Center Blog

It’s hard to believe that in less than a month, we will be on our road cycling adventure for Braking the Cycle. I decided to participate in the ride not only because it is the Center, but more specifically because I see firsthand how much we help people who struggle with HIV/AIDS. I am riding with the Center team called “Centerlicious.” The team is made up of staff, board members, Center partners and friends whose commitment to our cause and movement goes beyond the standard work week; team members ride to work on a daily basis, train weekends and are fundraising round the clock for our life-saving HIV/AIDS Programs.

Center staff has ridden before but never in such a large constituency, therefore this years ride is a landmark for us! There are also additional staff, a road crew who will work en route supporting our riders on the journey. The Center is helping more people living with HIV/AIDS than ever before and the spirit of camaraderie, dedication and support that exists among the Center staff and board fuels my ride. It also fills me with pride to say that our staff’s commitment to our community is strong, and Centerlicious is the culmination of that commitment.

Please consider supporting us in our journey by donating…

Glennda Testone, rider #74

We are thrilled to celebrate the historic federal court ruling overturning California’s Proposition 8 as unconstitutional. We still have a long way to go in the battle for true marriage equality, but the significance of this federal ruling is encouraging. Perry v. Schwarzenegger is an ambitious legal strategy to challenge the federal government to treat our families equally.

The fight in California is far from over, and the battle in New York is still underway, but we must not lose sight of this momentous occasion.
Never before has a federal court declared so clearly that marriage discrimination is irrational and unconstitutional.

Judge Walker’s decision cites both the Due Process and Equal Protection clauses from the 14th Amendment as the reasons why Proposition 8 is unconstitutional. This is an important moment for our community as a federal court has cited the constitution as a protection of our relationships. But Judge Walker does not stop there. He probes in depth the facts that the supporters of Proposition 8 attempted to use to strip LGBT people of the basic right to marry. To his credit, Judge Walker systematically proves how absurd and unfounded those purported facts are establishing in a critical legal opinion the unassailable, constitutional rights of the LGBT community. His decision rests on the lack of any rational basis for California to have a law banning same-sex marriage.

We at the Center work for a day where LGBT New Yorkers can enjoy the same rights and protections as our straight counterparts. This ruling helps set the stage for future victories. As this fight continues, there will be ups and downs for our movement, but it is important to celebrate as a community when we have a victory such as this!

Please accept our sincere congratulations to the LGBT people and our allies who helped make equality more of a reality for all couples and families.

Glennda Testone

Consider me inspired! I’ve seen the New York City Pride Parade many times, but I’ve never marched. This year, I was fortunate to march with the Center and be in the thick of it. All of my questions were answered and I was completely won over by our community’s collective commitment to the LGBT movement. The sheer beauty, resilience and vibrant diversity of our community filled me with pride and deep appreciation. Along the march, I met young people who never stopped dancing, parents pushing strollers and never running out of patience, HIV+ activists, LGBT immigrants celebrating pride for the first time, transgender participants, friends, colleagues and family. I want to thank the Center staff and board members, interns and volunteers who shared their pride with me and with our entire community. My friend and mentor, Joan Garry, made this video that will give you a snapshot of the glorious day. Enjoy! And thank you, Joan.

Click here to read more about the parade.

I am pleased to announce that on Thursday, June 10th 2010, our work on the City’s Commission for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Questioning Runaway and Homeless Youth (LGBTQ RHY) came to fruition. The Commission briefed Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg on the work of The Comission and presented our report, All Our Children: Strategies to Prevent Homelessness, Strengthen Services, and Build Support for LGBTQ Youth. We highlighted the fact-findings process, research, best practices, strengthening services, including strategies and recommendations on prevention and family support, and building more broad support for LGBTQ RHY.

Recently, the Center’s Young Leaders Council held a panel on homeless queer youth. Our community came together to hear stories from youth who had been on the streets –- tales of trials and of triumph – as well as stories from individuals who’ve dedicated their careers in helping the homeless queer youth.
The panel also discussed how the LGBT community can get involved with the crisis through volunteer opportunities and spreading the word.

