LGBTQ workers are at the forefront of Chicago’s labor resurgence. ‘You have to learn to stick up for yourself’

Jordan Parshall first got involved in political activism in his early teens growing up in Minnesota.

In 2012, a proposed constitutional amendment would have defined marriage as between a man and a woman in the state. Parshall, who had realized he was gay, felt compelled to volunteer for the ‘vote no’ campaign, which ultimately prevailed.

“I wanted what my parents had. My parents were happily married,” said Parshall, who now works for Intelligentsia Coffee in Chicago and as an organizer for the baristas’ union, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 1220. “I wanted to get married, and when I was growing up I couldn’t do that. And so that kind of activated the spark for me.”

Parshall’s foray into political activism exposed him to unions, he said; neither of his parents belonged to one. When he moved to Chicago and started working for Intelligentsia, Parshall helped lead the charge to organize his co-workers. Intelligentsia baristas in Chicago voted to unionize last summer and secured their first union contract in December, which included paid meal breaks, raises and additional vacation.

“If you grew up queer somewhere that it’s not accepted, you have to learn to stick up for yourself,” Parshall said. “That’s true for a lot of my queer co-workers. There’s just more of a willingness