Cheryl Ann Jacques (born February 17, 1962) is an American

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

and attorney who served six terms in the Massachusetts Senate, was the president of the

Human Rights Campaign The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) is an American LGBTQ advocacy group. It is the largest LGBTQ political lobbying organization within the United States. Based in Washington, D.C., the organization focuses on protecting and expanding rights for LGB ...

for 11 months, and served as an administrative judge in the Massachusetts Department of Industrial Accidents. Jacques graduated from

Boston College Boston College (BC) is a private Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. Founded in 1863, the university has more than 9,300 full-time undergraduates and nearly 5,000 graduate students. Although Boston College is classifie ...

in 1984 and received her J.D. from

Suffolk University Law School Suffolk University Law School (also known as Suffolk Law School) is the private, non-sectarian law school of Suffolk University located in downtown Boston, Massachusetts, across the street from the Boston Common and the Freedom Trail, two block ...

in 1987. Jacques was Assistant District Attorney in Middlesex County and Assistant Attorney General of the state. She ran for U.S. Congress, but lost in the Democratic primary to Stephen Lynch. Jacques was the first openly lesbian member of the Massachusetts Senate where she served six terms, and came out as a lesbian during her fourth, citing the statistic that one-third of gay and lesbian teens attempt suicide as part of her motivation for coming out. She was succeeded in the state Senate by

Scott Brown Scott Brown may refer to: Sportsmen *Scott Brown (American football), American college football coach of Kentucky State * Scott Brown (baseball) (born 1956), former Major League Baseball pitcher for the Cincinnati Reds *Scott Brown (footballer, bor ...

. Jacques became president of HRC in 2004, succeeding

Elizabeth Birch Elizabeth Millen Birch (born September 2, 1956) is an American attorney and former corporate executive who chaired the board of directors of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force from 1992-1994. She served as the executive director of the Human ...

. She addressed the

2004 Democratic National Convention The 2004 Democratic National Convention convened from July 26 to 29, 2004 at the FleetCenter (now the TD Garden) in Boston, Massachusetts, and nominated Senator John Kerry from Massachusetts for president and Senator John Edwards from North Car ...

in this post. She resigned on November 30, 2004, citing "a difference in management philosophy" with her board, following criticism of the HRC's failure to defeat voter

referendums A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of a ...

in 11 states banning

same-sex marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same Legal sex and gender, sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being ...

and, in some cases,

civil unions A civil union (also known as a civil partnership) is a legally recognized arrangement similar to marriage, created primarily as a means to provide recognition in law for same-sex couples. Civil unions grant some or all of the rights of marriage ...

. After leaving HRC, she was of counsel to the law firm of Brody, Hardoon, Perkins and Kesten and was a consultant on diversity issues to corporations and non-profit organizations. In 2008 Jacques was named a Department of Industrial Accidents Administrative Judge by Governor

Deval Patrick Deval Laurdine Patrick (born July 31, 1956) is an American politician, civil rights lawyer, author, and businessman who served as the 71st governor of Massachusetts from 2007 to 2015. He was first elected in 2006, succeeding Mitt Romney, who ...

. On March 12, 2012 the State Ethics Commission charged her with violating Massachusetts' conflict-of-interest law after she allegedly tried to use her clout as a judge to have a dentist office reduce her brother-in-law's bill. Jacques contended that she never intended to introduce her position, but did so "inadvertently". The ethics commission found in favor of Jacques on the grounds that the enforcement division failed to prove that Jacques used her official position to intervene in the dispute. In 2013, Jacques and two other administrative judges filed charges with the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination, alleging the agency provided a higher salary and a parking space to a male judge appointed after them. In 2014, Governor Patrick chose not to reappoint Jacques, which she alleged was in retaliation for the gender discrimination lawsuit.

Personal life

In 2004, Jacques married

Jennifer Chrisler Jennifer Chrisler is a former executive director of the Family Equality Council, a nonprofit LGBTQ advocacy and education organization based in the United States that was previously known as the Family Pride Coalition. Early life and education Ch ...

. They have three sons.

References

External links

HRC biography
(

archive An archive is an accumulation of historical records or materials – in any medium – or the physical facility in which they are located. Archives contain primary source documents that have accumulated over the course of an individual or ...

link, was dead)
Interview in ''The Advocate'' magazineMetro Weekly interview series
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Jacques, Cheryl 1962 births Lesbian politicians American LGBT rights activists Living people Massachusetts state senators LGBT state legislators in Massachusetts Suffolk University Law School alumni Boston College alumni Women state legislators in Massachusetts Massachusetts state court judges Massachusetts lawyers 20th-century American politicians 20th-century American women politicians 21st-century American politicians 21st-century American women politicians 20th-century American lawyers 21st-century American judges 20th-century American women lawyers 21st-century American women judges 21st-century LGBT people