The Center’s Youth Enrichment Services (YES) Program serves over 1,000 young people, ages 13-21, every year. Among that group, a significant number are either homeless or in the foster care system. The Center has recently started the LGBT Foster Care Project which is training foster care agency staff and foster parents in cultural competency around LGBT issues to make them more welcoming and affirming to LGBT youth and prospective LGBT foster parents.

The Commission received great feedback from the Mayor and I feel honored to have contributed to the shaping of this timeless and important document. I highly encourage you to read and share the full report. Download it here!

The Center is at the forefront of many political and advocacy issues while also keeping active in numerous human rights and social justice initiatives.
Below are updates on current Issues & Alerts:

Ban on Gay Men Donating Blood
The Center joined GMHC, the Latino Commission on AIDS and other organizations to add its voice to the growing movement to end the ban on gay men donating blood…read more

DSM-5 Gender Identity Disorder Reform
The Center and the Callen-Lorde Community Health Center collaborated to submit a response on the proposed “Gender Incongruence” diagnosis in the American Psychiatric Association’s (APA) draft revision of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, version 5 (DSM-5), scheduled to be released in 2013…read more

Immigration Reform
The Center joined Immigration Equality, the New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU) and other organizations to add its voice to the growing movement for immigration reform…read more

As many of you know, on the morning of April 14, 2010 the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Community Center staff arrived to find a torched rainbow flag draped on the front of our building. This act of hate must not be tolerated! Actions like this are menacing to our community and, if not addressed, can lead to an environment that allows more heinous acts, such as verbal attacks, property damage and physical violence. Showing our solidarity now will empower our community and send a message to the public that we will not be intimidated or threatened.

Cowardly acts of hateful speech must be responded to with acts of courage and unity.

The Center has partnered with City Council Speaker, Christine C. Quinn, New York City Comptroller, John Liu, Rainbow Flag’s creator, Gilbert Baker and other elected officials in conjunction with other organizations to bring together our community and unfurl a new 20 foot long flag that will drape the building.

Today, on Wednesday, April 21st at 5PM we will gather together as one to prove that we will not sit idly by while our home is threatened. We invite our straight allies to stand with us to demonstrate that LGBT safety and rights are not just an issue for LGBT people. Our city is strong and we need to come together to show that we cannot be intimidated.

Please join us and demonstrate the true power of community!

When: Wednesday, April 21, 2010 at 5PM
Where: In front of The LGBT Community Center, 208 W 13th Street, Manhattan

The Center is a beacon of safety and hope for LGBT New Yorkers and our building stands as an emblem of our community’s presence in the city. The Center is visited over 300,000 times every year by people in search of support, safety and transformation. More than 1,000 young people come through our doors annually searching for acceptance and a place where they feel comfortable expressing their true selves.

More Information can be found at: Torched Flag

Glennda Testone

UPDATE

On Wednesday, April 21st at 5:00 pm we will gather together as one to prove that we will not sit idly by while our home is threatened. More information can be found at Torched Flag

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I am writing to tell you about an incident that happened at the Center. This morning our building staff arrived and discovered a burned rainbow flag hanging on one of the poster display cases outside our building. We called the NYPD, and they immediately dispatched detectives from the hate crimes unit and our local precinct. We also contacted the Anti-Violence Project, and the crime is currently under investigation. We at the Center strive everyday to be a safe space for our community and a beacon of inclusion and hope for the entire city. It is sad that these incidents still happen in this day and age, but rest assured we will do everything in our power to make sure our community is safe.

Most importantly, we will not stand for anyone who thinks they can come to the Center and try to intimidate us. Hate and intolerance against LGBT New Yorkers will not be accepted, and we as a community must stand strong and together in the face of these hateful incidents. We are asking anyone who has additional information about this crime to contact the police directly at 1-800-577-TIPS.

