Chicago GLHF 2011 Inductees

via Windy City Times

Eleven individuals and four organizations will be inducted in November into the Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame, the country's only known government-sponsored hall of fame that honors members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) communities.

The inductees were selected by a subcommittee composed of former inductees, which reviewed nominations submitted by members of the public.

 The names were released by the Hall of Fame Committee of the Chicago Commission on Human Relations' Advisory Council on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Issues, a municipal government agency, in conjunction with the recently formed � 501(c)(3) support organization, Friends of the Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame.

The chosen nominees will be inducted at the Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame's annual ceremony, which will take place on the evening of Wednesday, November 9, at the Chicago History Museum,1601 N. Clark St., Chicago. The event will be free and open to the public.

"It makes us proud that, even 20 years after our first ceremony, there are still important figures from the past and a constantly growing list of current Chicagoans whose accomplishments and community contributions merit being honored by the Hall of Fame," said Lourdes Rodriguez, co-chairperson of the Hall of Fame Committee and of the Friends of the Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame.

"Though municipal budget problems have restricted government financial support for the Hall of Fame this year, we are grateful that individual Chicagoans have stepped forward to assist us, through Friends of the Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame, in maintaining a needed and historically significant institution," said Gary Chichester, the other co-chairperson of the committee and of the Friends organization.

The Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame was established in 1991 under the auspices of the Advisory Council, with support from the Chicago Commission on Human Relations and then-Mayor Richard M. Daley.

Its purpose is to recognize the achievements of LGBT Chicagoans, their contributions to the development of the city, and the help they have received from others.

In 2011, it marks its 20th anniversary, holds its 21st annual induction ceremony, and enjoys continuing status as an official recognition by city government of Chicago's LGBT residents and their allies.

Those inducted fall into one of three categories: Individual, Organization, or Friend of the Community. Nominees represent all of Chicago's sexual-minority communities, including LGBT Chicagoans, past, present, living, and dead, as well as those who have supported or assisted them.


Read the rest and see the list of inductees

Who's That Queer [Vernita Gray]

Brought to you by Pistol Pete

Vernita Gray is the one of Chicago's preeminent LGBT leaders. She acts as a GLBT Liaison and Hate Crime Specialist at the Cook County State's Attorney's Office and is involved in addressing problems faced by GLBT seniors. She serves on the Task Force on Aging, the GLBT advisory committee to the AARP.has served Chicago's lesbian and gay community with distinction for over 20 years. She was an early activist serving lesbians and gay men in Chicago's African American community since the late 1960's.

After attending Woodstock and learning of the existence of the "gay liberation" movement she returned to Chicago and began organizing support groups at local colleges, and with friends, organized and hosted in her home support groups for lesbians. In 1969 she participated in the development of a telephone hotline at her home for members of Chicago's gay and lesbian community. With her well known sense of humor, the hotline telephone number was FBI-LIST. Interest in the support groups and hotline was so intense that Grey eventually had to vacate her apartment to obtain a modicum of privacy and peace of mind.

Given the the hostility in the African American community towards lesbians and gay men her activities were undertaken at some personal risk. Gray was instrumental in forming the first Lesbian Caucus of the nascent Gay Liberation organization in the early 1970's and the first Chicago lesbian newspaper Lavendar Woman.

Vernita was inducted into the Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame in 1992. She will be speaking at Stonewalled: A benefit for AFC on June 18th at the Beauty Bar.

Chicago's Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame inducts 13 individuals and 1 organization

The Chicago Commission on Human Relations' Advisory Council on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Issues has released the names of 13 individuals and one organization to be inducted in November 2009 into the Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame, the only known government-sponsored hall of fame that honors members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community, announced Chairman and Commissioner Dana V. Starks.

The chosen nominees will be inducted at the Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame's 19th annual ceremony, which will take place from 5:30 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. on Thursday, November 12, 2009, in Sidney R. Yates Gallery at the Chicago Cultural Center, 77 E. Randolph St. The reception begins at 5:30 p.m., and the program is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. The event is free and open to the public.

"Chicago is a city of many faces, and the LGBT community is an important part of that diversity. The community is thriving and moving forward, helping to build a strong social and economic foundation for Chicago," said Mayor Richard M. Daley.

Read the rest of this on ChicagoPride.com