WIFVNE Speaks OUT (AUDIO)

This week I talked with Alecia Orsini, President of Women In Film & Video New England (WIFVNE) about what this relevant organization hopes to accomplish to advance women in the film industry. WIFVNE was founded in 1981 by eleven women all Boston-based media professionals that came together to form the New England chapter of Women In Film. WIFVNE’s Annual Meeting takes place on October 2nd at WGBH Yawkey Theater One Guest Street in Brighton, MA at 6P. This is an opportunity to join WIFVNE members & the New England filmmaking community for a celebration of women storytellers & the great work that is happening in New England. Keynote speaker will be Dr. Michele Meek writer, filmmaker, professor & the founder/publisher of NewEnglandFilm.com. Special guests will include Lisa Simmons Director & Curator of the Roxbury International Film Festival now in its 21st year & Carol Conley Assistant to the Executive Director of the Rhode Island Film & Television Office a division of the Rhode Island State Council of the Arts. Liz Cheng WGBH-TV General Manager will be the welcoming speaker. There will be refreshments in WGBH's Yawkey Atrium & advice tables with peer experts Genine Tillitson & Adam Pachter addressing screenwriting questions, Irene Waschler answering your tax credit & business accounting inquiries & Melissa Paradice demystifying casting. Abbey Knoll Photography will be on hand to update your headshot for $20. Also fabulous raffle prizes including two orchestra tickets for Pink Martini at Berklee Performance Center in Boston on October 26th & more. Women In Film & Video New England is a nonprofit membership organization dedicated to supporting the accomplishments of women working in the film, video & new media industries.
 
For More Info & Tix: womeninfilmvideo.org
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PFLAG Hispanic Heritage Month Video

PFLAG National the first & largest organization for LGBTQ people, their parents, families & allies released Las Familias de PFLAG En Español a new video in support of Hispanic Heritage Month September 15th to October 15th. The video features members of PFLAG En Español in Los Angeles. Brian K. Bond PFLAG National Executive Director stated, “Family acceptance & love are core to the work of PFLAG’s chapter network across the country. As we celebrate the diversity & richness of our families during Hispanic Heritage Month, we are reminded of why our mission matters.” Las Familias de PFLAG En Español is directed by Nick Oceano an award-winning filmmaker whose feature directorial debut Pedro, the MTV biopic about AIDS activist Pedro Zamora was nominated for the Humanitas Prize, a WGA Award & a GLAAD Award. Oceano concluded, “Over 20 years ago, I came out of the closet. As a Mexican-American man in my Texas hometown, which was very religious & homophobic, this was especially difficult. I walked into a PFLAG meeting with my mother not knowing what the future would hold & was so relieved to find that there were others going through the same struggles. Working on this film & walking into this meeting of PFLAG en Español, listening to the personal stories of other Latinx & Hispanic families, it brought me back. I was moved to tears by these parents & grandparents, who support their LGBTQ+ kids. It reminded me that, in our dark times, love still wins. It makes my heart full & hopeful for the future.”
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LGBTQ Faith Leaders To Watch

With the Trump administration’s rollback of nondiscrimination protections for our LGBTQ community under the flimsy guise of religious liberty the Center for American Progress has named nine faith leaders to watch in 2019. These faith leaders are playing a critical role in resisting injustice & articulating a moral vision for the nation. The nine leaders to watch are Guthrie Graves-Fitzsimmons, progressive Christian writer, activist & deacon, Louisville, Kentucky, Abby Stein, Jewish educator, writer, speaker & activist in NYC, Reverend Naomi Washington-Leapheart, faith work director, National LGBTQ Task Force, Philadelphia, Reverend Dr. Nancy Petty, pastor, Pullen Memorial Baptist Church in Raleigh, North Carolina, Mahdia Lynn, Executive Director, Masjid al-Rabia, Chicago, Reverend Frederick Davie, Executive Vice President, Union Theological Seminary, NYC, Rabbi Rachel Timoner, Senior Rabbi, Congregation Beth Elohim, Brooklyn, New York, Drew Konow, scholar of religion, cultural critic, activist, New Haven, Connecticut & Reverend angel Kyodo williams, writer, activist, ordained Zen priest, senior fellow, Auburn Seminary in NYC. Through their work these extraordinary faith leaders have proposed powerful visions to reform the criminal justice system, advance climate justice, dismantle systemic racism & more. These religious leaders all play a pivotal role in fostering bold, progressive policies to create a more just world. The Center for American Progress is a nonpartisan research & educational institute dedicated to promoting a strong, just & free America that ensures opportunity for all. They work to find progressive & pragmatic solutions to significant domestic & international problems & develop policy proposals that foster a government that is “of the people, by the people & for the people.”
For More Info: americanprogress.org
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Stonewall National Museum & Archives

