Periscopes UP and OUT

Arkansas PFLAG Conference 2013 Comes to Central Arkansas

Arkansas PFLAG ( Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays)  Conference 2013 will take place Saturday, February 23, 2013 from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM (CST) at the First Presbyterian Church of Little Rock 800 Scott Street in Little Rock.

 

Registration Information: register online at Eventbrite (http://pflaglittlerock.eventbrite.com ) or via paper form. It is the groups wishes to bring together a diverse mix from our LGBTQ and Ally community for a day of learning, networking, and making new friends. Currently the final itenary of workshops and sessions are being finalized.

You can purchase tickets in advance for $20 Regular/$10 Student. Tickets will be available at the door the day of the event for $25 Regular/$15 Student. A Continental breakfast and assorted lunch options including vegan will be provided. For more info hit em up at the link provided in our Zip Stream Links. Of course you can bookmark, RSS feed or opt-in e-mail. You'll get the updates here first!!! Breaking News: PFLAG Picnic announced for April in Jonesboro...stay tuned for details!

 

2013 STRAIGHT FOR EQUALITY AWARDS GALA HONOREES ANNOUNCED   

PFLAG National—the nation's largest grassroots-based non-profit for families, friends, and straight allies of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (GLBT) people—will honor NFL players Brendon Ayanbadejo of the Superbowl Championship-winning Baltimore Ravens and Chris Kluwe of the Minnesota Vikings (Straight for Equality in Sports), and award-winning author John Irving (Straight for Equality in Literature) at the fifth annual Straight for Equality Awards Gala. Additional honorees will be named in coming weeks. The evening will be hosted by comedian/writer/producer Lizz Winstead, co-creator of THE DAILY SHOW and co-founder of AIR AMERICA radio.

 

“While the last year has been a turning point in moving equality forward for GLBT people, these three men have been straight allies at the forefront of their respective fields for years, paving the way for others to speak out,” said PFLAG National Executive Director Jody M. Huckaby. “To have not one but two NFL players speaking out in such an impassioned way—not to mention using the Superbowl as a platform to move this conversation forward—is a major milestone in major league sports in this country. And Mr. Irving has been writing about the lives of GLBT people for years…long before his own son came out to him.”

Straight for Equality—a national outreach and education project created by PFLAG National— focuses on the next generation of straight allies joining together with GLBT people in the effort to achieve equality for all. Straight for Equality Awards are presented to individuals who are transforming the way that GLBT people are understood and treated, using their talents and platforms in their respective fields to empower others to become engaged and outspoken allies for GLBT equality.

 

Of accepting the award, Literature honoree Irving says, “When I wrote THE WORLD ACCORDING TO GARP (1978), I thought I was done with the subject of intolerance of our sexual differences; I believed that acceptance of sexual minorities was right around the corner, and that sexual intolerance would soon fade away. But with IN ONE PERSON (2012), I was once more making a plea for sexual tolerance; the hero of this novel is a bisexual man—the people he heroizes are two transgender women. How lucky I am to have a gay son. When he was nineteen, my son Everett was the ideal first reader for IN ONE PERSON—someone I love, someone I’m proud of, and someone who’s proud of me. And I’m very proud to be receiving a Straight for Equality Award, very honored to be in the company of the other honorees.”

 

Sports honoree Kluwe echoes Irving’s sentiments stating, “I'm greatly honored to be accepting the Straight for Equality in Sports Award. But at the same time the feeling is bittersweet, because all I did is what anyone else would do – the right thing. Hopefully one day we will no longer need to have award ceremonies for acting like a human being, because treating each other with empathy and respect will be the accepted norm.”

 

The Fifth Annual Straight for Equality Awards Gala will be held on Thursday, April 4^th in New York City at the Marriott Marquis Times Square. Tickets are available by visiting www.straightforequality.org/2013gala.