Pride Foundation

One Anchorage: What’s Worth Celebrating

Community Member, Felix Rivera

In the month since the heartbreaking loss on Proposition 5 (the proposition to add protections against discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity to the Anchorage Municipal Code), there has been a lot of looking inward and outward to explain why the outcome was so drastically different than what the One Anchorage campaign worked so hard for. While it is too soon to confidently draw conclusions about what, if anything, went “wrong,” we don’t need to wait on focus groups and voter analysis to celebrate what went right.

The One Anchorage campaign was inspiring and truly brought the LGBTQ and straight ally community together. The campaign saw new faces take the lead in training volunteers and talking to voters about the importance of equality for the first time. Long-time leaders stretched their talents in new directions.

New relationships were forged not only with people in Anchorage but in the Lower 48. Our allies in the faith community took a pro-active stance in support of Propostion 5 — the proposition to add protections against discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity to the Anchorage Municipal Code. Organizers from the Human Rights Campaign and the National Gay & Lesbian Task Force gained a better understanding and appreciation for how Alaska fits into the national movement for LGBTQ equality.

Organizations like the Montana Human Rights Network and Basic Rights Oregon — long-time friends and grantees of Pride Foundation — took a break from their own campaigns to make calls to Anchorage voters. Whole new lines of communication and collaboration were opened up and, despite the projected loss at the polls, I think the community is better for it.

Pride Foundation's Amy White and HRC's Adrian Matanza in Anchorage

Would we be celebrating ten times more enthusiastically had we won? Sure. But the advancement of a movement for social change is not only measured by electoral victories, but also by the number of new people recruited and trained for future battles, the number of new people who know our stories, and the new-found respect for our ability to mobilize and stay the course until the very end. On that front, the One Anchorage campaign has a lot to be proud of.

Tiffany is Pride Foundation’s Regional Development Organizer in Anchorage. Email Tiffany.

Alaskan Students Awarded $21,500 in Scholarships from Pride Foundation

This year, Pride foundation will award the most it ever has in scholarships to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer (LGBTQ) and straight ally students throughout the Northwest. Six Alaskan scholars will receive a combined $21,500 from Pride Foundation’s scholarship program.

A statewide committee of volunteers worked together to review applications and interview finalists. Scholarship awards support LGBTQ and straight ally students who have shown leadership to advance the LGBTQ community.

“I was impressed with the caliber of applicants — we have many talented, smart, and mature young activists in Alaska,” said volunteer Adam Ottavi of Fairbanks. “It’s important to provide direct support to LGBTQ students and allies because discrimination against our community persists, especially within our state.  And, like most families, support from within strengthens our community and gives us a stronger sense of autonomy.”

Karter Booher, a transgender scholar raised in Anchorage, AK and currently attending Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, WA adds:

“I am becoming a more independent person, more sure of who I am. I am becoming the man I am supposed to be. In understanding my gender identity I have become more invested in myself. I am taking control of my life and where I am headed. Sometimes it hurts, and there is a common, human, struggle in that – especially within the queer community – but I am becoming. I am headed somewhere and I am incredibly excited about that direction.

Pride Foundation’s scholarship program began in 1993. Since then, we have awarded almost $3 million dollars to 1,200 students either from or studying in the U.S. Northwest states of Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington. The scholarships are intended to support various programs — 2 year degrees, vocational programs, and graduate studies for students of all ages.

Here is a full list of this year’s Alaskan scholars:

Karter Booher - Karter is from Anchorage and majoring in Political Science and Women’s and Gender Studies at Pacific Lutheran University (PLU) in Tacoma, WA.  Karter was awarded the Rieke Leadership Award at PLU and also serves as the Queer Ally Student Union Co-Comissioner. He hopes to use his education to change the lives of others and help young people find the words to discuss the social justice issues they are passionate about. Karter received the Pride Foundation Community and Pride Foundation Community Alaska Scholarships.

