Out gay health leader Demetre Daskalakis, actress and model Leyna Bloom, and drag artist Alexis Michelle were honored at Callen-Lorde’s Community Health Awards on Nov. 7 at Chelsea Piers in Manhattan.
With comedian Dana Goldberg serving as emcee, more than 650 attendees joined the evening’s festivities in support of Callen-Lorde, which provides comprehensive and inclusive care regardless of ability to pay.
“Callen-Lorde has always stood for more than healthcare,” Callen-Lorde’s CEO, Patrick McGovern, said in a written statement. “We stand for dignity. For equity. For the radical belief that every human being deserves to be seen, affirmed, and cared for — without exception.”
Honorees praised the ongoing work of Callen-Lorde in the face of great adversity for gender-affirming care and LGBTQ healthcare broadly. Daskalakis, a doctor who recently resigned from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and blasted the Trump administration’s policies on his way out, emphasized to the audience that the community is standing up to ongoing attacks on queer healthcare.
“The efforts by ideologues to end wokeness may undo decades of work to end the HIV epidemic and the epidemic of suicide among LGBTQ youth,” said Daskalakis, who once worked for the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. “Yet, in the case of this adversity, the mission of Callen-Lorde burns brighter than ever before. When ideology threatens to eclipse truth, and political forces seek destruction rather than progress, what remains — what endures — is our formidable community.”
Bloom, whose acting work includes starring in the New York City-based film “Port Authority,” praised audience members for their resilience.
“What I see before me tonight is not just a gathering of people,” Bloom said. “It’s a gathering of survivors. It’s the living proof that love can outlast every attempt to erase us.”
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