The Pride Agenda’s annual Fall Dinner brings together hundreds of supporters to celebrate the LGBT community and demonstrate our strength and commitment to achieving equality and justice for all LGBT New Yorkers. We will be joined by LGBT leaders, straight allies, politicians and decision makers who are all proud to stand up for the rights of LGBT New Yorkers.
The Fall Dinner benefits the Empire State Pride Agenda, whose work focuses on advancing equality for all LGBT New Yorkers and our families, including the passage of a statewide transgender non-discrimination law, family protections, securing resources for those most vulnerable, and helping to elect pro-LGBT representatives to office.
Empire State Pride Agenda with:
Host TV Comedy’s Billy Eichner
Honorees Christine Quinn and Louis A. Bradbury
New York City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverit
U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer
New York political power players and hundreds of the city’s LGBT supporters
QUEENS PRIDE promotes awareness and education among and of the and queer/questioning community of Queens, New York.
Our founders were provoked to organize the QUEENS PRIDE parade and festival by the murder of Julio Rivera and discrimination in our local schools.These events brought the LGBTQ community of Queens together to achieve respect, and in doing so, identified a need to take advocacy to the streets.
Our first Queens Pride march was held in 1993, and since, our parade and festival have grown tremendously. We now attract more than 40,000 spectators and are the second largest Pride celebration in the New York metropolitan area. Queens Pride continues to promote the visibility and accomplishments of the LGBTQ community and to foster acceptance by the many cultures and religions represented in our borough.
In addition to the parade and festival, our group works to foster youth, cultural, and social programming and to engage our elected officials on issues pertinent to the LGBTQ community. We host an annual film series, and our Winter Pride Dinner Dance attracts countless elected officials who come to support our efforts and provide commitment to advancing our causes.
The New York City Anti-Violence Project (AVP) will hold its 16th Annual Courage Awards on Thursday, September 27, 2012 at Studio 450 at 6:00 p.m. AVP’s Courage Awards were created 16 years ago to honor outstanding individuals, organizations and corporations whose work on behalf of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and HIV-affected communities—particularly on behalf of victims and survivors of violence—has made a profound impact on all of our lives.
The following people were honored at the Gala: BD Wong, star of television and Broadway, and a tremendous, long-time spokesperson for and supporter of AVP • Verizon Wireless, for their support of AVP’s mission and work and for their commitment to LGBTQH communities and the issues that matter most to us • Interbank Roundtable Committee, a networking group of LGBT leaders at financial services firms— and AVP supporters—dedicated to accelerating the pace of workplace equality.
World Liberty TV also had the pleasure of speaking with Sharon Stapel, Executive Director of The New York City Anti-Violence Project.
Pride Parade and Multicultural Festival on Sunday, June 2 with a host of activities to promote pride among and for the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer/Questioning (LGBTQ) community of Queens and beyond. Again this year, banners announced the 37th Avenue route of the Parade and Festival.
“Our theme, ‘Equality. Everyday. Everyone.’ acknowledges the extremely important decisions before the Supreme Court on marriage equality and the hard work that our New York legislature must do to provide full equality to transgender peoples,” said Chris Calvert, co-chair of Queens Pride.
This year, the parade honored PRYDE/Make the Road NY as a Grand Marshal. PRYDE, the LGBTQ Justice Project of Make the Road NY, works to empower LGBTQ communities of Brooklyn and Queens through organizing and education. Its membership is intergenerational, ranging from ages 14 to 50+. It is one of the few New York City groups founded, led, and constituted by low-income LGBTQ people of color organizing around public policy issues that have impacts at the citywide, state, and national levels.
The Parade kicked-off at 12 p.m. at 85th Street and 37th Avenue, ending on 75th Street. Marcus Woolen and Candy Samples once again hosted a reviewing stand in front of the Jackson Heights Post Office, where the Queenie Awards are judged. The awards honor the ingenuity and enthusiasm of groups in their demonstration of LGBTQ pride and is the theme of this year’s event.
The Festival began with nearly 100 vendors along 37th Road and 75th Street. Two stages featured entertainment throughout the day. The festival capped off with a performance by George LaMond, famous for songs such as “Bad of the Heart,” ”Don’t Stop Believin’,” and “Si Tu Te Vas.” A Bronx native, LaMond’s musical career began in the 6th grade, where he and school mates discovered he can sing.
LaMond’s career spans more than two decades where he has received nominations for several distinctive awards, including “Best Male Pop Vocalist” in 1992 and Best Male R&B Vocalist by the New York Music awards. He was also presented a gold record for the album “Entrega,” He was the winner in the 2000 New York Ace Awards for Best New Vocalist, the 1991 Winter Music Conference Award for Best Freestyle Singer, and a 1991 Best Desi Arnez Vanguard Award. He recently received a Lifetime Achievement Award from New York’s WKTU. Hank Krumholz, co-chair of Queens Pride says, “We think Mr. LaMond will really get our crowd energized!”
World Liberty TV interviewed Daniel Dromm, the Founder of Queens Pride and also the council member for the same district. We asked him about the hate crimes against the LGBTQ Community, which are happening more than ever before. See what Mr. Dromm had to say about this topic and what is being done to prevent such crimes.