Thank you all for your continued support.

Glennda Testone

Update, April 5th

Today, April 5th, The Census Bureau had its first-ever official unveiling of PSAs for the LGBT Community at our Center. If you missed the unveiling, you can watch this video below.

You may have noticed 2010 Census promotion material everywhere around New York City; on phone booths, buses, public spaces, in newspapers and on television. It is important to our city that everyone fills out the Census so that New York City gets its fair share of funding from the federal government to improve schools, healthcare, fight crime, repair roads, and support other critical city services for all New Yorkers. The 2010 Census matters to everyone, but particularly the LGBT community. Dr. Gary Gates of the Williams explains that “Americans have many misconceptions about the LGBT community that Census data have allowed us to correct. For example, among those in same-sex couples: one in six lives in a rural area, one in four is a person of color, one in five is raising children (two in five among people of color).”

At the Center, 300,000 people visit us a year. The Center uses government funding to provide life-saving services to the LGBT population in New York. Through government funding from federal, state and city sources we are able to provide substance abuse treatment to LGBT New Yorker’s, a safe space for LGBT youth in need as well as a host of other programming.

Currently the census has set up a booth at the Center to assist our community fill out the forms. We applaud that effort to make sure our community is included. However, the census doesn’t track LGBT identity as part of what they collect, and we feel it is incredibly important that they start. We invite you to view this great video from New York City’s TV25 for information about why it is important and specifically why it important to the Center.

Glennda Testone

When you walk through the doors OF THE LGBT CENTER as a lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or questioning person, you will find a safe space, acceptance and support Every week in fact, 6,000 people come through those doors, THAT’S 300,000 VISITS PER YEAR. PEOPLE come looking for information, resources and community. For some, walking through our doors is the first time they feel safe and supported. Our goal is to make sure it’s not the last. To make sure that wherever they are in New York City, that they have rights and protections that are equal to their straight counterparts. That’s why I am so excited to host this stakeholder meeting with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to discuss the First-Ever Study of Housing Discrimination Again LGBT Members in Rental and Sale of Housing.

We see the Center as a beacon of inclusion and acceptance for a broader society, but we can’t do it alone, and so we are so thrilled to be partnering with New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, Senators Charles Shumer and Kirsten Gillibrand, Congressman Jerold Nadler, and Council Members Rosie Mendez, Danny Dromm, Jimmy Van Bramer and Erik Martin Dilan to bring you this forum. I wish I could say that they was no problem, that LGBT people had as much access to housing as everyone else in this city, but I sit on the Mayor’s commission for LGBT Homeless and Runaway Youth, and I have heard the struggles of our young people AS THEY make their way in this city and TRY TO get their basic needs met. I have a dear friend, who is a butch lesbian who just last week told me about the second apartment she and her flamboyantly, fabulously gay friend lost because the landlord “did not want to rent to gay people,” so said the broker. It made me really sad to know that even in New York City, our community faces these challenges, and it made me really proud to work at the LGBT Center where at least for a little while everyday, we can provide a home for our community.

Glennda Testone

The Gender Expression Non-Discrimination Act (GENDA) has been passed by the Assembly, and now only needs the State Senate to vote to end prejudice towards New York’s transgender community.

GENDA would ban discrimination in housing, employment, credit and public accommodations while also expanding the state’s hate crimes law to include crimes against transgender people.

Today is the Statewide Call-In-Day and we ask you to call your Senator and the lead Senate sponsor Tom Duane at their Albany offices to tell them that you want GENDA to make it and pass the Senate floor.
It is crucial that they hear from you today!

Here’s how to make your calls:

1. Find your State Senator’s Albany phone number here and you can reach Senator Tom Duane at (518) 455-2451.

2. Tell your Senator the number of the GENDA bill (S.2406) and ask them to support GENDA by bringing it to the floor for a vote.

Through the power of our community we CAN effect change.