Richard Carter – Originally from Palmer, Richard is currently pursuing a degree in Fine Arts at the University of Alaska Southeast (UAS) in Juneau. He is currently the President of the Gay-Straight Alliance at UAS and is a member of Alpha Phi Omega and the Golden Key International Honor Society. Richard received the Baker Merriweather and Pride Foundation Community Alaska Scholarships.   

Annie Derthick - Annie is pursuing a PhD in clinical-community pyschology at the University of Alaska-Anchorage with a Rural & Indigenous focus. Her research interests include psychotherapy for GLBT individuals and couples and the psychological effects of discrimination. In her spare time, Annie enjoys cooking and exploring the beauty of Alaska. Annie received the James Crump Memorial Scholarship.  

Tonei Glavinic – Born and raised in Anchorage, Tonei recently graduated from American University in Washington, DC with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Women’s, Gender & Sexuality Studies, with a minor in Justice, and a certificate in Women, Policy and Political Leadership. This fall, zie will begin a Master of Arts program in Social Justice and Community Development at Loyola University in Chicago. Tonei created the TONI Project, an online resource for transgender people to share, discover and transform policies and practices at universities across the country. Tonei received the Political Leadership, James Crump Memorial, and Pride Foundation Community Alaska Scholarships.

Katelyn Lanier-Moylan - Katelyn was born in Homer and raised in Anchorage by two loving and supportive mothers. They taught her to respect herself and to respect others, even when many people did not extend the same tolerance towards her family. Katelyn was the president of the Gay-Straight Alliance at West High School, where she recently graduated with honors. She will be attending Wesleyan University in Middletown, CT and plans on double majoring in political science and gender studies in order to help foster a more tolerant and respectful world for her generation and for many generations to follow. Katelyn received the Pride Foundation Community Alaska Scholarship. 

Joseph Marks - Joseph has spent time living in Anchorage, Juneau, and Kluckwan and is a graduating senior at Mt. Edgecumbe High School (MEHS) in Sitka, Alaska. Out of the 200-400 remaining fluent speakers of Tlingit, he is one of the youngest. While at MEHS, Joseph founded the Gay Straight Alliance and was awarded the ACLU of Alaska’s Youth Activist Scholarship. He plans to major in International Relations and language in order to become a translator and break barriers between cultures. Joseph received the Pride Foundation Community Alaska Scholarship.

Congratulations to all of the 2012 Pride Foundation Scholars

For more information about our 2012 Scholars visit http://www.pridefoundation.org/scholarships/scholars

One Anchorage Election Day Gatherings – Today!

After you vote Yes on Proposition 5 on Today – Tuesday, April 3rd, join Pride Foundation, One Anchorage and HRC for two gatherings to celebrate our community coming together–and what we hope will be an historic moment for LGBTQ and straight-ally people in Anchorage.

Family-Friendly “After-You-Vote” Mix & Mingle

6:30 – 9:00 pm

Snow City Café

1034 West 4^th Avenue

Appetizers & beverages will be served

Post-Election Gathering

9:00 pm – 2:00 am

Mad Myrna’s

530 E. 5^th Avenue

Dessert and Cash bar

Scholar Empowers Transgender Students Nation-Wide

Tonei Glavinic, Pride Foundation Scholar and Founder of the Toni Project - Decked out in a t-shirt that reads "Alaskan Grown"

When I first met Tonei Glavinic in 2008 he was a senior at Stellar Secondary High School in Anchorage. As the youth representative on the board of Identity, president of his high school GSA, an ACLU of Alaska Youth Activist Scholar, and member of the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network’s National Advisory Council, Tonei had already made his mark on Anchorage’s LGBTQ community. Now, four years and four Pride Foundation scholarships later, he is about to graduate from American University with a double major in Political Science and Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality studies with his senior capstone project—developed as an intern for the National Center for Transgender Equality (NCTE)—poised to impact the lives of transgender students all over the country.

