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LA Pride Parade & Festival in Los Angeles, CA
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November 13

November 19

Transgender Awareness Week

November 13 – November 19

Every year between November 13-19, Transgender Awareness Week is observed and celebrated to promote visibility for the transgender community, and call attention to the experiences and lives of our transgender brothers, sisters and siblings.

Christopher Street West / LA Pride is proud to have three transgender Board of Directors members, and they each have a message to the LGBTQ+ community.

Sharon-Franklin Brown is the first Black transgender person to be named president of LA Pride’s Board of Directors. She is a national speaker on transgender rights, activist, and Chief Human Resources Officer for the Los Angeles LGBT Center and its nearly 800 employees. A longtime advocate for gender expression and identity, she has spoken out for anti-discrimination policies in education since being terminated from Fayetteville State University, a historically Black university, for being a transwoman. Sharon is the recipient of the Leadership Award from the Employment Roundtable of Southern California and Los Angeles for her contributions to furthering civil rights in workplace diversity.

Board Secretary, Mistress Cyan St. James has been a supporter of LA Pride since 2007 when she was named as an Honoree and recipient of The Connie Norman Award. She has been named Woman of The Year three times, and Fundraiser of The Year twice, as well as Mentor of The Year. The LA Weekly named her “The Most Respected Dominatrix in Los Angeles”, and she has been a guest speaker at Stanford University, UCLA, Occidental College and California State Universities Los Angeles, Long Beach and Northridge. She is currently the President/CEO of Sanctuary Studios, Inc., and Executive Producer of DomCon Los Angeles and New Orleans.

Johanna Padilla, a.k.a. La Sirena, Los Angeles’ “UnTucked Burlesque Mermaid,” showcases the beauty of trans bodies while embodying prime Hollywood glamour and the mermaid fantasy through her groundbreaking performances. Johanna is also an advocate for LGBTQ+ rights, and an out, proud, and visible trans queer womxn of color who is constantly creating positive impact and change for the LGBTQ+ community through her work in the nonprofit sector, while pursuing her dreams in the fashion and entertainment industry as an actor, model and designer. As a CSW Board member, Johanna focuses on inclusive programming for the trans, POC, Black, and sober communities.

Click the images below to see their video messages.

