Chief Change Officer – Episode #423 Summary

Guest: Brian Sims
Host: Vince Chan
Theme: When Truth Gets Political — Part One
Date: July 7, 2025

Overview

In this episode of Chief Change Officer, host Vince Chan delves into the transformative journey of Brian Sims, former Pennsylvania State Representative, civil rights attorney, and LGBTQ advocate. Sims shares his personal and professional evolution, shaped by loving, disciplined parents, military upbringing, and a lifelong commitment to justice and equality. The conversation explores identity, resilience, leadership, and the realities of making change from both inside and outside the political system.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The State of Change — Personal and Political

Timestamps: 02:24 – 03:27

• Brian reflects on recent personal milestones, including his marriage, and describes a “collision” of civil rights and politics in the United States.
  • "In the two years since we've seen each other... I've gotten married... But with recent political changes... I'm extremely fearful that marriage equality won't exist for LGBTQ people by the time we had our wedding plan for. So we went ahead and got married... about two months ago." (02:24 – 03:12)
• He draws attention to the instability in US civil rights and expresses apprehension about the future for LGBTQ Americans.

2. Career Path: From Law to Politics

Timestamps: 04:09 – 07:17

• Sims outlines his journey from disability and civil rights law, through advocacy, to electoral politics.
  • He distinguishes between “day job and gay job,” signifying the balance between career obligations and passion-driven advocacy.
  • "I had a day job and a gay job, as I like to describe it." (05:08)
• Eventually, unable to sway policy-makers from outside, he ran for office himself—becoming the first out LGBTQ member of his state’s legislature, narrowly winning against a 28-year incumbent.
  • "I ran against a 28 year incumbent... and I won my very first race on a very small margin, 233 votes." (06:09 – 06:20)
• After ten years, he transitioned into data-driven advocacy to "knock out" officials attacking civil rights.

3. Family and Upbringing: Discipline Meets Creativity

Timestamps: 07:17 – 10:18

• Raised by two Army lieutenant colonels, Sims credits his upbringing for fostering discipline, adventure, and original thinking.
  • "I think good behaviors and bad behaviors often have a lot of roots in how we were raised. In my case, I was lucky enough to be raised by two incredible parents... There was a ton of love in my household." (07:57 – 08:38)
• His mother, a pioneering female officer and nurse, modeled confidence and resilience, confronting and dispelling gender stereotypes.

4. Lessons From His Mother: Upstander, Not Bystander

Timestamps: 10:18 – 13:27

• Sims shares how his mother’s confidence and willingness to stand up against discrimination shaped his ethos.
  • "My mom was someone who had a confidence that was based upon her output... But my mom always knew who she was." (10:47 – 11:19)
  • "An upstander is somebody that watches something happen and decides to do something, engage. And my mom was... the consummate upstander in my life." (12:00 – 12:28)
• He notes her frequent confrontation with sexism and the strength she drew from such experiences.

5. On Coming Out: From Adversity to Acceptance

Timestamps: 15:36 – 17:27

• Sims describes being subtly “outed” in a supportive environment by his college football teammates, leading to months of affirming conversations.
  • "I didn't exactly get to decide. It was decided for me, but in a really wonderful way... when I did finally come out, I did so to the support and love and kindness of a bunch of people..." (15:36 – 16:48)
• He reflects on wishing others could have similarly positive experiences, while acknowledging the challenges leading up to that moment.

6. Feminism as Preparation for Advocacy

Timestamps: 18:32 – 19:47

• Childhood ambitions to be a feminist lawyer were cemented by language and experience; his feminist worldview later equipped him to approach LGBTQ advocacy with empathy and strategy.
  • "From a very young age, I told people I was going to be a feminist lawyer. As a little kid, that was the job." (18:55)
  • His legal training was partly motivated by a desire to advance women’s, reproductive, and civil rights.

7. Inside Politics: Representation and Resistance

Timestamps: 20:14 – 23:43

• Being the first openly gay state representative brought a sense of responsibility and unique challenges:
  • "All of us have had big responsibilities... I was very aware from the moment I won... that I was the out person there." (21:06 – 21:19)
  • Many closeted officials opposed LGBTQ rights, prompting Brian to first focus his advocacy efforts internally.
• Strategic use of visibility:
  • Sims used his spotlight not only for LGBTQ rights, but to support women’s rights and racial justice legislation as a demonstration of effective allyship.
  • "We decided to use that attention to show people what an ally looked like." (21:53)
• Faced open discrimination on the House floor, including being cut off mid-speech when attempting to address marriage equality.
  • "I rose to speak about that and I got a half a word out and my microphone was cut." (24:10 – 24:31)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On making hard choices:
  "There was work I needed to do to earn an income and there was work I needed to do to sleep well at night." — Brian (04:44)

• On upstanders and intervention:
  "The difference between a bystander is Somebody that watches something happen and does nothing. An upstander is somebody that watches something happen and decides to do something, engage. And my mom was... the consummate upstander in my life." — Brian (11:56–12:28)

• On coming out in sports:
  "After 22 years in the closet, my closest friends really wanted me to know how important I was in their lives, how close we all were..." — Brian (16:27)

• On leveraging identity for broader advocacy:
  "I look just like the people who attack women's rights and racial and ethnic justice... I introduced a whole bunch of women's rights bills... to show people... what an ally looked like." — Brian (21:38–21:53)

• On being silenced:
  "I rose to speak... and I got a half a word out and my microphone was cut." — Brian (24:20)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Personal and political status update: 02:24 – 03:27
• Professional journey to politics: 04:09 – 07:17
• Family upbringing and influence: 07:17 – 10:18
• Mother’s impact on values: 10:18 – 13:27
• Coming out experience: 15:36 – 17:27
• The role of feminism in advocacy: 18:32 – 19:47
• Navigating politics as the only out representative: 20:14 – 23:43
• Silenced on the House floor: 24:10 – 24:31

Tone & Takeaways

The conversation is open, warm, and honest—alternating between humor, candor, and a deep sense of mission. Sims’s journey illustrates the intersections of personal identity, public policy, and the courage required to both endure and challenge systems of power. Listeners are left with a teaser for Part Two, promising a deeper look into Sims’s experiences confronting political silencing and learning to “fight smarter.”

[End of Part One — Listen to Part Two for more on Brian Sims’s strategies, setbacks, and wins inside the corridors of power.]