Pride Month: APB's Speakers Continue to Fight for Equality & Change

11 Jun 2018

June marks the beginning of LGBTQ+ Pride Month! As we honor this month by celebrating diversity and individuality, we invite you to check out some of our leading voices from the LGBTQ+ community:

CLEVE JONES is an activist whose work began in the 1970s during the gay liberation movement. A mentee of groundbreaking LGBTQ+ activist Harvey Milk, Jones has gone on to co-found the San Francisco AIDS Foundation, create the NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt and publish the memoir, When We Rise.

TRACE LYSETTE is an activist, advocate and actress who also happens to be a trans woman. A strong advocate for the trans community, Lysette fights back against violence towards the LGBTQ+ community and offers help and support to those suffering with depression and suicidal thoughts.

WADE DAVIS is a former NFL player, thought leader and consultant on diversity. The NFL’s first LGBTQ+ inclusion consultant, Davis educates professional sports leagues about such issues as intersectionality, sexism, racism and homophobia.

MARIA BELLO caught the nation’s attention in 2015 with her essay “Coming Out as a Modern Family” in which she detailed telling her son she had fallen in love with her best friend, who happened to be a woman. She expanded the essay into a book titled, Whatever… Love is Love.

GREG LOUGANIS holds 47 national championship titles and multiple Olympic medals. In 1988, although he made Olympic history by winning two gold medals in diving, he also tested positive for HIV. Since his diagnosis, he has written the autobiography, Breaking the Surface and become a staunch advocate for the LGBTQ+ community.

KATHY NAJIMY is an actress and advocate for many social causes. Outspoken, energizing and inspirational, she is passionately committed to equality and is a strong voice for LGBTQ+ rights, as well as the #MeToo and Time’s Up movements.

ROB SCHEER is the founder of Comfort Cares, an organization that provides supplies to children and teens transitioning into foster care. As a former child of the foster care system, Scheer recognized the importance of providing basic needs and items of comfort for all children, including LGBTQ+ youth, during that difficult and uncertain transition.