Rashad Robinson serves as Senior Director of Media Programs for the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD), and is based in New York. GLAAD is one of the largest national LGBT organizations and the only one dedicated to ensuring fair, accurate and inclusive representation of LGBT people and events in the media as a means of eliminating homophobia and discrimination based on gender identity and sexual orientation. Rashad joined GLAAD in May, 2005.

An experienced organizer, advocate and communicator, Rashad has mobilized people to engage and reform their educational and political institutions. In his current role at GLAAD, he oversees GLAAD's advocacy and programmatic work. Specifically, he leads the thirty staff members, consultants and fellows in GLAAD's New York and Los Angeles offices that comprise the Entertainment Media, Media Field Strategy, Messaging and Media Research, National News, Religion, Faith and Values, Sports Media, Spanish Language Media, Young Adult Media and the organizations cultural outreach into media serving Communities of African Decent and Asian Pacific Islander Communities.

In his tenure at GLAAD, Rashad has overseen the implementation of three new programs: The Sports Media, Young Adult Media and Religion, Faith and Values Media Programs. Rashad has also increased the organization’s presence and work in local and regional communities and worked with staff to overhaul the organization’s signature Media Essentials Training Curriculum. During his tenure the Media Programs team has experienced tremendous success with the development of a large scale Public Service Ad Campaigns that has been widely broadcast on TV and online, the creation of a host of media resources for journalists and local activists and increased visibility in combating media defamation of the LGBT community locally and nationally.

Before joining GLAAD, Rashad served as National Communications Director for the Right to Vote Campaign, a national collaboration of eight major civil rights organizations, including the NAACP, People for the American Way and the ACLU, working on voter disenfranchisement. He also served as National Field Director with the Center for Voting and Democracy. In 2003, he served as lead organizer for the Claim Democracy Conference, which featured national civil rights leaders, presidential candidates and congressional leaders.

A popular speaker on LGBT and progressive issues, Rashad has the ability to clearly articulate the essence of complex issues to general and movement-centric audiences of any size. He is a frequent spokesperson in print, radio and television, and has appeared in hundreds of news stories on programs ranging from Access Hollywood to The O'Reilly Factor and for outlets such as: ABC, BET, CNN, Fox News, The Associated Press, Reuters, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Nation and Vanity Fair, among others. In 2004, he appeared as the youngest contestant (Campaign Manager) on Showtime’s Political Reality series American Candidate.

About GLAAD

The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) www.glaad.org, with offices in New York City and Los Angeles, is dedicated to promoting and ensuring fair, accurate and inclusive representation of people and events in the media as a means of eliminating homophobia and discrimination based on gender identity and sexual orientation.

GLAAD’s work and influence within the entertainment industry, national and regional news organizations and with journalists at all levels has led to sweeping change in the ways that LGBT people are portrayed in the media. The widely known and popular GLAAD Media Awards has recognized the best of such images for 19 years.