Torie Osborn at the 1993 NGLTF Creating Change Conference

Torie Osborn (born July 27, 1950

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan a ...

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...

) is a

community organizer Community organizing is a process where people who live in proximity to each other or share some common problem come together into an organization that acts in their shared self-interest. Unlike those who promote more-consensual community bui ...

, activist, and author.

Education

Osborn attended

Barnard College Barnard College of Columbia University is a private women's liberal arts college in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It was founded in 1889 by a group of women led by young student activist Annie Nathan Meyer, who petitioned Columbia ...

, received her Bachelor of Arts degree in English from

Middlebury College Middlebury College is a private liberal arts college in Middlebury, Vermont. Founded in 1800 by Congregationalists, Middlebury was the first operating college or university in Vermont. The college currently enrolls 2,858 undergraduates from all 5 ...

and earned her MBA at the

UCLA Anderson School of Management The John E. Anderson Graduate School of Management, also known as the UCLA Anderson School of Management, is the graduate business school at the University of California, Los Angeles, one of eleven professional schools. The school offers MBA (ful ...

, specializing in finance.

Activism

Osborn was involved with

Planned Parenthood The Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc. (PPFA), or simply Planned Parenthood, is a nonprofit organization that provides reproductive health care in the United States and globally. It is a tax-exempt corporation under Internal Reve ...

as a teenager. Her work in activism began while she was a student at Barnard College, where she participated in sit-ins, protest marches and teach-ins. In Vermont while attending Middlebury College, Osborn founded the Middlebury College Women's Union to reform women's health services on campus. In 1978 Osborn moved to San Francisco and organized against the Briggs initiative banning gay and lesbian teachers from public schools. While working for

Los Angeles Mayor The mayor of the City of Los Angeles is the official head and chief executive officer of Los Angeles. The officeholder is elected for a four-year term and is limited to serving no more than two terms. (Under the Constitution of California, all j ...

Antonio Villaraigosa Antonio Ramón Villaraigosa (; né Villar Jr.; born January 23, 1953) is an American politician who served as the 41st Mayor of Los Angeles from 2005 to 2013. A member of the Democratic Party, Villaraigosa was a national co-chairman of Hillary ...

, she worked on solutions for homelessness, and supportive housing.

Career

In 1976, after teaching in community college in upstate New York, Osborn moved to Chicago to join the founding staff of ''In These Times''. In 1981, after moving to San Francisco, Osborn served as

Northern California Northern California (colloquially known as NorCal) is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the northern portion of the U.S. state of California. Spanning the state's northernmost 48 counties, its main population centers incl ...

Director for the

National Organization for Women The National Organization for Women (NOW) is an American feminist organization. Founded in 1966, it is legally a 501(c)(4) social welfare organization. The organization consists of 550 chapters in all 50 U.S. states and in Washington, D.C. It ...

(NOW). From 1988 to 1992, at the height of the

AIDS epidemic The global epidemic of HIV/AIDS (human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) began in 1981, and is an ongoing worldwide public health issue. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), as of 2021, HIV/AI ...

in Los Angeles, she became the first woman executive director of the

Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Center The Los Angeles LGBT Center (previously known as the Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Center) is a provider of programs and services for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people. The organization's work spans four categories, including health, soc ...

. Osborn then served as executive director of the

National Gay and Lesbian Task Force The National LGBTQ Task Force is an American social justice advocacy non-profit organizing the grassroots power of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) community. Also known as The Task Force, the organization supports ac ...

in Washington, D.C., the nation's oldest gay and lesbian civil rights organization. From 1997 through 2005, Osborn was the executive director of the

Liberty Hill Foundation The Liberty Hill Foundation is a non-profit organization founded by Sarah Pillsbury, heir to the Minnesota Pillsbury baking fortune, along with Anne Mendel, Larry Janss and Win McCormack, in 1976. Its motto is "Change. Not Charity." The name of t ...

, a Los Angeles-based non-profit dedicated to environmental justice. Osborn served as senior advisor to Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, working to reduce homelessness and poverty, resulting two years later in the formation of the City of L.A. Office of Strategic Partnerships, a national public-private collaboration, connecting non-profit and governmental agencies with philanthropic organizations. Osborn also served as Chief Civic Engagement Officer for the

United Way United Way is an international network of over 1,800 local nonprofit fundraising affiliates. United Way was the largest nonprofit organization in the United States by donations from the public, prior to 2016. United Way organizations raise funds ...

of Greater Los Angeles in 2009, and is currently Senior Strategist for California Calls, a network of 27 organizations throughout California committed to "common-sense" government reform including fair tax and budget policy.

Politics

In 2008, Osborn took a leave of absence from her post in Villaraigosa's office, moving to Nevada to serve as a "Super Volunteer" for

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, Obama was the first Af ...

's 2008

presidential campaign President most commonly refers to: * President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

. In 2012, she ran as a Democratic candidate for

California's 50th State Assembly district California's 50th State Assembly district is one of 80 California State Assembly districts. It is currently represented by Democrat Richard Bloom of Santa Monica. District profile The district encompasses the area between the Pacific Ocean ...

, placing third of four candidates.

Publications

* ''Coming Home to America'' (1997

St. Martin's Griffin St. Martin's Press is a book publisher headquartered in Manhattan, New York City, in the Equitable Building. St. Martin's Press is considered one of the largest English-language publishers, bringing to the public some 700 titles a year under si ...

; )

References