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LA Pride salutes the incredible legacy and groundbreaking work of our departing leader, Madonna, who is leaving the organization this month. The organization has immeasurable gratitude for her contributions, and wishes her the best on her next chapter. Read more from the outgoing Executive Director at link in bio.
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We are proud and honored to announce Sharon-Franklin Brown as the new Board President of Christopher Street West / LA Pride.
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🌈 LA Pride's 50th Anniversary Celebration on @ABC7 is tomorrow! Tune in on Saturday, June 27, 2020 from 8-11pm PT at https://lapride.org/50th-anniversary-celebration 🌈 #LAPride #LAPride50 #LGBT #LGBTQ+ #pride #ABC7 #iHeartRadio
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We recognize systemic racism, implicit bias and privilege permeates this country, and this includes the history of our organization. We hope to see progress and start with change from within. With that, CSW/LA Pride will no longer be involved in organizing what will now be known as the All Black Lives Matter march on Sunday June 14, 2020, but we are in full support. We will be there and hope the LGBTQ+ community will as well. The CSW Board members who conceived the idea for the march began speaking with Black LGBTQ+ leaders and organizations in advance of the announcement, however they had not been able to align directly with Black Lives Matter leaders prior to the announcement. For that, we apologize to the Black Lives Matter organizers. Conversations did continue and grew to later include leaders from Black Lives Matter LA, and subsequently an Advisory Board of Black LGBTQ+ leaders has formed to lead the upcoming All Black Lives Matter solidarity march. For the All Black Lives Matter solidarity march on Sunday, June 14, 2020: • Permits that were filed during initial planning have been withdrawn and there will be no police or city law officials involved in any capacity. • We recognize the safety concerns around COVID-19 and the pandemic currently plaguing the nation, and disproportionately the Black and LGBTQ+ communities, and ask protesters to take protective measures, including wearing face coverings and avoiding large crowds if you are at high risk or displaying symptoms of COVID-19. California Department of Public Health recommendations can be found at covid19.ca.gov. • This is not a Pride Parade or celebration event. This is a solidarity protest march and there will be no corporate participation. Following the All Black Lives Matter march the CSW Board will continue to work with the new Advisory Board to examine internal policy and further diversify its Board to include more voices and perspectives from the Black LGBTQ+ community. More information about the All Black Lives Matter solidarity march can be found on www.ABLM.LA @ablmla
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On behalf of the Christopher Street West Board of Directors, we would like to reemphasize our support for the Black community. Additionally, we would like to apologize for missteps in our rush to create the June 14th solidarity march meant to rally against the systemic social injustice the Black community faces every day. In that truly well-intentioned effort, we realized that we did not first collaborate with enough key leaders and activists in the Black community that have been fighting on the frontlines. For that we offer our sincerest apologies. Furthermore, as we quickly mobilized this protest, we proceeded to approach the permitting as we would normally do with organizing the annual LA Pride Parade and directed Jeff Consoletti and JJLA to file the First Amendment permit on our behalf. In that haste, we overlooked the direct police involvement that permitting involves. We understand that clearly goes against the demands for systemic police reform. This police reform is central to the mission of ending police brutality for which so many of you are out in the streets fighting today and every day. In this, we recognize the organization’s relationship with the marginalized groups within our own community has been problematic. We are committed to listening to the Black community more closely and to truly be a better ally and collaborator in the fight to end systemic racism and oppression. As an organization, Christopher Street West is putting plans in motion to better educate ourselves to ensure our actions reflect our intentions in all future programming. Our board is continuing to meet today and in the days ahead to collaborate with Black leaders and organizations that share our desire for social justice for the Black community. The previously announced solidarity march scheduled for June 14 is currently being reevaluated through these discussions with more updates to be shared shortly. We pledge that the LGBTQ+ community will continue to speak up and speak out against racism and stand in solidarity with you on the long march to freedom and equality.
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We hear the many voices coming from within the Black community and our support for the community is unwavering. Christopher Street West (CSW) is engaging Black community advocacy groups, Black LGBTQ+ organizations and community leaders to align on our mission and objectives. We are committed to educating ourselves on how to be an ally in the fight against systemic social injustice and police brutality and to work for justice reform. We are here to listen and learn. More information will be shared tomorrow. Gerald Garth, CSW Board Treasurer, Solidarity March Committee Co-Chair Brandon Anthony, BASH LA, Founder/ CEO, Solidarity March Committee Coordinator and Member
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**For further updates, please go to www.ABLM.LA @ablmla** To our LA Pride family: While we had previously cancelled all in-person events due to COVID-19, we have decided to peacefully assemble a protest in Hollywood, where the first ever permitted Pride Parade took place, in solidarity with the Black community. 50 years ago, Christopher Street West (CSW) took to the streets of Hollywood Boulevard to peacefully protest against police brutality and oppression. We feel that it is our moral imperative to honor the legacies of Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera, who bravely led the Stonewall uprising, by standing in solidarity with the Black community against systemic racism and joining the fight for meaningful and long-lasting reform. The California Department of Public Health recommends that participants engaging in the march should wear face coverings at all times. WHEN: Sunday, June 14, 2020 at 10am PT WHERE: Hollywood Blvd. and Highland Ave. Hollywood, CA 90028 Together With Pride, LA Pride
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Today marks the beginning of Pride month. As we seek to commemorate 50 years of our history, we must remember that the first Pride started as a riot led by people of color who sought an end to police brutality and oppression. We stand with #BlackLivesMatter – our digital #LAPride50 moments will pause today & tomorrow in solidarity. Photos: Pat Rocco Photographs/ONE Archives at the USC Libraries and Advocate Records/ONE Archives at the USC Libraries
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LA Pride Parade & Festival in Los Angeles, CA

About Christopher Street West

Christopher Street West (CSW), a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, produces the annual LA Pride Parade & Festival in the Los Angeles, California area, and hosts a number of events and community initiatives supporting LA’s LGBTQ+ community throughout the year.

8687 Melrose Avenue
Suite BM48
West Hollywood, CA 90069
323-969-8302

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