Schedule of Events

PRIDE WEEKEND SCHEDULE

Wednesday, May 26

DC Black Pride Town Hall

7:00 – 8:30 PM

Franklin Square Room

Hamilton Crown Plaza Hotel

Title:  Dealing with Homophobia and Racism in the Political Arena

Moderator:  Earl Fowlkes

Panel: Lawrence Webb, Falls Church, VA Councilman;

Mary L. Washington, Ph.D. Current: Commissioner, Baltimore City Commission on Sustainability, Member, Maryland Democratic State Central Committee

Jeffery Richardson, Gertrude Stein Democratic Club President

The interactive panel discussion will feature members of the Black LGBT community who are actively involved in politics at the local and national level.  The panel will discuss issues of homophobia and race within the political arena and the broader LGBT community as well as share their thoughts on how we begin to overcome many of the issues that continue to limit access and discourage participation within the political process.

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Thursday, May 27

DC Black Pride Volunteer Meeting

7:00 – 9:00
McPherson Square Room

Hamilton Crown Plaza

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Friday, May 28

DC Black Pride Opening Reception (Free)

Hamilton Ballroom

7:00 – 10:00 PM

Reception honoring the District of Columbia City Council, Charlotte Smallwood & Jeffrey Richardson

Refreshments and Cash Bar

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Saturday, May 29

DC Black Pride Workshops (Free)

10:30 AM – 3:00 PM
Hamilton Crown Plaza Hotel

10:30 AM – 12 Noon
Do You See What I See? : Personal Vision Development
Presenter: Angela Harvey of Let’s T.A.L.K.
This is an interactive growth workshop that will educate participants on the art of developing, maintaining and upgrading their vision in their personal and professional lives. Participants will learn how to create a vision board and ways to “see” their way to greatness.
Place: Hamilton Ballroom

11 AM – 12 Noon
Somewhere Over The Rainbow-The Joy of Lesbian and Gay Travel
Presenter: Donna Shands-Island
This workshop will examine the difference in exclusively gay travel.  The presenter  will highlight some of the major travel companies and what it means to our community to support these companies.  In additional there will also have some brochures from the different companies to share and the contact information. There will be a chance to win a trip for 2 on at least one vacation!
Place: Lafayette Park Room

11 AM– 12 Noon
Operation: REBIRTH – Overcoming Homophobia in the Black Church
Presenter: Tuan N’Gai
This workshop empowers people who are suffering from spiritual abuse, and helps them heal so they can overcome it! Topics include how to recognize spiritual abuse, debunking the myths of God’s destruction of same gender loving people, how to speak up and fight back.
Place: Franklin Square Room

12 Noon – 1 PM
Yes We Can!  How do we create and sustain healthy, positive, empowering, monogamous relationships?
Presenter: Dr. Christopher A. Lester
This workshop will provide an opportunity for participants to share their experiences and reflections on the characteristics that can lead to sustainable, positive, empowering monogamous relationships.
The workshop will explore the following questions?

• What are the nonnegotiable characteristics we seek in potential life time partners?

• Are there some nonnegotiable characteristics that prevent participants from meeting and building “quality’ relationships?

• What compels us to seek fulfillment outside our relationships?

Participants will complete a brief relationship profile.
Place: Lafayette Park Room

12 Noon – 1 PM
“Out on Campus”
Moderator: Samantha Master, Moderator
Panel: Bowie State University – Jenn Wood
Howard University – Falon Shackelford
Morgan State University – Jeremy Lee
NC A&T State University – Tanisha Coleman
UNC-Pembroke – Jamel Porter
Winston-Salem State University – Rudy Jones

This workshop will be a panel discussion about the climate for openly LGBT/SGL students on various campuses.  The panel will explore what progress has been made on HBCU or largely Black campuses and what remains to be done.  Each of the schools represented has a LGBT student group or a Gay/Straight Alliance (GSA), whether officially recognized or not.
Place: Franklin Park Room

1 PM – 2 PM
The Generation Gap”
Moderator: Sterling Washington,
Panel: Sheila Alexander-Reid – Vice President of Administration, Gertrude Stein Democratic Club
Genesis Nunlee – Vice President of CASCADE (formerly BLAGOSAH), Howard University’s LGBT student group
Andre Rosario – Former Vice President of BLAGOSAH (now CASCADE);
Courtney Williams – Member, DC Coalition of Black LGBT Men & Women
This panel will discuss the issues of ageism that are barriers for intergenerational collaboration between younger and seasoned LGBT/SGL activists.
Place: Lafayette Park Room

