Tag Archives: GLAAD Award

Hilary Swank Says There is a ‘Long Way to Go’ on Transgender Acceptance

Hilary Swank has spoken up recently about her portrayal of a transgender male in the 1999 film Boys Don’t Cry.

Swank was largely unknown when she starred in the real-life story of Brandon Teena, a trans man who was beaten, raped and murdered by his male acquaintances after they discovered he was transgender.

During an appearance on Thursday’s all-new Meredith Vieira Show, Swank was asked about the progress made for the transgender community since the film’s release.

I think we have taken strides since that movie, like you said 15 years ago. We have a long way to go. It’s astonishing to me that we are here in 2015 and there are so many issues that need to be looked at and handled and we shouldn’t dictate who people should love.”

Swank has been a proud supporter of LGBT rights for many years. In fact, she recently received the GLAAD award and Outfest award for her work in the famous film.

When asked if she ever expected the movie to spur so much conversation, she would have to say no.

I had no idea. If I had known that at the time, I probably would have collapsed from the enormous responsibility of that,”. “It was an enormous responsibility just to play someone who had lived and been murdered so brutally and whose life was taken short because of their choice of whom to love.”

In a world filled with many more issues, Swank argues that Americans should spend their time on far more important causes instead of preventing equal rights for the LGBT community.

Let people love people and let’s focus on what truly needs looked at and help homeless people, homeless pets, sick people. Look at the rest of the world, let’s focus on those things.”

Game Changers Google and YouTube is to be Honored at GLAAD Gala

GLAAD, has announced it will honor global technology leader Google and video-sharing innovator YouTube at the GLAAD Gala San Francisco: Game Changers at the Hilton San Francisco Union Square on September 13, 2014.

At the gala, Google and YouTube will receive the Ric Weiland Award, which honors innovators who advance LGBT equality through tech and new media. The award is named after Ric Weiland, who was a computer software pioneer and philanthropist. Together with his surviving partner Mike Schaefer, he is known for his dedication to LGBT and HIV/AIDS organizations.

Why Google?

For years, Google has been one of Silicon Valley’s most vocal supporters of LGBT equality.

  • In 2008, Google spoke out against California’s Proposition 8, a statewide ban on marriage for same-sex couples, and donated significant contributions to efforts to remove the ban.
  • In 2010, Google announced that it would cover extra health coverage-related costs incurred by gay and lesbian couples unable to legally wed.
  • The following year, Google expanded its employee healthcare coverage to include transition-related care for its transgender employees.
  • In 2012, the company launched ‘Legalize Love,’ an international effort to “promote safer conditions for gay and lesbian people inside and outside the office in countries with anti-gay laws on the books.”
  • That same year, Google unveiled a YouTube video showcasing employees speaking out in support of marriage equality in four battleground states – Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, and Washington.
  • In 2013, YouTube unveiled its first-ever pride campaign, #ProudToLove, and changed its logo to be pride-themed for the first time in the company’s history.
  • Earlier this year, Google showed its support for LGBT Russians through a rainbow ‘Google Doodle,’ which debuted just hours before the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi, Russia.
  • And in June, YouTube unveiled its #ProudToPlay campaign – a celebration of LGBT equality in sports. The campaign was featured on the YouTube and Google homepages and marked the second consecutive year that YouTube changed its logo for a pride campaign.

“Few companies have the power to reach billions, and even fewer use that power to help ensure everyone can live the life they love. Tech innovators like Google are now at the forefront of the global conversation on LGBT equality, ushering in a new era of acceptance and understanding for users across the world. Through groundbreaking campaigns, outspoken support, and a relentless commitment to its LGBT employees, Google has raised the bar on corporate leadership that drives equality forward.”

Sarah Kate Ellis, GLAAD President & CEO

 

Antigone Rising | Girl Power Country Rock Style

This year lesbian alt country group Antigone Rising will release two superlative new EPs, Whiskey and Wine Volume 1 and Whiskey and Wine Volume 2. They are currently touring grass roots venues in the US in support of their latest single, ‘That was the Whiskey’, which has already been nominated for an Independent Music Award. The tune was co-written with much-admired country and western songwriter Lori McKenna.

