Communities of Color and Media
Our work centers and serves the most marginalized voices in the community…
GLAAD’s Communities of Color and Media Department is a leading force driving equitable and accurate representation of Black LGBTQ+ people, people living with HIV (PLWH), and queer communities of color in the realm of entertainment and media.
Our work centers and serves the most marginalized voices in the community, reaching them through both intimate and large-scale programming designed to foster community, connection, and fellowship.
Through consultation, media training, social campaigns, local activations, and curated events, the Communities of Color and Media Team aims to accelerate equality and acceptance while elevating and amplifying the voices of Black LGBTQ+ communities and queer communities of color everywhere.
Black Queer Creative Summit
The Black Queer Creative Summit, powered by Gilead Sciences, was a first-of-its-kind in-person event specifically geared towards empowering, educating, and training emerging Black LGBTQ creatives across five sectors of the entertainment industry. The summit spotlights, celebrates, and curates professional growth opportunities for Black LGBTQ creative leaders, fostering a pathway for the next generation of Black LGBTQ artists to accelerate their careers. The inaugural summit presented 20+ keynotes, fireside chats, professional development workshops, and mentorship opportunities for 152 Black LGBTQ creatives, and summit sessions featured 60+ notable speakers and industry professionals.
Meet the Inaugural 2023 Black Queer Creative Summit Cohort >>
To date, the Black Queer Creative Summit has earned the following honors and accolades:
- 2024 Gold Anthem Award: Diversity, Equity & Inclusion – Special Projects
- 2024 Gold Anthem Award: Diversity, Equity & Inclusion – Partnership or Collaboration
- 2024 Silver Anthem Award: Education, Art & Culture – Special Projects
BQCS Photo Gallery
GLAAD Honors
First celebrated in 2022, GLAAD Honors was created as a community gathering and celebration recognizing Black LGBTQ+ nominees of the GLAAD Media Awards for their efforts, contributions, and visibility to the Black LGBTQ+ community. Powered by Gilead Sciences, GLAAD Honors has grown to include showcases of Black queer artists and talent, providing space for fellowship, dialogue, and expressions of the power of Black queer joy and storytelling.
GLAAD Honors Photo Gallery
Accelerate Acceptance
Your gift allows us to accelerate equality and acceptance while elevating and amplifying the voices of Black LGBTQ+ communities and queer communities of color everywhere.
Equity in Media and Entertainment Initiative (EMEI)
In 2022, GLAAD launched the Equity in Media and Entertainment Initiative (EMEI), supported by Gilead Sciences. The program was created, and is led by, DaShawn Usher, the Senior Director of GLAAD’s Communities of Color and Media Department, along with Associate Director Julian J. Walker and Associate Kayla Thompson. The initiative is designed as a pipeline program to help address, and begin to resolve, the existing gap in equitable representation in entertainment, particularly when it comes to Black LGBTQ storytellers and PLWH.
This three year long experience will support a different group of Black LGBTQ creatives across various disciplines, with the first year cohort made up of short form filmmakers, second year focused on music artists, songwriters, and producers, and choreographers rounding out the program as the third year cohort.
Article:
- The Hollywood Reporter: GLAAD Announces Inaugural Class for New Equity in Media and Entertainment Initiative (Exclusive)
NEON
NEON is a digital content series founded in 2020 by multihyphenate, creative Major Nesby. Its mission is to increase the visibility of Black LGBTQ people. Through teamwork, NEON leverages the power of storytelling and GLAAD’s platform to create multi-dimensional, accurate portraits of the Black LGBTQ experience. As we move forward, it’s crucial to embrace diversity and incorporate various forms of content.
The NEON team has produced award-winning work that aligns with the collective’s mission. To date they’ve received the following accolades:
- WINNER, WEBBY AWARD VIDEO: DIVERSITY & INCLUSION 2022
- Winner (Bronze Distinction), Shorty Awards “Branded Series” 2022
- Winner (Best in Show), FCS Portfolio Awards “Corporate Image” & “Multicultural” 2022
- Winner, The American Advertising Federation Mosaic Awards 2022
Since its launch in 2020, NEON has been creating content such as the Legacy Series, Changemakers, and a collaboration with Poptarts. Our aim is to boost the visibility of the Black Queer community across social media platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube. We accomplish this through diverse content that caters to all age groups, with a particular focus on Generation Z.
We want to create a wider range of format styles, some of which can be produced in real-time, while still producing award-winning, long-form portrayals of Black Queer life and individuals.
NEON x GLAAD works together to produce impactful programming geared towards advancing the presence Black History Month Legacy Series video series available via YouTube.
Black History Month Legacy Series
Black LGBTQ figures have shaped our history in the United States and abroad. During #BlackHistoryMonth, we’re showcasing current LGBTQ leaders from multiple disciplines as they pay homage to groundbreaking figures of the past.
Legacy Series
NEON x GLAAD: Black History Month Legacy Series featuring Roya Marsh
We are taking a look at the impact of the historic figure, Audre Lorde. Bronx, New York native Roya Marsh reflects on the impact Audre Lorde has had on her artistry. Roya Marsh is a nationally-recognized poet/performer/educator/activist. She is the Poet in Residence at Urban Word NYC and works feverishly toward LGBTQIA justice and dismantling white supremacy.
NEON x GLAAD: Black Legacy Series featuring George M. Johnson
We highlight George M Johnson as they discuss the impact of James Baldwin. George is an Award-Winning Writer and Author in the NYC area. They are the Indie Bestselling author of “All Boys Aren’t Blue”, a memoir manifesto discussing their young adult experience growing up Black and Queer. George has written on a range of topics for publications like Teen Vogue, NBC, The Root, & Buzzfeed, with appearances on MSNBC’s PoliticsNation. George is also an LGBTQ and HIV activist and advocate. Their memoir is currently being adapted for television with Sony and Gabrielle Union.
