BLOG: The 6th Annual HERO Awards

Sixth Annual HERO Awards – Keynote Address from Congressman Henry Waxman with Special Guest Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones

Stonewall Young Democrats (SYD), whose mission is to represent and mobilize Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Queer/Questioning and Allied (LGBTQA) youth within the Democratic Party, releases details for the 6thAnnual HERO Awards – Year of the Woman.

The 6th Annual HERO Awards are sponsored by The Honorable Betty Yee and are hosted by Actress and FMR. Showtime’s The Real “L” World cast member, Raquel Castaneda. This year’s recipients of the 2012 HERO Awards are (You can read the full biographies of honorees at: www.stonewallyoungdems.org/heroes/honorees):

• Lifetime Achievement Award: United States Senator Dianne Feinstein. Dianne’s career has been one of firsts – she was the first woman President of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, the first woman Mayor of San Francisco, the first woman elected Senator of California. Her long work for the LGBT community dates back to her work alongside city supervisor Harvey Milk and more recently sponsoring a dozen private bills blocking the deportation of bi-national couples in the state, as well as her support for the proposed Respect for Marriage Act, which would repeal the Defense of Marriage Act.

• Trailblazer Award: Planned Parenthood-Los Angeles CEO Susan Dunlap. Sue Dunlap has been a leader in women’s health advocacy for over a decade. Sue currently serves as the CEO of Planned Parenthood Los Angeles (PPLA) and the Executive Director of Planned Parenthood Advocacy Project Los Angeles County. She previously served as Vice President of External Affairs at PPLA, overseeing Public Affairs, Communications Marketing, 501(c)(4), and PAC operations. Her leadership has helped defeat three anti-choice ballot initiatives in California.

• Mentorship Award: California Secretary of State Debra Bowen. Serving in then, the most Conservative Assembly District, Debra has been there early and very publicly arguing that same-sex couples should have the right to marry. She supports marriage equality and has done so very publicly and very vocally for more than a decade. As a state senator, Bowen twice voted in favor of same-sex marriage: in 2004 on Assembly Joint Resolution 85, which opposed the federal marriage amendment, and in 2005 on Assembly Bill 849, which would allow same-sex couples to marry in California.

• Youth Advocacy Award: Judge Cynthia Loo. She has been a long-time straight ally of Stonewall Young Democrats since 2004. She is a member of the Lesbian & Gay Lawyers Association of Los Angeles. She has prioritized a forgotten population of Youth who go through the Juvenile Justice System, LGBT Youth. She has urged officials and group care facilities to reassess their treatment of transgender and gender non-conforming youth and to adopt policies and practices that provide these youth with appropriate, fair and equal care.

Elected Officials expected to attend the Awards are: US Senator Diane Feinstein, Secretary of State Debra Bowen, Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones, Board of Equalization Member Betty Yee, Congressman Henry Waxman, Congresswoman Judy Chu, State Senator Curren Price, Assemblywoman Holly Mitchell, Assemblyman Steve Bradford, Assemblywoman Betsy Butler, City Controller Wendy Greuel, Los Angeles City Councilmember Tony Cardenas, West Hollywood Councilmember John Duran, Malibu Mayor Laura Rosenthal and many more!