The New York-based all-girl band made the big time in 2005, selling 150,000 copies of their debut album and dominating the Billboard Heatseekers charts for over a year. Soon enough they were supporting rock legends such as the Rolling Stones, Allman Brothers Band and Aerosmith. They play almost 300 concerts annually and have performed on the Today Show and the Tonight Show. Last year’s 23 Red LP was a critical and commercial triumph.

Antigone-Rising-07Antigone Rising are also renowned for their social activism, campaigning for same-sex marriage and LGBT rights around the world. In 2013 bassist Kristen Ellis-Henderson appeared with her wife Sarah Kate Ellis-Henderson in Time Magazine’s special “Gay Marriage Already Won” edition.

‘It was an honour to be chosen as the couple on the cover of Time,’ said Kristen. ‘To be part of the cultural shift is not something my wife and I take lightly. We will continue to show up for our community until there is equality everywhere.’

Her music is very much infused with her politics, as Antigone Rising aim to ‘play better than the boys’ in a genre that has historically been tainted by patriarchy and reactionary attitudes to gender and sexual identity. Kristin’s wife Sarah is the President / CEO of GLAAD (Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation) and 5% of the royalties from both volumes of Whiskey and Wine will be donated to GLAAD.

Founded in 1993 by Kristen and her sister Cathy Henderson, Antigone Rising has changed its line-up a good deal over the years. Currently Nini Camps sings lead vocals and plays rhythm guitar and Dena Tauriello is on drums.

Whiskey and Wine Volume 1 was released to iTunes on 25th March 2014 and Whiskey and Wine Volume 2 is released on 28th October 2014. Don’t miss out on the girl power!

Find out more – www.antigonerising.com

Jennifer Lopez Wins GLAAD Award for ABC Family’s ‘The Fosters’

Despite having experience in the world of acting (she has starred in both Maid in Manhattan and Gigli), world renowned singer Jennifer Lopez probably seems like an unlikely candidate for being a strong force behind the LGBT movement yet having created The Fosters, an award winning TV show about an interracial lesbian couple and their children, she has become just that. The show has been gifted praise in reviews such as ‘breathtakingly normal’, ‘hilarious’ and ‘well-written’ for the fact that although the show’s two protagonists are gay and interracial, this is effectively nothing but a description of the show as opposed to an overused trope or a plot point and it’s likely for that reason that Jennifer Lopez will be granted an award by GLAAD (Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation) at an upcoming awards ceremony.

The award in question is the highly prestigious ‘Vanguard’ title which is GLAAD’s highest honour and is gifted to artists and media professionals who have shown exemplary and overwhelming support for the LGBT community in their work. GLAAD CEO and President Sarah Kate Ellis said this glowing amount of praise about the Puerto Rican singer via the organisation’s website,

“Jennifer Lopez has not only sent a message of acceptance to LGBT adults and young people, but inspired new support for our community among her many fans around the globe. Family is about love, and that’s a message Jennifer has shared with millions through her groundbreaking work on The Fosters.”

Lopez herself said this by way of GLAAD,

“When it comes to gay marriage, I just believe in love. I believe that when two people find each other and love each other, they should be able to spend their lives together with all the same benefits and privileges as everyone,”

While Lopez beliefs are good in themselves, her work behind the scenes for The Fosters should not be overlooked, with the show’s importance being far reaching as it shows a positive portrayal of lesbian family life that has been missing in the media for some time with 2010 film The Kids Are All Right about a married lesbian couple and their children being criticised for its use of hetero-centric plot points and mildly offensive tropes. However, The Fosters continues to do well in the ratings and the Vanguard award (which Lopez is set to receive at a ceremony on April 12th) may serve as a small token for the good work that she is doing, so we’ll keep you updated on the show in the future.

Source: The Huffington Post