Barney Frank, Trailblazing Gay Politician, Dead at 86

Barney Frank, the trailblazing congressman who advocated for LGBTQ+ rights in Congress after he came out as gay while in office, has died, according to NBC News Boston.

The career politician of 32 years from Massachusetts died in hospice care at home in Maine, where he lived with his husband, Jim Ready. He retired in 2013.

"He was, above all else, a wonderful brother. I was lucky to be his sister," Frank's sister Doris Breay told NBC10 Boston.

In addition to being the first sitting congressman to come out as gay -- which he did in 1987 -- he was also the first congressman to have a same-sex marriage when he married Jim in 2012.

In addition to being a strong supporter of gay rights, Frank was also known for being the co-sponsor of 2010's Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act -- to protect consumers after the 2008 financial crisis and subsequent bailouts.

Frank was 86.