James Duke Mason
| James Duke Mason | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | April 27, 1992 Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| 💼 Occupation |
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| 📆 Years active | 2009–present |
| 🏛️ Political party | Democratic Party |
| 👴 👵 Parent(s) | |
| 👪 Relatives |
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James Duke Mason (born April 27, 1992) is an American writer, activist and city official in West Hollywood, California. The son of singer Belinda Carlisle and film producer Morgan Mason, he is also the grandson of the late British actor James Mason and his wife, media personality Pamela Mason.[1][2][3]
Personal Life[edit]
Born in Los Angeles, Mason he moved to Europe with his parents as a child. Mason is openly gay and came out to his family and friends at the age of 14 in 2006.[4][5][6] After graduating from Mougins School, an international school in the south of France in July 2010, Mason moved back to the U.S. to study political science at California Lutheran University.[7] After a year he moved to West Hollywood, California to pursue his passion for grassroots advocacy.
Career[edit]
Mason was appointed to serve as a Page in the United States House of Representatives during the summer of 2008.[1] He had a small acting role in the film "What Happens Next", which screened as part of the Hollywood Film Festival.[8] In 2010, The Advocate listed Mason as one of the most influential young LGBT Americans in their "Forty Under 40" issue.[9] He was named in OUT magazine's 2011 "Out 100" issue as one of the 100 most influential LGBT people in the world.[10] He has appeared on TV shows such as Dr. Phil, Nancy Grace, and Politicking with Larry King to discuss LGBTQ issues.[11] He served as an official surrogate for the campaigns of Barack Obama in the 2012 U.S. Presidential Election[12] and Hillary Clinton in the 2016 U.S. Presidential Election.[13] He served on the Board of Directors of Outfest from January 2012 to January 2015, making him the youngest Board Member in the organization's history. He was a candidate for the West Hollywood City Council in the March 3, 2015 election[14], and was subsequently appointed by Mayor Lindsey Horvath to her newly created 21st Century Leaders Task Force. In May 2015 he was selected to serve as Special Guest Grand Marshal of the Sacramento Pride Parade.[15] He served on the Board of the West Hollywood Community Housing Corporation from 2015 to 2017.[16]
Since October 2015 he has served on the West Hollywood Lesbian & Gay Advisory Board, where he served as Co-Chair from 2017 to 2018.[17] He once again ran for West Hollywood City Council in the March 5, 2019 election; although he didn't win, he earned over 1,331 votes and placed a strong 5th (top 3 won) in a crowded field of 11 candidates.[18] He was endorsed by longtime Councilmember John Heilman[19] and earned the support of prominent LGBTQ organization Equality California.[20]
Since the campaign he has primarily focused on his writing and activism. He has continued to be a leader in support of the boycott of the Beverly Hills Hotel and other Dorchester Collection properties due to their owner, the Sultan of Brunei's policies against the LGBTQ community.[21][22] He was a prominent voice in calling out the past anti-gay votes and hypocrisy of former Republican Congressman Aaron Schock.[23][24] For more than a decade he has been a freelance writer for various major publications, including The Huffington Post, The Advocate, OUT Magazine, The Hollywood Reporter, Queerty, and is currently a regular contributor to LGBTQ Nation.[25][26][27][28][29][30] Since March 2020 he has hosted a weekly series on his Instagram account called "Duke's Download", where thus far he has interviewed celebrities and politicians such as Belinda Carlisle (his mother), Leslie Jordan, Melissa Rivers, Cleve Jones, David Furnish and Governor Jared Polis.
References[edit]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Stuart, Gwynedd (January 28, 2019). "Meet Duke Mason, the Fresh-Faced Celeb Spawn Running for WeHo City Council".
- ↑ "Queery: James Duke Mason". 10 May 2018.
- ↑ "James Duke Mason: Advocate | A&U Magazine".
- ↑ "PFLAG". pflag.org.
- ↑ https://thestir.cafemom.com/celebrities/198542/13_celeb_parents_who_have/165231/belinda_carlisle/13
- ↑ "A Young American | the Fight Magazine".
- ↑ "The New Royals: Meet Political Activist James Duke Mason". PAPER. May 29, 2015.
- ↑ "What Happens Next" – via www.imdb.com.
- ↑ "Forty Under 40". www.advocate.com. April 7, 2010.
- ↑ "17th Annual Out100". www.out.com. December 11, 2011.
- ↑ "Gary Johnson and James Duke Mason" – via www.imdb.com.
- ↑ "A Young American | the Fight Magazine".
- ↑ Aug 21st 2016 - 5pm, Helmut Schmidt |. "LGBTQ community, supporters flood downtown Fargo for annual Pride Parade". INFORUM.
- ↑ "Hermosa Beach defeats oil drilling measure". 5 March 2015.
- ↑ "Guide to Sacramento Pride 2015". Downtown Sac.
- ↑ "James Duke Mason". Run For Something.
- ↑ "Lesbian and Gay Advisory Board | City of West Hollywood". www.weho.org.
- ↑ "WeHo Voters Reelected Three City Council Incumbents—Including itItsoon-to-Be Mayor". 7 March 2019.
- ↑ "John Heilman Endorses Duke Mason in West Hollywood City Council Election". 7 January 2019.
- ↑ "Equality California 2019 Endorsements".
- ↑ "LGBTQ Activist on Beverly Hills Hotel Boycott: "This Is the Moral Challenge in Front of Us" (Guest Column)". The Hollywood Reporter.
- ↑ "Gay Rights Activists Plan Another Beverly Hills Hotel Protest". 12 October 2016.
- ↑ Mason, James Duke (April 20, 2020). "How I found myself in the middle of the Aaron Schock controversy". LGBTQ Nation.
- ↑ "Aaron Schock slammed for Instagram photo among shirtless group 'quarantining' in sunny Mexico resort".
- ↑ "James Duke Mason / Author at LGBTQ Nation".
- ↑ "James Duke Mason".
- ↑ "James Duke Mason / Author at Queerty".
- ↑ "James Duke Mason | HuffPost".
- ↑ "Why the Beverly Hills Hotel Boycott Still Matters (Guest Column)".
- ↑ "Why the Met Should Boycott the Anti-LGBT-Owned Beverly Hills Hotel". 24 March 2016.
External links[edit]
- James Duke Mason on Instagram
- James Duke Mason on TwitterLua error in Module:WikidataCheck at line 23: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).
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