Hunter O’Hanian has been named the new executive director of the LGBTQ Stonewall National Museum & Archives based in Fort Lauderdale, Florida & operating at the Stonewall Gallery in nearby Wilton Manors. Ronald Herron, Chair of the Stonewall Board of Directors stated, “Hunter has been enthusiastically selected by the Stonewall National Museum & Archives Board of Directors to lead the institution. Stonewall has a major cultural & educational presence in South Florida & has emerged as a nationally prominent LGBTQ+ organization & we expect Hunter to build on that success.” Hunter O’Hanian added “I have long been an admirer of the Stonewall National Museum & Archives & its supporters. They have worked hard to preserve LGBTQ+ history & culture in South Florida and nationally. I’m pleased to be part of this organization & look forward to exploring ways to expand its collection & present important stories that can be told through our Archives & Library. I look forward to seeing how we can work together with other LGBTQ+ organizations to collectively create a prominent national resource.” O’Hanian previously was the director of the Leslie-Lohman Museum of Gay & Lesbian Art in NYC. The Leslie-Lohman Museum is a nationally-prominent organization & is the only art museum devoted exclusively to artwork that speaks to the LGBTQ+ experience. Founded in 1973 the Stonewall National Museum & Archives houses over 3,000 documents, public records, private archival materials & a host of historic items which together document a century of our LGBTQ+ cultural & social history.
For More Info: stonewall-museum.org
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HIV Prevention Failure In Florida

Equality Florida has disclosed that Senator Rick Scott rejected $70 million in critically needed federal funds to address HIV in Florida while he was Governor according to an investigative report by The Guardian. After years of decline Florida’s number of HIV diagnoses reversed course & increased during the time that then Governor Scott’s administration actively refused federal funds for HIV prevention & blocked grants for local governments to take action. Alejandro Acosta Equality Florida HIV Advocacy Project Director stated, “This is outrageous & irresponsible. This reporting indicates that Senator Scott purposefully worked against public health, directly endangering Floridians & keeping Florida among the highest states for HIV transmissions in the nation. We cannot afford silence when it comes to HIV. Florida should be using every tool at its disposal to combat its HIV epidemic, both through the state budget & state policy.” These admission come as the Trump Administration has proposed its “Ending the HIV Epidemic” plan, which aims for a reduction of new transmissions by 90% in 10 years. The hotspots of transmissions are mostly in the South & Florida has 7 of the 48 identified counties with the newest cases in the country. Equality Florida is the largest civil rights organization dedicated to securing full equality for Florida’s LGBTQ community. Through education, grassroots organizing, coalition building & lobbying they are changing Florida so that no one suffers harassment or discrimination on the basis of their sexual orientation or gender identity.
For More Info: eqfl.org
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LA LGBT Center Hearts of Gold Gala

The Los Angeles LGBT Center will present a star-studded Hearts of Gold concert & multimedia show at the historic Greek Theatre in Griffith Park at 2700 N Vermont Avenue in Los Angeles on Saturday September 21st to celebrate the Center’s momentous 50th anniversary & five decades of the fight for LGBT equality. The Hearts of Gold concert will feature Sia, Rufus Wainwright, Lily Tomlin, Jane Fonda, Kathy Griffin, Queer Eye's Karamo Brown & Bobby Berk, Valentina, Ty Herndon & many more. This will be a show unlike any other telling the story of the Center & the LGBT community with pride, passion & humor & although the stars will be out above the beautifully appointed amphitheater on its stage the evening will never lose the sense of purpose, compassion & community that defines the work of the Center bringing our community together to celebrate this momentous occasion. For 50 years the Los Angeles LGBT Center has cared for, championed & celebrated LGBT individuals & families in Los Angeles & beyond since 1969. Today the Center's nearly 700 employees provide services for more LGBT people than any other organization in the world, offering programs, services & global advocacy that span four broad categories: Health, Social Services & Housing, Culture and Education, Leadership & Advocacy. They are an unstoppable force in the fight against bigotry & the struggle to build a better world in which LGBT people thrive as healthy, equal & complete members of society. Newly announced performers include Thelma Houston, Jenifer Lewis, plus comedian Margaret Cho.
For Info & Tix…
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Hope In A Box For LGBTQ Students

Hope in a Box has developed the definitive primer of LGBTQ inclusive literature for young adults & is working with dozens of university professors & middle & high school teachers across the country to make hundreds of rural public school more LGBTQ inclusive. The founding team of recent college graduates designed a bibliography of 50 books with supporting movies, magazines & albums that already is helping dozens of teachers diversify their classrooms nationwide to rave reviews. Their effort is part of a growing national movement to diversify public school curricula. Joe English, Founder of Hope in a Box stated, “I know that feeling of isolation & invisibility personally, having grown up in a small, rural town. After college, I returned to my high school to share my experience with my teachers & see how we could make the next generation of students feel more supported.” Hope in a Box has partnered with 25 rural public schools to pilot “Starter Boxes:” packages of 20-30 books from their bibliography along with supporting multimedia & curriculum guides for key texts. Based on feedback from users, 100% of educators feel better equipped to reach & support LGBTQ students because of Hope in a Box & 90% believe Hope in a Box noticeably improves LGBTQ students’ emotional wellbeing within one semester of receiving materials. With 80% of educators planning to formally incorporate the materials into their curricula this academic year, the pilot schools are diverse, including a traditional Mormon school in Washington state, low-income schools in rural Vermont & New Jersey & conservative Southern schools in Tennessee & Alabama among others.
For More Info: hopeinabox.org
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