Dear John,

I hope that you and your loved ones are safe and well and that you’ve had the chance to rest and reboot in recent days. In these uncertain times, community matters more than ever. Please know that the OutRight team is thinking about you and that we are grateful for your solidarity, partnership, and friendship!

After a short summer break, OutRight is launching a webinar series called OutTalks to share our insights and analysis, elevate the voices of LGBTIQ activists, and continue strengthening our global movement through virtual engagement. This ongoing series will cover a range of topics, and feature LGBTIQ advocates and allies from around the world.

Tune in on September 30th for a conversion with our Africa Program Officer Yvonne Wamari about “artivism – the role of art in the fight for human rights, or join us on October 14th to hear from our Senior Research Advisor Amie Bishop about the impact of COVID-19 on LGBTIQ people several months into the pandemic. In November, we'll dissect what the results of the US Presidential election mean for global LGBTIQ activism and gain insight into efforts toward gender identity recognition in the Caribbean.

The schedule of OutTalks, and registration information, can be found here, but I invite you to check back regularly as we will be adding more details and more OutTalks in the coming weeks.

The United Nations has also come back from a summer respite, and with new energy, the UN LGBTI Core Group (an informal group of states working together on LGBTIQ equality at the UN headquarters in New York) is kicking off the season with a high-level discussion on September 23 about the multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination faced by lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex people and what is being done to work towards inclusion. I’ll be moderating this virtual panel of incredible leaders and diplomats during the 75th session of the General Assembly, which is also being held virtually.

You can register for “Building Back Better: How to Create a Virtuous Circle for the Inclusion of All LGBTI Persons” here, or tune in on OutRight’s Facebook page for a live stream of the event.

Looking forward to connecting with you all virtually in weeks to come!

Jessica Stern
Executive Director

P.S. I recently had the opportunity to discuss OutRight’s work and our global LGBTIQ movement with my OutRight colleague Neish McLean and key leaders at the Silicon Valley Community Foundation for SVCF’s Philanthropy Now podcast series. Our episode was released this week - I hope you have a few minutes to listen to our conversation!