Mayor Brandon Johnson made a surprise appearance Feb. 10 at the Chicago LGBTQ+ Advisory Council’s quarterly meeting to thank outgoing chair Jin-Soo Huh for years of volunteer leadership.
“The fact that you’ve already been applauded—then there’s no need for me to say anything other than [that] your work speaks for itself,” Johnson told Huh.
The mayor further praised Huh for leading the council during a time when LGBTQ+ communities face mounting political hostility nationwide.
“Public service is a gift and an honor,” Johnson said. “You are a true model and a hero.”
Huh’s successor will be selected by the mayor’s office—a process he said he encouraged officials to complete expeditiously so that new leadership can be in place in time to run the council’s next quarterly meeting.
Among Huh’s most significant accomplishments as chair was leading the push for the city to create a permanent, executive-level director of LGBTQ+ affairs—a goal realized last month when Johnson appointed Antonio King, a longtime city employee who most recently served as an LGBTQ+ health and outreach liaison for the Chicago Department of Public Health.
Earlier in the meeting, Huh emphasized how significant that structural change is.
“This has been a long-standing priority of the Advisory Council for years,” Huh said. “This is the first time that this is a position at the executive level in the mayor’s office.”
With Huh preparing to step down and King newly installed in the role, Johnson encouraged members not to ease up.
“I have learned the hard way how slow government can move,” Johnson said. “If you all continue to apply the necessary pressure [and] continue to organize people, I am confident that the work we have been building in this city for decades—that we will see the manifestation of what our ancestors dreamed of.”
King, attending his first meeting as director, opened by thanking the council members who had pressed City Hall to establish the job.
“I wouldn’t be here in this capacity had it not been for your diligence,” King said. “I just want to do the work.”
As director, King is tasked with developing a citywide LGBTQ+ policy plan aimed at strengthening protections and opportunities for LGBTQ+ Chicagoans. He will coordinate LGBTQ+ initiatives across city departments to address everything from community safety and public health to housing and economic opportunity.
Seeking to underline the administration’s commitment, King brought Jonah Anderson, the first deputy mayor overseeing health and human services, to the meeting, presenting him as his direct supervisor and a partner in advancing the work.
King also acknowledged Sara Mathers, chief of community engagement for the mayor’s office and an LGBTQ+ ally who served as liaison while the director role was being created and filled—a process that began in 2024 when the role was first promised by the mayor’s office.
Mathers will continue to support the LGBTQ+ Advisory Council through at least its next quarterly meeting to help with its transition.
“Thank you to Sara for working with us as a strong ally,” King said.
Throughout the evening, King demonstrated deep familiarity with Chicago’s LGBTQ+ infrastructure, frequently pointing to grassroots organizations and leaders who could help city government move faster and more effectively.
During a presentation from the Chicago Police Department’s LGBTQ+ liaison team, King praised officers for their response to the 2022 shooting at Jeffery Pub. He also specifically cited TaskForce Prevention and Community Services and the Broadway Youth Center as groups that could help deepen the police department’s engagement with LGBTQ+ youth.
The meeting also included a presentation from Dr. Travis Gayles, CEO of Howard Brown Health, which King said highlighted the importance of partnership between City Hall and long-standing community providers.
“With this body, I look forward to working with you all,” King said.