San Francisco Award Recipients

OUTSPOKEN Award – Archbishop Desmond Tutu

The International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC) will present its 2008 OUTSPOKEN Award to Nobel Peace Prize winner Archbishop Desmond Tutu. The award will be presented as part of IGLHRC’s A Celebration of Courage event in San Francisco on April 8, 2008.

The OUTSPOKEN Award recognizes the leadership of a global ally to the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) community whose outspokenness has contributed substantially to advancing the rights and understanding of LGBTI people everywhere. IGLHRC presented its first OUTSPOKEN Award in 2005 to the Honorable Mary Robinson, whose leadership as President of Ireland and the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights tangibly advanced LGBTI rights. Archbishop Tutu will be the second ever recipient of IGLHRC’s OUTSPOKEN Award.

Born in Klerksdorp, South Africa, on 7th October 1931, Archbishop Tutu became a leading moral voice in the crusade for justice and racial conciliation in South Africa. In 1984, he received a Nobel Peace Prize to recognize his extraordinary contributions to the struggle against apartheid. He was elected Bishop of Johannesburg in 1985, and promoted to Archbishop of Cape Town the following year. As Archbishop, he became a principal mediator and conciliator in the transition to democracy in South Africa. In 1995, President Nelson Mandela appointed him Chairman of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, a body set up to probe gross human rights violations that occurred under apartheid. In 1996, shortly after his retirement from office as Archbishop of Cape Town, Tutu was granted the honorary title of Archbishop Emeritus.

Archbishop Tutu has persistently challenged discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. In a 2004 article that appeared in The Times (London), he condemns “the persecution of people because of their sexual orientation, which is every bit as unjust as that crime against humanity, apartheid.” Developing this parallel, he writes, “We struggled against apartheid in South Africa, supported by people the world over, because black people were being blamed and made to suffer for something we could do nothing about—our very skins. It is the same with sexual orientation. It is a given. I could not have fought against the discrimination of apartheid and not also fight against the discrimination that homosexuals endure, even in our churches and faith groups.”

Archbishop Tutu has also vigorously criticized segments of the church for its homophobia. “If God, as they say, is homophobic, I wouldn't worship that God," he said in a 2007 interview with BBC radio. He has challenged the church for “being almost obsessed with questions of human sexuality” at a time when “our world is facing problems—poverty, HIV and AIDS—a devastating pandemic, and conflict.” In contrast to many church leaders, Archbishop Tutu’s vision of God’s family is a strikingly inclusive one, “All are insiders,” he emphasized in a 2006 speech at Union Theological Seminary. “All belong—white, black, red, yellow, Arab, Jew, Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, young old, male, female, rich poor, gay, lesbian and so-called straight—all belong.”

Archbishop Tutu holds honorary degrees from over one hundred and thirty universities, including Harvard, Oxford, Cambridge, Columbia, Yale, Sydney, Cape Town and Witwatersrand. He has held several distinguished academic and world leadership posts, among them: Fellow of Kings College; President of the All Africa Conference of Churches; Chancellor of the University of the Western Cape; and Visiting Professor at the Episcopal Divinity School, Cambridge, Massachusetts.

He has received many prizes and awards in addition to the Nobel Peace Prize, such as the Order for Meritorious Service Award (Gold) presented by President Mandela; the Archbishop of Canterbury’s Award for Outstanding Service to the Anglican Communion; the Martin Luther King Jr. Non-Violent Peace Prize, the Sydney Peace Prize and the Gandhi Peace Prize.

His writings include No Future Without Forgiveness, and God Has A Dream.

In recent years, much of Archbishop Tutu’s attention has been devoted to the campaign against HIV/AIDS. He has made appearances around the globe to help raise awareness of the disease and its tragic consequences in human lives and suffering.

It is truly IGLHRC’s honor to present the OUTSPOKEN Award personally to the Archbishop Emeritus of Cape Town, Desmond Tutu.