The TONI project —coined by the NCTE staff in honor of its creator—is an online resource that empowers transgender students to learn and share with other students the policies and practices that can affect their experience on college and university campuses. They will be able to find and share information about everything from existing nondiscrimination policies to gender neutral housing options, relevant courses and programs of study, and how to obtain a name change on school transcripts and IDs. The idea is that students will update information for accuracy much like Wikipedia.

Recently, Tonei took time out of his busy schedule to answer a couple of questions about his project.

How does the TONI project advance the movement for transgender equality and inclusion?

While there have been many successful efforts to address the concerns of transgender students through the implementation of non-discrimination laws and policies, we don’t typically know much about how they’re being implemented and enforced. This results in students’ experiences not actually matching up with the policies and rights that they are supposed to be guaranteed. TONI helps address this gap, providing a way to keep tabs on the real-world outcomes of these policy efforts and ensure that policies are being enforced.

Are there any lessons that you think Alaskan students can learn from your website?

Like schools anywhere, I hope the TONI project allows students in Alaska to share, explore, and discover the policies and practices that affect them. Using TONI will allow current and future trans students and staff at Alaskan schools to both have a greater understanding of the status quo, and to learn about new policy ideas at other institutions so they can continue to push for change at home.

What’s next for the TONI project?

We are currently in the process of building in a user forum and content moderation features…We’re also reaching out to more schools to increase the amount of content we have on the site, and at some point this year will be doing a big official launch with press releases and such.

As you well know, there are a lot of passionate, transgender and non-gender conforming students among our scholars. How can they help you get the TONI project off the ground?

The best thing that students can do to help support the TONI Project is to create an account and add information about their schools, and encourage their friends to do the same. The website is only as useful as the information that people put on it!

If you’d like to sign up for an account visit the TONI Project web page.

Tiffany is Pride Foundation’s Regional Development Organizer in Alaska. Email Tiffany.

One Anchorage: Early Voting Open, Volunteers Needed

In just two short weeks, on April 3^rd, Anchorage citizens will be voting on Proposition 5. Early voting has already begun and runs from March 19th-April 2nd at City Hall and Loussac Library. Visit the Muni page for voting hours.

One Anchorage Prepares for Critical April 3 Vote

Volunteers are needed to help bring equality to Anchorage. The One Anchorage Initiative seeks to provide LGBTQ Alaskans the same legal protections that are already provided to other persons in Anchorage in employment, financial practices, housing, and restaurants, department stores and other businesses through Proposition 5 on the April 3, 2012 Municipality of Anchorage ballot. Volunteers are needed in a number of roles including phone banking and canvassing.

Today, most – but not all – hardworking Alaskans are protected from being unfairly fired. Proposition 5 seeks to include LGBTQ citizens in that protection to ensure that LGBTQ people in Anchorage are not denied housing, loans, jobs and services based on their sexual orientation or gender identity.

Contact the Campaign Office at 907.575.2150 to get involved. The office is located at 207 E. Northern Lights, Suite 225, Anchorage, AK 99503.

Phone Banking (Calling Voters)

• Daily (M-F) 10 am to 8:30 pm
• Saturday 12 pm to 6:00 pm
• Sunday 12 pm to 8:00 pm

Door Knocking — Done in teams of two, 2 hour shifts with a 30 minute training

• Saturday 12 pm to 6 pm
• Sunday 12 pm to 6 pm

STAY INFORMED

Stay up-to-date on the latest news specific to Anchorage regarding the Yes on Proposition 5 campaign or the ongoing fight to end discrimination in Anchorage by following this effort on the One Anchorage Facebook page.

If you happen to live outside of Anchorage but would still like to help the campaign please visit the One Anchorage website and find out ways you might be able to get involved from afar.

LEARN MORE AND DONATE

To make a donation or to learn more about One Anchorage visit www.oneanchorage.com.

