Gay City News will again recognize outstanding achievements in New York’s LGBTQ community at the newspaper’s fifth annual Impact Awards gala on March 26.
Honorees hail from different fields ranging from public service to advocacy, media, business, entertainment, the arts, and literature — and all Impact Award recipients are dedicated to uplifting the LGBTQ community in different capacities.
Nominations are currently open and those who wish to submit nominees for an Impact Award can do so at gaycitynews.nyc/2020nomination. Submissions should include the nominee’s bio or résumé and there are a series of questions to answer prior to submitting a nomination. All are welcome to submit nominations.
The evening represents a special occasion during which LGBTQ New Yorkers and allies shed light on the important work — often carried out behind the scenes — they engage in to improve the lives of countless individuals in diverse settings.
“We honor impact as the positive energy members of our community and our allies bring to the well-being and happiness of New York’s LGBTQ community,” Gay City News editor-in-chief Paul Schindler said during the 2019 Impact Awards. “It can come through political action and advocacy, or brilliant lawyering in the courtroom. Some folks have immeasurable impact by working on the inside; many others are on the outside, often in the streets… In the troubled times we find ourselves in today, all of these ways of having an impact can be a way of speaking truth to power.”
Past honorees have included late Edie Windsor, who successfully challenged the Defense of Marriage Act and helped usher in marriage equality in the United States, Transgender Legal Defense and Education Fund executive director Andy Marra, New York Transgender Advocacy Group co-founder Kiara St. James, writer and activist Darnell L. Moore, Lee Soulja-Simmons of Black Pride NYC, and former Governor David Paterson, among many others.
Tickets for the event will soon be on sale and readers will be notified when they become available. A ticket includes a cocktail hour, dinner, and entertainment throughout the evening as honorees accept their awards on stage.
Those who wish to serve as a sponsor at the event should contact Amanda@gaycitynews.com or call 718-260-8340.
