Awardees (by year)
Our 2015 Awards
Larry Kramer
Co-founder of both ACT-UP (AIDS Coalition To Unleash Power) and GMHC (Gay Men’s Health Crisis) in the 1980’s.
Larry Kramer
Larry Kramer, 1935-2020, activist and author, grew up in New York City and graduated from Yale University. As a life-long political activist, Kramer is most known for being co-founder of both ACT-UP (AIDS Coalition To Unleash Power) and GMHC (Gay Men’s Health Crisis) in the 1980’s. In addition to writing screenplays, such as the adaptation of D.H.Lawrence’s Women In Love, Kramer is also known for his books, most notably Faggots (1978) and The American People (2015), and his plays, especially The Normal Heart (1985). [f]
Crayton Robey
An independent filmmaker based in New York City.
Crayton Robey
Crayton Robey is an independent filmmaker based in New York City. As writer/director/producer, he made Where Ocean Meets Sky (2003), a history of Fire Island Pines, and Making the Boys (2010), a documentary about the classic play The Boys in the Band. [f]
Jimmy Somerville
Scottish pop singer and gay icon.
Jimmy Somerville
Jimmy Somerville, Scottish pop singer and gay icon, first came on to the scene in 1983 with his disco band, Bronski Beat, followed two years later by The Communards. Somerville took the risk to be out of the closet in a time when many divas were still ‘in,’ and his lyrics were very much about being ‘out.’ Songs like “Smalltown Boy” and “It Ain’t Necessarily So” were anthems in the gay community for years. Somerville soon became an ardent AIDS activist, and remains involved in social justice concerns today.
Jewel Thais-Williams
Opened the gay and lesbian club, Jewel’s Catch One, which for over forty years has catered primarily to queer African-Americans.
Jewel Thais-Williams
Jewel Thais-Williams, entrepreneur and humanitarian. In 1973 most gay clubs in Los Angeles were white-dominated and not welcoming to people of color. So Thais-Williams opened up her own gay and lesbian club, Jewel’s Catch One, which for over forty years has catered primarily to queer African-Americans. Thais-Williams is also an acupuncturist, and the Founder and Executive Director of the Village Health Foundation. She has also been a community leader and activist serving Unity Fellowship Church, The Minority AIDS Project, Rue’s House, Ladies Concerned, Imani Unidos, and UCLA’s Lambda Alumni Association. In 2016 C.Fitz made a documentary, Jewel Catch One which is streaming on Netflix. [f]
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Paul Monette papers, 1945-1995
UCLA, Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library