WASHINGTON, D.C. — The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force (NGLTF), the nation’s oldest LGBT advocacy organization, will commemorate its 40th anniversary at Celebrating 40 Years, a fundraising brunch and celebration, Sunday, Sept. 29, at the Sportsmen’s Lodge in Studio City, Calif.
The brunch will be hosted by Rea Carey, executive director of the Task Force, and will honor former L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, Kafi Blumenfield, executive director of the Liberty Hill Foundation and Congressman Mark Takano, the first openly gay person of color elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. Lorri Jean, CEO, L.A. Gay and Lesbian Center and former Task Force executive director, will be another featured speaker at the event.
“We are very excited to be honoring some great leaders and celebrating 40 years of creating positive change for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community,” said Carey. “Please join us for brunch. We need your support now more than ever as we fight to deliver full equality for everyone.”
The celebration will feature a presentation of the organization’s accomplishments and activities over the past four decades and outline the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead for the LGBT community in the United States.
Founded in 1973 by Barbara Gittings, Frank Kameny, Dr. Howard Brown, Martin Duberman, Bruce Voeller, Natalie Rockhill, Betty Powell and Ron Gold, the Task Force has been a catalyst on the forefront of every progressive LGBT development for four decades. From successfully lobbying the American Psychiatric Association to remove the classification of homosexuality as a mental disorder in that first year to being on the forefront of the effort to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) today and the passage of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, the Task Force has spent 40 years as the progressive voice of the LGBT movement and the LGBT voice of the progressive movement.
Celebrating 40 Years is being presented by Wells Fargo. Tickets to the celebration are $125 per person and include open bar and brunch. To purchase tickets, visit www.thetaskforce.org and click on the Celebrating 40 Years link.
