Letter from the HF President: Proud.

Pride month is always fun in New York. The streets are filled with parties and festivals. Cultural events abound. Rainbow flags fly proudly across the city. All of these celebrations culminate in the annual and iconic Pride Parade in Greenwich Village.

This year, however, as we celebrate Pride, we do so with the knowledge that across the United States attacks against the LGBTQ community are growing. Earlier this month we marked one year of the Pulse Nightclub Massacre in Orlando, an event that forged a new and powerful bond between Latinos and the LGBTQ community. That tragic event, born of hatred and fear, took the lives of 49 people and left many more injured, reminding us that anti-LGBTQ violence is real and deadly.

But the assault on the LGBTQ community hasn’t been limited to acts of violence. The truth is that there is a legislative assault taking place as well. According to the Human Rights Campaign, more than one hundred pieces of anti-LGBTQ legislation have been introduced in state legislatures in the first half of 2017. Whether it’s legislation designed to make it more difficult for gay parents to adopt children, cutting needed funding for people living with AIDS, or removing protections against workplace discrimination, elected officials in a number of states are advancing legislative agendas designed to push LGBTQ Americans back into the shadows.

We cannot and will not stand for this.

Hispanic Federation has been working diligently to fight against those who would treat our LGBTQ family and friends as second-class citizens. We have expanded our Proyecto Somos Orlando initiative to build awareness of homophobia and to build bridges between the LGBTQ community and Latinos. As part of our one-year observance, we hosted GLAAD for a media training for Latinx individuals to learn how to tell their stories, and best practices for working with the media particularly in the wake of a tragedy.

Our FUERZAFest celebration in New York earlier this year used cultural programming to raise awareness of anti-LGBTQ violence. And this year, we proudly joined with numerous LGBTQ civil rights organizations to produce this video explaining why this year’s Pride month is about much more than celebrating the LGBTQ community. As you’ll hear in the video, more than anything else this year, Pride is about resistance.

Resistance to hate.

Resistance to discrimination.

Resistance to violence.

In other words, it is about rising up and advancing the cause for equality and justice. I hope you and your families will join us in celebrating Pride Month and fighting back against those whose rhetoric and policies seek to harm our LGBTQ brothers and sisters.