Twelve Individuals and Two Organizations Chosen For 2005 Gay And Lesbian Hall Of Fame
September, 2005

CHICAGO, IL -- The Chicago Commission on Human Relations' Advisory Council on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Issues has named the 2005 list of individuals and organizations for inclusion in the world's only known municipally-sponsored hall of fame that honors members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) communities, announced Mayor Richard M. Daley, Commission Chairperson Clarence N. Wood, and Advisory Council Chairperson Laura Rissover.

"The rich contributions made to Chicago by its various communities are important to make this city grow and strive ahead." said Mayor Richard M. Daley "It is for that reason that we are pleased to recognize lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals with this Hall of Fame award each year."

Chosen nominees will be inducted at the Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame's 15th annual ceremony, which will be held from 5:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, November 1, 2005, in G.A.R. Hall at the Chicago Cultural Center, 77 E. Randolph St. The reception begins at 5:30 p.m., and the program is scheduled to begin at 6:00 p.m. The event is free and open to the public.

The Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame was established in 1991 under the auspices of the Advisory Council, with continuing support from the Chicago Commission on Human Relations and from Mayor Richard M. Daley. Its purpose is to recognize the achievements of LGBT Chicagoans, their contributions to the development of the city, and the help they have received from others.

Those inducted can fall into one of three categories: individual, organization, or friend of the community. Potential nominees comprise members of Chicago's entire sexual-minority community, including lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender Chicagoans, past, present, living, and dead, as well as those who have supported or assisted the community. A committee of prior inductees makes each year's selections from nominations submitted by members of the public.

Those honored in 2005 are:

INDIVIDUALS
Alexandra Scott Billings , 43, actor, for her performance achievements as a transgender artist onstage and on television, her example as a person living with AIDS, her educational and fund-raising work to combat AIDS, and her work with About Face Youth Theatre.

Megan Carney, 35, writer, director, and producer, for her illumination of LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer) youth issues and other social justice concerns through About Face Youth Theatre as well as through other performance vehicles reaching high-school-age persons.

Aldo Castillo , 49, artist, curator, and art dealer, for his promotion of Latin American art and artists and for his human rights activism in AIDS and political organizations.

John D'Emilio , 57, historian, for pioneering research that has enriched academic study of the sexual-minority past, helped to make Chicago a national center of such scholarship, and undergirded social activism, including historical work that was cited by the Supreme Court in its landmark 2003 Lawrence v. Texas decision.

Mike McHale , 41, lawyer, for service as an openly gay Cook County assistant state's attorney and for activism in neighborhood organizations, gay sports groups, and the Equality Illinois LGBT civil rights organization.

Jim Pickett , 39, writer and activist, for more than 10 years of articles and leadership as an openly HIV-positive gay man in organizing against HIV/AIDS, substance abuse, STDs, and homophobic politics and for support of the LGBT arts community in the press.

The Rev. Juan Reed , 57, social worker and Episcopal priest, for leading a parish (St. Martin's) that openly welcomes GLBT persons, for providing pastoral support to men living with HIV and AIDS, and for his example as an openly gay African American clergyman.

C. Michael Savage (1952-2004), social work executive and religious activist, for leading programs that served such groups as the homeless, the addicted, low-income persons with HIV/AIDS, immigrants, and the medically needy as well as leading Dignity, the gay and lesbian Roman Catholic organization.

Catherine Sikora , 54, photographer and activist, for advocacy of laws against discrimination because of gender identity or sexual orientation and for visual documentation of the transgender community as well as the larger LGBT community in the Chicago area.

Lawrence E. Sloan (1959-1995), theatrical director and fund-raiser, for achievements at the Goodman Theatre and Remains Theatre and for serving as the first executive director of Season of Concern, the Chicago theater community's AIDS fund-raising organization.

Test Positive Aware Network , for 18 years of providing HIV-positive individuals with peer-led support group services led by other HIV-positive individuals, offering up-to-date HIV treatment information, and publishing the internationally known Positively Aware magazine.

FRIENDS OF THE COMMUNITY
Merry Mary , age not given, for more than 25 years of volunteer service as a Lake View resident to such groups as Howard Brown Health Center, NAMES Project, Chicago Gay Men's Chorus, Windy City Gay Chorus, Unison, Dignity/Chicago, Archdiocesan Gay and Lesbian Outreach, Chi-Town Squares, and Vital Bridges' GroceryLand Pantry.

State Sen. Carol Ronen , 60, for service through two decades in the Democratic Party, the Illinois General Assembly, and nonprofit groups in support of human rights, one part of which has been her legislative leadership of the successful final effort to add sexual orientation (including gender identity) to the Illinois Human Rights Act.

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