Don’t forget to vote early! Early voting runs from March 19th-April 2nd at City Hall and Loussac Library. Visit the Muni page for voting hours.

Grantee Update: Bringing Lesbian Stories to the Stage in Fairbanks, Alaska

Revive the Red Tent

Revive the Red Tent Productions proudly presents an original theatrical piece, “As Sure as God Made Little Green Apples.” The piece is a blend of text and movement reflecting the experience of growing up and coming out as a lesbian in Fairbanks, Alaska. Revive the Red Tent was one of Pride Foundation’s five Alaskan grantees for the 2011-2012 cycle. Members of Revive the Red Tent have spent the last four months interviewing local members of the lesbian community. “As Sure as God Made Little Green Apples” has been created through a process of butoh, contact improvisation, local interviews, and modern dance. The piece is performed by Fiona Zachel and Anna Gagne-Hawes and is an hour in length. A donation of $15.00 is suggested and the piece does contain mature themes that are not suggested for an audience under the age of 16. Contact [email protected] for more information.

Tiffany is Pride Foundation’s Regional Development Organizer in Alaska. Email Tiffany.

Montana Advocates for LGBTQ Equality Travel to Juneau and Anchorage

Sign Up Here to attend The Next 20 Years: Achieving Equality for All Alaskans. Our keynote speaker is Jamee Greer of the Montana Human Rights Network.

Learn more on Facebook.

Creating a Space for LGBTQ People of Color

Coming together to share experiences

Imagine being born into a community where you thought you were like everyone else and then, upon realizing that you were different, doing everything you possibly could to deny and distance yourself from it. Imagine coming of age in a community in which there seemed to be no adult role models who shared your experience of the world. Imagine having to pretend you were someone you weren’t in order to get a job. Or silencing yourself from speaking the truth of your experience for fear that you will be marked as “angry,” “radical,” or otherwise “out of place.”

If you identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender these scenarios shouldn’t be too difficult to imagine. They are central to the collective experience of being LGBTQ , to our talk of “closets,” and “coming out,” and our arguments for why we need protection from discrimination. But when LGBTQ people of color gathered earlier this month to discuss our experiences living in Alaska, we discovered that they were also central to the experience of growing up and living as a person of color in Anchorage and surrounding areas.

Participants were from a variety of different backgrounds—mixes of Aleut, Athabascan, Tlingit, African-American, Afro-Cuban-Puerto Rican, Japanese, and European. They were lesbian, bisexual, and gay, parents, professionals, public officials, and students. Some were just stepping into adulthood or out of the closet, others were moving toward middle-age with humor and grace or had been out for a decade or more.

Co-sponsored by Pride Foundation, First Alaskans Institute (FAI), the dialogue was just one of a series of conversations being sponsored by FAI’s Alaska Native Dialogues on Racial Equity (ANDORE), a project that has its aim to “raise the level of awareness and healing around race and racism,” and “to advance policy solutions towards racial equity in Alaska.”  But for us, creating a safe space for LGBTQ people of color meant framing the discussion in such a way that invited participants to speak from whatever aspect of their experience they chose rather than forcing them to choose between their LGBTQ and racial experiences.

“It was good to be in a space where I could wear my Native hat and my gay hat at the same time,” said one participant.

“I didn’t know what I would be expected to contribute,” another participant confessed during the closing circle. “But now I know that just being here is a contribution.”

Discussing issue solving as a group

The creation of this open space allowed us to not only discover similarities between our experiences—in spite of our age and ethnic differences—but also to more clearly see the parallels between coming of age as a person of color in a predominately white world and coming of age as an LGBTQ person in a predominately straight world.  Just as we choose to “come out” as gay, bisexual, or transgender to new people on a daily basis, so do some of us also choose to “come out” as Alaska Native or to make our physical race even more visible by voicing our experiences as African-Americans rather than silencing ourselves.

