The TransGriot's Getting An Esteem Award!

Many times when you start a blog, in addition to the drama and hate mail you get from time to time when  someone vehemently disagrees with your point of view on a post you complied, many times you get some unexpected blessings that come your way that outweigh the negativity.


I was surprised and I'm pleased to find out that I will be a 2011 honoree for the Chicago based Esteem Awards in the Outstanding Service, Transgender - National category.

The Esteem Awards were founded by Philip Esteem Fleming in May 2007, and honor local and national organizations and individuals for their continued efforts in supporting the African-American and LGBT community in the areas of entertainment, media, civil rights, business and art.

The awards ceremony takes place during Chicago’s Annual Black Gay Pride celebrations normally scheduled for the July 4th holiday weekend.    

The Esteem Awards event will occur this year at Sidetrack from 1:00-4:00 PM CDT on Saturday July 2, 2011.  

Unfortunately it doesn't look like at this point I'll be able to make it to Chicago in person to accept the award, but I will be compiling a statement thanking them for the honor and crossing my fingers hoping I can be there in person to accept it.

If you wish to attend, the address of Sidetrack is 3349 N. Halsted  St. and there will be a $6 admission to do so.

While garnering awards is not part of the mission here at TransGriot, it sure is nice when the hard work I put in here is recognized and acknowledged.   It's even sweeter when that recognition comes from my own people and the TBLG/SGL community I'm a part of..

Thank you.
 

Brazil Creates National LGBT Council

Brazil already provides free SRS for its trans citizens, so it wasn't surprising to hear that Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and Human Rights Secretary Paulo Vannuchi signed a December 9 decree creating the National LGBT Council.

The newly created National LGBT Council will "formulate and propose guidelines for government actions, at the national level, aimed at combating discrimination and promoting and defending the rights of lesbians, gays, bisexuals, transvestites and transsexuals." 

The National LGBT Council is comprised of employees of 15 governmental organizations and representatives of 15 non governmental organizations and was an outgrowth of the deliberations following the June 2008 National LGBT Conference.   A National Plan To Promote LGBT Citizenship and Human Rights was also compiled with 166 recommendations made to implement the national plan to improve the lives of GLBT Brazilians

The Brazilian Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Trans Association  (ABGLT)  welcomed the news of the council's formation.

"The creation of the council is something ABGLT has been pressuring for and is a victory for civil society and the Lula government," said Toni Reis, president of the otrganization. "It shows respect for the deliberations of the 1st National LGBT Conference, held in June 2008, and will be a means of ensuring social watch over the implementation of the 166 actions contained in the National Plan to Promote LGBT Citizenship and Human Rights."

Glad to hear that at least one nation on the planet is motivated to protect the human rights of its GLBT citizens.