The Next Generation Leadership Foundation (NGLF), the local nonprofit dedicated to mentoring and fostering potential LGBT leaders in various fields, is accepting nominations for the 2015 Next Generation Awards, presented by Metro Weekly.
Now in its seventh year, the Next Generation Awards honor young LGBT leaders or activists under the age of 30 who have demonstrated outstanding leadership and achievement in both their career and in their contributions to their community. Past award winners include leaders in the labor movement, equal rights advocates, business leaders, community activists and professionals in various fields. All award winners are chosen from a pool of nominations submitted by community members. Nominations can be submitted online through Friday, April 10th.
“We’re very excited for this year’s awards,” said Sean Bugg, the executive director of NGLF. “It’s always an honor for us to be able to recognize such amazing young LGBT leaders in such a prominent way through Metro Weekly.”
The awards were first launched by Metro Weekly in 2009. The magazine announces and profiles each winners — four in total — in a special edition of the magazine, this year slated to hit newsstands on April 30. The awards inspired the formation in 2013 of the independent NGLF, best known for its Leadership Institute — a national program that brings LGBT high school students to Washington during the summer for leadership training and networking opportunities.
“We’re proud to not only continue our support of the awards but to support the work of NGLF,” said Randy Shulman, publisher of Metro Weekly. “As always, we look forward to creating a unique showcase for these outstanding LGBT youth and young adults.”
The Next Generation Awards will be presented on Thursday, May 7, at the Beacon Bar and Grill, 1615 Rhode Island Ave. NW. Tickets can be purchased online at NGLF’s website for $55, or are available for $60 at the door. Nominations may be submitted online through Friday, April 3 via nglf.org/nga-nominations. For more information on NGLF, visit nglf.org.
Little more than a year ago, Kamala Harris narrowly lost the presidential election. She may have suffered a swing-state sweep, but Donald Trump's 49.8 percent win was hardly a mandate. Consider Franklin D. Roosevelt won his first term with a bit more than 57 percent. That's a mandate.
But lose, she did. And I cried twice. Some frail dudes might not like admitting that, but I'm not so self-loathing that I'm compelled to deny human emotions. Initially, maybe a day after the vote, talking to a neighbor on our building's shared roof, my throat seized mid-sentence and I excused myself. I may have plenty to cry about, but I don't ever want it to make me the center of attention.
The great gay poet and playwright Federico García Lorca made a clear point with the title of his best-known play, The House of Bernarda Alba. Spanish matriarch Bernarda Alba rules her roost with an iron will and a firm hand. In her house, she is the law that must be obeyed by all, including her five adult daughters, all living under her roof.
Her rules likely applied just as rigidly to her second husband Antonio, very recently deceased. With his death, Bernarda only tightens her grip on the household, decreeing an eight-year mourning period, during which none of her daughters shall be allowed to marry. She seals the house in mourning, and intends to trap all her family inside with her.
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