NEON x GLAAD: Black Legacy Series featuring Mila Jam
Mila Jam fills every room with talent, personality and undeniable style. As a Pop Recording Artivist, ‘Stopkillingus’ viral campaign creator and transgender superstar Mila Jam has toured internationally with the Broadway musical RENT; performed alongside James Brown, Mark Ronson, Laverne Cox, Travis Wall, Jody Watley, Deee-Lite, Natasha Bedingfield and Monet Xchange. Appearances include Saturday Night Live, FX POSE’, BBC’s The Lilly Allen Show and MTV with special features in Billboard, Paper, NEWNOWNEXT, Huffington Post OUT magazine and the Phluid Project.
NEON x GLAAD: Black History Month Legacy Series featuring Danielle Cooper
Danielle is a creative, actor, and activist. In 2014, Danielle launched “She’s a Gent,” a blog that celebrates and explores personal style while also using it as a tool to bring awareness to QPOC (queer people of color) and androgynous women in menswear. In a very short period of time, her platform transformed into a multi-digital publication which creates visibility for the underrepresented QPOC and LGBTQ+ communities. Danielle is committed to empowering others through content creation and storytelling. “She’s a Gent” has been recognized in Forbes, The New York Times, Huffington Post, OUT Magazine, Vogue, and Nike.com. In addition to creating “She’s a Gent,” Danielle recently made her acting debut on Season 2 of the historic and groundbreaking 7-time Emmy nominated FX series , POSE. Her mission is to continue to help open doors for queer people of color in tv/film and all media platforms.
Changemaker Series
“Changemakers” is an intimate four-part video series presented by NEONxGLAAD and Ally which amplifies the stories of local heroes across America, and sends messages of support and inspiration to Black LGBTQ-owned small businesses. View season one and two below.
Season One
Season One
Episode 1 spotlights Kingsley Gbadegesin, a first-generation Nigerian-American and a New York–based creator working to advance liberation for the Black community, the queer community, and people of color. Kingsley is the founder and creator behind K.NGSLEY, a Black-owned brand aiming to reclaim and redefine the Black, queer, femme body and to create tangible, direct support to communities in need.
Episode 2 spotlights BLK MKT Vintage, a Brooklyn based antique/vintage concept shop, specializing in collectibles, cast-offs and curiosities, which represent the richness of Black history and lived experience. Curated by founders Jannah Handy and Kiyanna Stewart, the collection includes found items like vintage literature, vinyl records, clothing, art, housewares/decor, furniture and other goods.
Episode 3 spotlights Black, Gifted & Whole , a non-profit founded by Guy Anthony to empower young queer Black men by acknowledging, celebrating and affirming their whole selves. Since its inception in 2015, Black, Gifted & Whole has helped over 19 students realize their college dreams and continues to be a beacon long after their freshman year. “We have literally built a pipeline from high school to college to the workforce,” Anthony explains and adds, “This is my love letter to Black, Queer students.”
Episode 4 spotlights Chef Joya, a premiere vegan chef from Charlotte, North Carolina. Specializing in soul food, Caribbean, African and Latin cuisines, Chef Joya brings comfort food into green eating and loves to teach others how to find joy in doing the same.
Season Two
Season Two
The season 2 premiere features the House of Tulip Executive Director, Mariah Moore (she/her). Moore is a Black trans woman who leads New-Orleans based nonprofit organization House of Tulip. House of Tulip provides zero-barrier housing, case management, linkage to care, and community programming to trans and gender nonconforming people in need of a safe place to stay while growing the supply of affordable housing in the area.
Episode 2 features Stealth Bros & Co Founder/CEO, Braxton Fleming (he/him). Stealth Bros & Co is a luxury Dopp kit supply company that provides travel and at home personal storage for medical/personal necessities. Fleming was recently featured on “Sharktank” where he secured a deal for Stealth Bros & Co. For more information about Stealth Bros & Co, visit: www.stealthbrosco.com/
Episode 3 features “ValiDate” Lead Developer, Dani LaLonders (they/them). ValiDate is a visual novel/game about 13 struggling singles navigating the harsh realities of love and life. For more information about Validate, visit: https://validategame.com/
Episode 4 features Layshia Clarendon (he/they/she). Layshia is the first openly trans/non-binary WNBA player, and the first active WNBA player to have top surgery. They are also the founder of the Layshia Clarendon Foundation.
State of HIV Stigma Report
Recent Press
- Pride.com: Why Black, Trans Stories Like Mine Are Not Just Nice to Have, But Essential
- Forbes: Meet the Team Behind GLAAD’s Black LGBTQ+ Media Advocacy
- Spotify: How Music Helps Black Queer Artists and Industry Creatives Tell Their Stories
- Black Enterprise: ‘Pride Strong:’ GLAAD Launches Inaugural Black Queer Creative Summit for LGBTQ+ Creatives
- Advocate: How GLAAD is Nurturing Black Queer Music
- INTO: GLAAD Uplifts Black LGBTQ+ Voices in Music With Second EMEI Cohort
- Teen Vogue: GLAAD Hosts Black Queer Creative Summit, the First of Its Kind, in Los Angeles
- Forbes: GLAAD Establishes First-Ever Black Queer Creative Summit
- The Hollywood Reporter: GLAAD Announces Inaugural Class for New Equity in Media and Entertainment Initiative (Exclusive)
- Shondaland: 4 LGBTQ+ Advocates Unpack the Significance of Queer Storytelling in the Entertainment Industry
- INTO: The 2nd Annual #GLAADHonors Was Definitely Something to Be Glad About
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