor time in the House chamber to give impassioned speeches highlighting pioneering drag queen RuPaul and legendary performer Beyoncé.

"Congress has a history of honoring great Americans — and Beyoncé and RuPaul are great Americans," Garcia tells PEOPLE, noting that athletes and successful business people are often honored by members of Congress, but rarely the queer icons. "I want to highlight people that speak to me and to my community, and the things that I like as a gay person."

His 2023 Pride Playlist on Spotify is another way he's been promoting the queer and ally artists he likes, simultaneously connecting with LGBTQ+ constituents and offering some fun listening in uncertain times.

Related: Congressman Honors Beyoncé with Impassioned Speech on the House Floor: 'Now and Forever the Moment'

Garcia said that growing up, he did not have any gay role models or know of pop culture heroes that could help him better understand his sexuality. It wasn't until he got to college that he learned about important figures in LGBTQ+ history, like Harvey Milk and Sylvia Rivera, and about the work that Black trans women like Marsha P. Johnson did to make the Stonewall riots a pivotal point in history.

That period of his life is also when the future congressman met his first real-life queer role models. "The folks that I always admired the most were friends of mine that I met in college that were already out, and I thought that took such courage," Garcia recalls. "It wasn't until college that I was really like, 'I'm going to come out.'"

As an adult he began watching shows like RuPaul's Drag Race, which celebrates the art of drag, further connecting him to the queer community at large. Even with his busy schedule in Congress, he still makes a point to keep up with every season of Drag Race, including the spin-offs. (For All Stars 8, which is currently airing, he's rooting for Jimbo to take the crown, but would be just as happy if Puerto Rican powerhouse Jessica Wild came out on top.)

Related: Drag Queen Who Lost Friends at Club Q and Pulse Tells Anti-LGBTQ Lawmakers Blood 'Is on Their Hands'

Garcia knows that there's a long road ahead toward achieving full equality — and he's equally understanding that one congressman alone can't undo the turbulent couple of years that the LGBTQ+ community has experienced.

But while he works to find solutions from within the Capitol, he has no choice but to sing an optimistic tune, reflecting on all the hard-fought accomplishments that have come to fruition in recent years — Obergefell v. Hodges, same-sex adoption, and even just introducing the ideas of teaching queer history in schools and providing trans-inclusive healthcare.

"It's easy to get discouraged where we are right now, but if we think about how far we've come since the Stonewall riots, I mean it's incredible, remarkable," Garcia says. "Even though we're having some road bumps, things are going to get better and we are going to win this broader equality fight — because it's the right thing."

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