Stonewall Humanitarian Awards Honor Local Advocates

The first Transgender Health and Wellness Center, serving the Inland Empire’s transgender, intersex, and gender diverse communities’ needs, will be hosting the Stonewall Humanitarian Awards fundraiser to honor those in the community who have shown their dedication to equality.

Receiving the Stonewall Humanitarian Award is Anthony Velasco, who leads the Transgender Care Program at Desert AIDS Project. He regularly offers his clients an affirming environment where they can feel safe, respected, and treated with dignity on their journey.

This year will also see a new award category added, in the spirit of one most significant figures in the 1969 Stonewall Uprising that sparked the LGBTQ rights movement. The Marsha P. Johnson Ally Award will be given to The L-Fund, a philanthropic organization providing resources to lesbians in crisis, empowering lesbians through education, and celebrating lesbians in community.

Special guest speaker is Ann Walker from Sordid Lives, with entertainment from Laith Ashley from POSE and the emcee is Ethylina Canne.

Laith Ashley is a singer, songwriter, dancer, actor, and model. He is one of the first transgender male models to appear in a national advertising campaign. He has been featured in award winning programs like POSE on FX and Strut on the Oxygen network.

Ann Walker is an award-winning actress best known for her legendary turn as LaVonda Dupree, in Del Shore’s 1996 comedy hit, Sordid Lives, a role she later reprised in the award-winning film in 2000.