Kylar Broadus

Kylar William Broadus is an American attorney, entrepreneur, and trans rights activist. He founded the Trans People of Color Coalition in 2010. In 2012, he became the first trans person to testify in front of the United States Senate when he spoke in support of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act. He was a long-time professor of business law and workplace discrimination at Lincoln University.

Early life

Broadus was born August 28, 1963 in Fayette, Missouri to Fannie and William. His parents were the children of slaves and suffered under the Jim Crow laws in Missouri. He spent most of his life near Columbia, Missouri.

Career

Broadus worked for a large financial institution in the early 1990s. In 1995, he announced he was going to undergo gender transition. This resulted in Broadus facing a constructive discharge notice in 1997 after facing workplace harassment and discrimination. He was unemployeed for a year after and suffered posttraumatic stress disorder from the harassment.

For 18 years, Broadus worked in a private law practice in Columbia, Missouri where he represented LGBT clients in family and criminal law. He taught business law and workplace discrimination at Lincoln University for nearly 20 years where he served as chair of the business department. Broadus served on the National LGBTQ Task Force as senior public policy counsel. He was the director of the force's Transgender Civil Rights Project. Broadus was the state legislative manager and counsel for the Human Rights Campaign. From 2007 to 2010, he was board chair of the National Black Justice Coalition. In 2010, Broadus founded the Trans People of Color Coalition. In 2012, Broadus was one of thirteen transgender delegates at the Democratic National Convention. That year, he became the first openly transgender person testify to the United States Senate when he spoke of his support of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act. He was interviewed in the The Book of Pride.

Personal life

Broadus initially came out as lesbian before determining he was a trans man. He moved to Washington, D.C. in 2013.