1 PM – 2 PM
Health Care Reform – What’s in it for me?
Sponsored and Moderated: Women in the Life Foundation
Health Care Reform broadly refers to changes in the managed care medical insurance system in the United States.  High insurance premiums and insurers declining to cover pre-existing conditions are among the reason that millions of American residents are unable to afford quality, reliable health care at affordable prices. This workshop will explain many of the nuisances of the new Health Care Reform
Place: Franklin Square Room

2 PM – 3 PM
The Thickness: A Discussion About Healthy Bodies
Sponsored and Moderated: Mautner Project
Come join the Mautner Project for a discussion on the black lesbian physical aesthetic.  Is it healthy? How do you see yourself within these ideals? Let’s talk about it!
Place: Lafayette Park Room

2 PM – 3 PM
“Imagine”
Sponsored and Moderated: Katrina Kirchoff, Microsoft Staffing & HR
You have unique experiences, skills and passions—and we believe you can bring them all to Microsoft for a rich, rewarding career and lifestyle that will surprise you with its breadth and potential. Just imagine the excitement and satisfaction of what you can do, where you can go, and the difference you can make with the resources of Microsoft behind you. Come explore what life is like at Microsoft, and the potential opportunities in Washington, DC and beyond
Place: Franklin Square Room

DC Black Pride Writer’s Forum (Free)

Hosted by Fire & Ink
12 Noon – 2:00 PM
Hamilton Crown Plaza Hotel

Why Do You Write? Why Do You Read? How Do You Succeed?”
Moderate: Reginald Harris (10 Tongues)
Panel: Michael-Christopher (Unspeakable)
Wyatt O’Brian Evans (Nothing Can Tear Us Apart)
Tuan N’Gai (Little Brown Boy’s Blues)
Sonya Renee (A Little Truth on Your Shirt)
Tawanna P. Sullivan (Purple Panties)

Join this panel of fiction and nonfiction writers as they discuss what motivates them to produce work, and how the books they read and the lives they live inform their writing in terms of subject matter, style, form, target audience and other literary choices. These authors will also tackle the complex questions of what “success” means to them as individuals, artists and educators in today’s literary and media marketplace and how they are striving to achieve that success.

Librarian and writer Reginald Harris is Systems Department Help Desk and Training Manager at the Enoch Pratt Free Library in Baltimore, Md. Finalist for a Lambda Literary Award and the ForeWord Book of the Year for 10 Tongues: Poems (Three Conditions Press, 2001), he has received Individual Artist Awards for both poetry and fiction from the Maryland State Arts Council; his poetry, fiction and essays have appeared in numerous journals and anthologies. Harris is a contributor to Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer America Today: An Encyclopedia (John C. Hawley, editor; Greenwood Press, 2008) and Encyclopedia of Contemporary Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer Literature of the United States (Emmanuel S. Nelson, editor; Greenwood Press 2009). reggieh.blogspot.com

This year, Michael-Christopher celebrates twelve years of self-publishing success. Since 1998, Michael has written, illustrated and published a graphic novel compilation and three literary novels, including the Living the Life series and the critically acclaimed From Top to Bottom. A graduate of New York’s School of Visual Arts, Michael plans forthcoming collections of photography and sketches and the seventh installation in his graphic novel series. Unspeakable is Michael-Christopher’s fourth novel.

Wyatt O’Brian Evans, a native Washingtonian, is a journalist (Washington Post, Washington Blade, QBliss.net, Imperious Entertainment and Gayblacknews.com), author and founder of Nair’BoUniversal, a publishing and production house. His novel, Nothing Can Tear Us Apart, is an erotic, action-packed saga of two masculine men of color who must confront serious forces that threaten to destroy their relationship.

Tuan N’Gai is the author and publisher of Will I Go to Heaven? The Black Gay Spiritual Dilemma and Little Brown Boy’s Blues. He is the co-founder of Operation: REBIRTH, which aims to become a driving force in ending spiritual violence perpetrated by mainstream religious organizations. N’Gai currently lives in Washington, D.C.

