Leading a union consisting of hundreds of people may be a daunting task for some. But for Damian Plaza, it’s an opportunity to make its members feel seen and included.
As president of American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Local 505—the union covering multiple City of Chicago sectors including the Department of Public Health—Plaza is the first openly gay leader of his union. Although he faced some backlash due to his identity, he hopes being visible as an LGBTQ+ person in the role will inspire others.
A Bucktown native, Plaza has been an investigator for the Chicago Department of Public Health for nearly 25 years. He’s dealt with diseases, rabies and sudden outbreaks—such as COVID-19, monkeypox and the 2024 outbreak of measles in a migrant shelter. He said he was one of a few workers who stayed in office during the early COVID-19 days so he could keep working as effectively as possible.
Plaza involvement with the union has been a positive experience, he said. He’s known many of the people who have been in its leadership roles, and when one was stepping down they asked Plaza to consider going for a position.
He had already been a team leader who distributed information among coworkers and encouraged people to go to union meetings and attend rallies, which he regularly took part in himself. He was also the party planner, which helped him build even more relationships.
When he decided to try for a higher position in 2024, he said he received support from union members from various parts of the city.
“Because I had so much passion for making sure people are treated correctly, I think that worked in my favor,” he said.
As president, Plaza’s role includes a large amount of decision making and meeting planning. Come 2027, he’ll also be in charge of negotiating a new contract. In his first year in the role, he said it’s been “probably the toughest position” he’s ever had.
For local unions, presidencies last three years. In Plaza’s first year, he was challenged by a member that they “didn’t do things correctly.” They redid the voting—which Plaza said was difficult since they needed to get everyone together again—and Plaza won yet again. He said that helped him set a precedent that he wasn’t a quitter.
As someone who jumped from member to president, he said he did ruffle a few feathers. Unfortunately, his sexuality also had something to do with the negative backlash he received.
“Some people were against that,” he said. “I heard it in the hallways, they [didn’t] like the fact that there [was] going to be a gay president.”
Plaza never hid who he was. He has been with his partner for 28 years and was out at work. He said he thinks the opposition potentially didn’t know him as well or wondered if he would “be fair.”
As newer or more unfamiliar members got to talking to him, they realized he was just a regular person like them, Plaza said.
Plaza didn’t go into the running on a platform of being an LGBTQ+ person, but he said his win has hopefully shown other LGBTQ+ members that anything is possible. He said he wants to make sure queer people are not just seen for their identity, but as whole people.
Now in his second year, one of Plaza’s main goals has been to bring regular meetings back—the union stopped meeting regularly during the peak of COVID-19. Now, it meets every other month and has recently shifted to Zoom with the hopes of connecting with a larger audience.
“This month, I’m expecting an even larger crowd now,” he said. “I’m reaching more. A lot of people, they have families. They can’t always come in to meet. So guess what? I’m going to do that.”
Plaza is also looking to create more of a social media presence and an online forum to facilitate more conversations and encourage feedback. Additionally, he’s planning ways to celebrate member achievements and opportunities to build morale.
His goal with these updates—and his presidency—is to help more people feel seen and represented.
“I want to promote a strong sense of unity, solidarity and mutual support among union members,” he said. “I don’t want them to think, ‘Oh, he’s going to [lead] for certain people in the union.’ That’s not true. I’m a person for everybody, and everybody sees that.”