Special Recognition Award – IBM Corporation

IGLHRC will present its Special Recognition Award to IBM Corporation. IGLHRC’s Special Recognition Award recognizes special individuals, companies or organizations whose contributions to advancing human rights regardless of sexual orientation or expression, gender identity or expression, and/or HIV status have been particularly significant to IGLHRC and its work. IBM Corporation has been a supporter of IGLHRC for many years and a true partner in its developing work around the world, helping the organization to grow and flourish. In addition, IBM Corporation is the acknowledged global leader in promoting workplace policies around the world supporting LGBT employees. The company has an equal opportunity policy that incorporates gender identity and expression, as well as sexual orientation; provides extensive domestic partner benefits in every country where this is legally possible; has a Global Task Force of Out Executives who help advance LGBT workplace issues around the world; has 45 LGBT Diversity Network Groups worldwide, spread across many different regions and countries; and sponsors local and international LGBT organizations around the world. By leading the way toward equality in the global workplace, IBM Corporation sends a clear message that LGBT people matter.

New York Award Recipients

Felipa de Souza Award – Andrés Ignacio Rivera Duarte and Iranian Queer Organization (IRQO)

The International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC) will present its 2008 Felipa de Souza Award to two outstanding nominees—the Iranian Queer Organization (IRQO) and Chilean trans activist Andrés Ignacio Rivera Duarte. The awards will be presented as part of IGLHRC’s A Celebration of Courage event in New York City on April 28, 2008.

IGLHRC’s Felipa Award recognizes the courage and effectiveness of groups or leaders dedicated to improving the human rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex (LGBTI) and other individuals stigmatized and abused because of their sexuality or HIV status. Each award winner will receive a $5,000 stipend.

Andrés Ignacio Rivera Duarte

In 2005, Andrés Ignacio Rivera Duarte, a trans man, founded Organización de Transexuales por la Dignidad de la Diversidad, the first NGO in Chile dedicated to fighting for trans people’s rights, which he currently heads. He has worked with government and the local health system to facilitate the evaluation, treatment and surgery of trans people, and organized the first Rancagua debate on the Civil Union Pact. But his work is not just with high-level officials; he also provides direct support to sex workers—visiting them nightly to distribute coffee, food and information about HIV/AIDS. Himself the victim of employment discrimination, he fought a landmark lawsuit, bringing issues of gender identity into the public view, finally winning the right for trans people to legally change their name and sex in 2007.

Iranian Queer Organization

Founded in 2001 as the Rainbow Group, and known as the Persian Gay and Lesbian Organization until 2006, IRQO serves as the representative of thousands of Iranian queers, giving visibility to a population the Iranian government is aggressively trying to silence. Based in Toronto, Canada, with members working out of Europe and Iran, IRQO has played a key role in documenting LGBT rights violations in Iran and in mobilizing public opinion to pressure Iranian authorities to end the inhumane treatment of sexual minorities. The organization also helps gay and lesbian refugees around the world to fight deportation orders that would return them to Iran—where they could face torture or the death penalty—and helps them obtain asylum in friendly countries. IRQO strives to increase the self-esteem of Iranian queers by offering phone counseling inside Iran and raising awareness of homosexuality in the Persian-speaking media.

Special Recognition Award – IBM Corporation

IGLHRC will present its Special Recognition Award to IBM Corporation. IGLHRC’s Special Recognition Award recognizes special individuals, companies or organizations whose contributions to advancing human rights regardless of sexual orientation or expression, gender identity or expression, and/or HIV status have been particularly significant to IGLHRC and its work. IBM Corporation has been a supporter of IGLHRC for many years and a true partner in its developing work around the world, helping the organization to grow and flourish. In addition, IBM Corporation is the acknowledged global leader in promoting workplace policies around the world supporting LGBT employees. The company has an equal opportunity policy that incorporates gender identity and expression, as well as sexual orientation; provides extensive domestic partner benefits in every country where this is legally possible; has a Global Task Force of Out Executives who help advance LGBT workplace issues around the world; has 45 LGBT Diversity Network Groups worldwide, spread across many different regions and countries; and sponsors local and international LGBT organizations around the world. By leading the way toward equality in the global workplace, IBM Corporation sends a clear message that LGBT people matter.

OUTSPOKEN Award Film Footage – Archbishop Desmond Tutu

The New York City A Celebration of Courage event will also feature film footage of Archbishop Desmond Tutu’s speech on accepting IGLHRC’s OUTSPOKEN Award at its April 8, San Francisco A Celebration of Courage event.