Celebrity Friday: Asian-American Lesbian Federal Judge, Pamela Ki Mai Chen

Pamela Ki Mai Chen has become the first openly lesbian Asian-American federal judge confirmed by the United States Senate. President Obama has now nominated 9 openly LGBT individuals to become federal judges and four have been confirmed: Paul Oetken, Michael Fitzgerald, Ali Nathan and Pamela Chen.

Chen was nominated for a federal district court judgeship in the Eastern District of New York by Obama before the 2012 presidential election and then re-nominated when he was re-elected and the 113th Congress began in January 2013.

Still pending before the Senate are President Obama's nomination of the first African-American, openly gay man to be a federal judge, William L. Thomas as well as the nomination of Todd Hughes to be the first openly gay person to sit on a federal appeals court.

Prior to the Obama administration  President Clinton had appointed the only known openly LGBT member of the federa judiciary, Deborah Batts. That number has increased 400% due to President Obama's appointments.