Aurora Public District Library partner in Legacy Project Pride Zoom event

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Pride: Rainbow clothes and decorations, awesome parties and parades (drive-by during a global pandemic!); although these are great ways to celebrate, something that’s often obscured behind the bright colors and pageantry, there is another very important aspect of Pride: LGBTQ+ history.

The Aurora Public Library District (APLD) will be a partner with the Legacy Project and the Human Relations Commission of the City of Aurora to present The Legacy Project: LGBTQ+ History and Illinois’ LGBTQ-Inclusive Curriculum through Zoom Thursday, June 17. Registration is required.

While having fun during Pride, it’s important to remember LGBTQ+ history and think forward to today’s LGBTQ+ policies. Stavrialena Gontzou photo on Unsplash

During the virtual program, Victor Salvo will discuss the LGBTQ+ rights movement, key historical figures, and Illinois’ new, inclusive curriculum.

A Q&A session will be conducted towards the end of the event.

Salvo is the executive director of Chicago’s Legacy Project. The Legacy Project is a “trusted and reliable source of activism and information on the historical and current state of LGBTQ+-based policy, and seeks to educate around updates to legislation,” said Krista Danis, events and program coordinator at APLD.

“In particular, Illinois is the most recent and fifth state to enact an LGBTQ+ inclusive curriculum in all public schools, effective in the 2020-2021 school year. Students will learn about the history and activism of LGBTQ+ people, which contributes to a more inclusive environment for students to see themselves in their education. The Legacy Project is well-suited to answer questions and educate around this new bill, so I am very excited to hear from their executive director, Victor Salvo,” Danis said.

Other Pride events that APLD will be host to through this month include the Aurora Pride Drive 2020 Photo Exhibit (in person at Santori Library) and a digital exhibit highlighting the late Randy Shilts, formerly of Aurora, an author and journalist, who had an enormous impact on the AIDS epidemic and gay rights movement, will be on our Genealogy & Local History page.

When asked why there’s a need for LGBTQ+ programs in Aurora, Danis enthusiastically replied, “I believe there is a need for this program everywhere!”

Everywhere, and at any time, too. Though there’s an influx of LGBTQ+ programs across the Nation during June, APLD is committed to celebrating the community throughout the year. Back in April, APLD was a partner with the Human Relations Commission of the city government of Aurora as host to the Transgender and Non-binary Awareness Panel Discussion. Panelists included transgender people who shared their experiences and perspectives, community leaders fighting for gender and LGBTQ+ equality, and parents of a transgender child.

The program was a success: 115 persons either have attended or viewed the program after it ended on APLD’s Facebook or YouTube pages. But the true success was in the knowledge customers gained on how to support the transgender community:

“Really appreciated hearing about how to support someone going through the process of coming out/transitioning and how to support young people,” expressed one customer.

Another said: “I am transgender. I have an increased understanding of how to reach my parents and what resources are available.”

APLD is committed to supporting the LGBTQ+ community through educational programs like The Legacy Project: LGBTQ+ History and looks forward to presenting more.

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