Three D.C. women named winners of LGBTQ Legendary Elders Wisdom Award
Veteran D.C. transgender rights advocate Earline Budd and D.C.-based LGBTQ rights advocates Donna Payne-Hardy and Dr. Imani Woody are among 11 prominent African-American women named winners of the National Black Justice Coalition’s 3rd Annual Legendary Elders Wisdom Awards.
The awards were to be officially given at a virtual ceremony scheduled for Tuesday, May 16. “The Legendary Wisdom Awards will honor Black LGBTQ+/SGL women elders and their contributions to America, the Black community, and the LGBTQ+ liberation movement,” a statement released on Monday by the NBJC says. “The award ceremony will premiere live on NBJC’s website, YouTube, and social media platforms,” the statement says.
NBJC spokesperson Brett Abrams said the Wisdom Awards is a joint project of NBJC and the AARP. “Too often, Black LGBTQ+/SGL elders are rendered invisible, the process of aging is hidden, and our existence is frozen in photos of young people at Pride parades,” said NBJC Executive Director David Johns in the statement. “If we’re supported, in loving community, and protected by policies designed to facilitate participation in democratic processes, we—Black LGBTQ+/SGL people grow old,” Johns said. “The Wisdom Awards…are designed to give flowers to Black queer, trans, and non-binary/non-conforming leaders; celebrate the process of aging, preserve the lessons learned over time, and facilitate intergenerational connections that enable Black people to get closer to freedom — collectively,” Johns said.
Victoria Kirby York, NBJC’s Director of Public Policy and Programs, called her organization’s Wisdom Awards the Black LGBTQ+ equivalent of Oprah Winfrey’s Legends Ball. “Oprah’s Ball, like our event, was an opportunity for legendary icons to be
