Illinois State Library Hosts Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame Exhibit in October
The Illinois State Library will mark Diversity Month in October by displaying an exhibit based on the 2009 inductees in the Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame and featuring books written by or about lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender individuals.
The exhibit contains photographs and biographies of the 2009 Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame inductees, highlighting their achievements and contributions
to Chicago.
The books include Ask and Tell: Gay and Lesbian Veterans Speak Out by Steve Estes, Ask and Tell: Gay and Lesbian Veterans Speak Out by Kate Burns, and The Lesbian and Gay Movements: Assimilation or Liberation? (Dilemmas in American Politics) by Craig Rimmerman.
The exhibit will be on display in the 2nd Floor Atrium and the books will be featured in the Illinois Authors Room from 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, October 1 through October 31, at the Illinois State Library, Gwendolyn Brooks Building, 300 South 2nd Street, Springfield.
Viewers of the Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame exhibit will learn, for example, that:
· U.S. Rep. Mike Quigley (D-Chicago) is a long-time supporter of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities who backs the movement to repeal the Pentagon’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy;
· Lou Conte is the founder of the Lou Conte Dance Studio and Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, both of which contribute to the arts and culture community in Chicago and beyond;
· Sgt. Lori A. Cooper is an openly lesbian police officer who has helped create significant policy changes within the Chicago Police Department;
· Zaida Sanabia is a young filmmaker who documented the struggles of starting a gay-straight alliance in her Chicago high school in her film “A Fish Almost Eaten by a Shark,” which has been screened nationwide to educate and train school administrators on creating safe schools for LGBT youth;
· AIDS Foundation of Chicago is an organization that has helped lead the fight against HIV/AIDS for 24 years by promoting cooperation among service providers at work across Chicago’s various communities, making more than $18 million in grants to agencies coping with AIDS in those communities, aiding the housing needs of persons with HIV/AIDS, and advocating for sound government HIV/AIDS policy.
The exhibit is courtesy of the City of Chicago Commission on Human Relations’ Advisory Council on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Issues.