July 17, 2020

Contact:

Amanda Johnston, ajohnston@glad.org | 617-417-7769

GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders (GLAD) will honor LGBT Elders of Color founder and Stonewall Uprising veteran Paul Glass at its first ever virtual Summer Party on Saturday, July 25th at 4:00 pm. Celebrity emcee Varla Jean Merman will preside over the afternoon’s festivities.

This popular event will be a star-studded afternoon with performances from Ashley Gavin, Big Freedia, Christine Dwyer, Emma Willmann, Gerald Goode, Jacob Tobia, Judy Gold, Kit Yan, Matt Deangelis, Milck, Spencer Ludwig, and more.

Honoree Paul Glass has fought for over two decades for a world where none of us have to make the choice between accessing basic social services and living out and proud in our identities. His advocacy began in 2003: “Through friends in Boston, I was connected with the MOCAA (Men of Color Against AIDS) organization and began advocating for myself and other Black men living with and at risk of HIV/AIDS.”

Paul currently serves as a member of two advisory boards for the Office of HIV/AIDS at the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, and is a member of the Mass. Commission on LGBT Aging, a Cape Cod Coalition for LGBT Older Adults, and Cape Cod Pride.

Paul is a founder and current president of LGBT Elders of Color (EOC). As Paul explains, older LGBTQ people face the challenge of “being treated with dignity and respect by healthcare providers in care facilities and at home.” Elder LGBTQ people of color are further impacted by racism, disproportionate access to quality healthcare, and disproportionate mortality from treatable conditions.

The event will support GLAD’s critical legal work to secure justice and equality for LGBTQ people and people living with HIV.

Free tickets, sponsorships, and more information are available at www.glad.org/events. Sponsors will receive a goodie-filled Summer Party in a Box mailed directly to their home. GLAD’s Silent Auction tradition continues, this year featuring custom art, one-of-a-kind experiences, dining and entertainment items, and more.

The 2020 Summer Party Host Committee is made up of Rob Compton & David Wilson, Sarah Kaplan & Anita McGahan, Joyce Kauffman & Annie Weatherwax, Maria Lopez Richard D. McCarthy & Franc Castro, Matt McGuirk, Dianne R. Phillips & Evelyn C. Kaupp, Scott Pomfret & Scott Whittier, Fred Ramos & Bob Starmer, Alix Ritchie & Marty Davis, and Katherine & Kimberly Weir.

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Through strategic litigation, public policy advocacy, and education, GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders works in New England and nationally to create a just society free of discrimination based on gender identity and expression, HIV status, and sexual orientation.