As the first dialogue of its kind and only three hours to work with, we didn’t come up with more than superficial suggestions for how we could create a community that would allow for LGBTQ people and people of color to live without fear, without internalizing the negative messages we hear about ourselves, and to feel free to bring our full selves to everything we do.  Most of us were strangers to one another before that night and we needed time to simply affirm each other’s experiences. In the end, there were only three things we knew for sure: 1) it was a dialogue that needed to happen 2) none of us were alone and 3) We were just getting started.

If you’re interested in participating in a similar dialogue or just being connected with other LGBTQ people of color in Alaska, please e-mail Tiffany McClain at [email protected]

The Couple That Gives Together: Liz and Brittany

Brittany and Liz: Giving Together and Building Community in Fairbanks

If you study the origins of the word philanthropy, you’ll find that it derives from ancient Greece meaning “love of humanity.” It may be impossible to turn this lovey-dovey month of hearts and flowers into a month of service and giving to broader humanity, but the least we can do is honor an Alaskan couple that models what love looks like in every interpretation of the word.

Brittany Luddington and Liz Melendez are hardly into their thirties and yet they’ve already been together for eight years. Together, they have contributed their time and energy to serving Fairbanks’s LGBTQ community and reducing the amount of domestic violence and sexual assault in Alaska. After my inaugural visit to Fairbanks last spring, they jumped in to support Pride Foundation’s regional work here in Alaska as donors, volunteers, and house party hosts. Whether serving as a drag king emcee for a fundraiser or opening up their home as a social space for the LGBTQ community in a town that lacks one, Brittany and Liz prove that anyone—regardless of age, race, occupation, or income can be a philanthropist.

Q. How did you meet? How did you know it was L-O-V-E?

Brittany: There used to be a club in Fairbanks, Club G. Liz was in drag, emceeing the show and I couldn’t figure out why this guy kept finding excuses to bring me up on stage. After the show portion of the fundraiser was over, I was walking out of the restroom and I felt a tug on my shirt. I turn around and this g.o.r.g.e.o.u.s woman looks at me and says, “Hey…you’re cute.” It took me a minute to realize that this woman was actually the emcee. I was headed to a friend’s house for a get-together the next night. All I could think about was, “PLEASE let her be there!!!” Sure enough, she showed up a couple hours later. You would have thought a celebrity walked in the door, I jumped up and ran over to her… It was over at that point. I don’t want to sound cliché, but I really do feel like I immediately recognized something very special about Liz.

Liz: If memory serves me, it was my first time emceeing. Bundles of nerves were just squirming everywhere. I looked out into the crowd and there was this gorgeous smile, just floating out there, in a crowd of faces. That was my focus the rest of the night and probably since then really. To make that smile appear over and over again.

“If I were to define ‘philanthropy’, I would say it means to recognize your own wealth on multiple levels (knowledge, kindness, safety, etc.) and to find ways to contribute to other’s in light of that abundance that you have. I think the word in general is assumed to belong to the financially wealthy, but I think everyone has the ability to give on some level. Even if you cannot donate money, for whatever reason, you can make a batch of cookies and help set up for a fundraiser, you are a philanthropist.” – Brittany

Q. How has community involvement strengthened your relationship?

Liz: I think volunteering together has brought us closer in many ways. The stress of organizing a show or putting it together can require so much patience and attention and teamwork. We each have our strengths and I believe that doing these things together made us notice and appreciate each other that much more.

Brittany: Our relationship began at a fundraising event and we’ve been involved in multiple organizations and events since then. I definitely believe that finding ways to give back from your collective abundance strengthens the relationship. When the core of your relationship is kindness, love and respect, you automatically respond to your extended family and community in the same way. I also feel that setting a good example for others in the community is important. When people know that as a couple, or a family, giving back to the community is important to you; they feel a responsibility to give back as well. Our community is amazing in that we recognize that when one of us thrives, we all thrive and being involved in the community encourages that in a big way.

Tiffany is Pride Foundation’s Regional Development Organizer in Alaska. Email Tiffany.