Anthony Allen Ramos – #30Voices30Days

Anthony Allen Ramos has made significant strides in advocating for the LGBTQ community, leveraging his two decades of experience in the entertainment industry to bring attention to LGBTQ issues and stories. Known for his engaging personality and sharp wit, Ramos transitioned from a celebrated producer and on-air personality to a pivotal role at GLAAD in 2017. GLAAD is a non-profit organization advancing LGBTQ acceptance through fair, accurate, and inclusive representation through global, national and local programs. As Vice President of Communications and Talent and the Executive Producer of the GLAAD Media Awards, he has been instrumental in securing high-profile celebrity support for LGBTQ causes.

Before joining GLAAD, Ramos built a notable career at Access Hollywood and Access Hollywood Live, where he earned Emmy nominations for his work as a producer and correspondent. His role involved producing content related to television, and music with a strategic focus on enhancing LGBTQ inclusion. By spotlighting LGBTQ celebrities and stories, he reached millions of viewers, fostering greater awareness and acceptance.

Since his tenure at GLAAD began, Ramos has continued to elevate the visibility of LGBTQ community causes. He has successfully enlisted A-list talent such as Beyoncé, JAY-Z, Madonna, Lil Nas X Ricky Martin, Billy Porter, Oprah, Maren Morris, Kacey Musgraves, Taylor Swift, and many others to support GLAAD’s initiatives. His efforts have significantly contributed to GLAAD’s mission to accelerate acceptance and ensure the representation of LGBTQ individuals in media and entertainment.

Hence our decision to collaborate with Ramos and the entire GLAAD family for our #30Voices30Days campaign. Our campaign not only honors diverse voices but also serves as a fundraiser to highlight GLAAD’s ongoing advocacy work. Ramos sits down with Gurus publisher and editor in chief Derek Warburton to discuss the importance of amplifying diverse voices, particularly marginalized ones, the need for representation, visibility, and acceptance within the LGBTQ community.

What is your truth? 

That is such a good question. The true me is someone that evolved. It took a little time to get to be the true me. I think about who I was in high school, for example, which was when I started to really experiment with stepping out of the norm when it came to what I would wear and do all of those things. I’ve talked about this, before, but there was this girl in high school that I met. She was older than me, and every day she would serve this look, whether fur or faux fur jackets or anything. Right then and there I decided I didn’t want to wear skater boy clothes anymore, because that’s what I thought, “boys” were supposed to wear.

So, yeah, the true me now is someone who is fully comfortable with who I am. Expressing myself and realizing that it’s still a journey and that’s okay. A really good takeaway for a lot of people is that it can be an evolution and growing process, and there’s no rules for, you know, being who you are. And you can evolve and change.

What is your passion? 

I have a lot of passions, but a clear passion of mine is LGBTQ activism. My passion really is the media and entertainment, because I think there’s such power behind it. It lends itself to the road that got me to working at GLAAD. I started my career at NBC in entertainment, and really appreciated someone who loved all things pop culture, and then really, along the way, became very passionate about something that is a part of who I am, being LGBTQ.  And so I think finding a road to kind of blend my passions in entertainment and also for the LGBTQ community was something I’m really happy about. I’m a big dog rescue proponent as well. Dog Rescue, the gays, the LGBTQ community, and entertainment are all my passions. Your passions truly revolve around your heart.

When are you the most authentic? 

I feel most authentic when I just present myself the way I’m feeling that day or in that moment. One day I want to wear, a super masculine like traditional suit, great. But some days I might want to be in my Beyonce rodeo, like, cut off jeans, and then that’s okay. I really do think clothes can help people feel really great about themselves. It sounds silly to put so much emphasis on clothing, but I do think it’s part of our every day. Someone can show a little bit of their authentic self by what they choose to wear on that day.

Why is it so important to use your voice? 

I think we have to be more than ever. When it comes to acceptance, we see so many states across the country really trying to limit our rights, especially for queer youth. I think in Pride Month and every other month, we have to be loud and vocal. I think I always say it’s like I want to be loud and vocal because I know so many others can’t be, or they don’t feel that they can be yet. I think the more that we have people like ourselves who are unapologetic, hopefully inspiring someone else to accept themselves, or maybe a little more comfortable in their own journey and their own skin. I think that’s really powerful. We’ve done such a good job with 30 voices to amplify all parts of the community within our Who do I identify as LGBTQ? We have bisexual representation, we have trans people of color, we have Latin representation, etc. There’s a lot of conversations that still needs to happen, especially within those communities, and there’s still a lot of work that can be done. Therefore, anything that we can do to amplify those voices is super important. It’s so many collective voices for truth, passion and authenticity. It’s incredible.

Ramos’ diligence and commitment for advocacy is advantageous. His work is continual and unapologetically vociferous for a community that simply will not be forgotten or silenced.  For more on GLAAD and how you can contribute to the cause, visit, https://glaad.org/

Gurus Magazine presents #30Voices30Days is proudly benefitting GLAAD all month long – please donate here!

Photo Credits: Josh Fogel

Photographer’s Assistant: Christian Raices

Makeup & Hair: Joel Sebastian

Layout: Kent Burns