HBO Def Poet Sonya Renee is an internationally acclaimed performance poet, actress, educator and activist. She has been seen on HBO, CNN, BET, MTV and Oxygen Network; she has performed on stages from New Zealand to Scotland to New York. Sonya Renee has been heralded as a “force of nature on stage” and “humanity in action.” Her debut collection of poetry, A Little Truth on Your Shirt, is transformative, raw, honest and powerful—and fresh off the press (May 2010).

Tawanna P. Sullivan has three loves: Martina, dark chocolate and bad horror movies. Sometimes, she writes. Her work has appeared in Longing, Lust, and Love: Black Lesbian Stories; Iridescence: Sensuous Shades of Lesbian Erotica; Purple Panties; Best Lesbian Erotica 2009; Swing! Adventures in Swinging and Spirited: Affirming the Soul and Black Gay/Lesbian Identity.

DC Black Pride Film Festival ($10)

Hamilton Ballroom

Co-Host: Glo – TV
2:00 – 6:00 PM
Hamilton Crown Plaza Hotel

Films:
Happy Birthday – Abigail wants a dildo. Hannah wants a baby. Jack and Madeleine are happy with things just the way they are. Written and directed by Roberta Munroe (15 min)

Finding Juliet – Heartbroken and struggling to forget the image of her girlfriend cheating on her with an ex, Meeko Brown  attempts to put the past behind her by setting out to find her one true love, her “Juliet. Written and directed by Kanithea Powell (28 mins)

Spoiled – Tuffy Alexander is successful, smart, and has a demanding relationship from hell. How far will she allow herself to be stretched to keep it. Written and directed by Michelle Sewell (11 min)

Dani and Alice – After an evening out Dani and Alice must come to terms with the end of their violent relationship. Written and directed by Roberta Munroe (12 min)

Flipping the Script – excerpts of sit down interviews of forthcoming documentary feature. Written and directed by Demetrius Bady. Produced by Maurice Jamal (30 mins)

FRIENDS and LOVERS – is a spin off from the smash hit “The Ski Trip.”  The story follows Corey and Omar as they relocated to Los Angeles and contemplate getting married. Once there their lives become intertwined with a diverse and eclectic group of Angelinos. Written and directed by Maurice Jamal. (90 mins)
Special appearances by Directors Michelle Sewell and Maurice Jamal.

DC Black Pride Poetry Slam ($5)

Hamilton Ballroom
6:00 – 9:00 PM
Hamilton Crown Plaza Hotel

Hosted ButterFlySoul

Leslie “BUTTAFLYSOUL” Taylor, is a versatile entertainer, a native of Chicago, Illinois he currently makes his home in New York City.“ButtaFlySouL” has been featured on 98.7 Kiss FM, Boston Comedy Club, Blue Stockings, Club Decades, and the BET/Pantene Totally You Tour with Nikki Giovanni. He has also been featured at a host of poetry venues, churches, and universities. His spoken word artistry has also won him the Nuyorican Glam Slam Championship as well as the opportunity to open for Motown recording artist Donnie and many others. He is currently one of the contributing writers for the Signifying Harlem Literary Journal and featured poet for the Nubian Heritage on line magazine. He prides himself on having the distinction of being one of the esteemed members of the Peabody Award winning Russell Simmons’ Def Poetry Jam family

DC Black Pride

Fashion & Entertainment ($20)

EXTRAVAGANZA!

The Sphinx
1315 K Street, NW Washington, DC
9:30 PM – 12 AM
Cost: $20

Host: Rayceen Pendarvis
Coordinator: Sir Xavier, Xfaktor Productionz
Designers: Maurice Thompson, Renee Hill, Teronce’ Styyles, Will Caldwell and Deramine Johnson

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Sunday May 30, 2010

Church Service

Hamilton Ballroom
Hamilton Crown Plaza Hotel
10 AM – 12 Noon

Rev Eric Lee Preaching

Rev. Eric P. Lee is President/CEO of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference-Los Angeles, author of his new book, “Marriage Equality: Proposition 8, The California Divide”, and a International Federation of Black Prides Board member.

Participating Churches: Bethel Christian Church, City of Refuge, Covenant Baptist Church, Faith Temple, Freedom Fellowship Christian Church, Inner Light Ministries, Metropolitan Community Church, Unity Fellowship Church of Washington, DC, Unity of Washington Church.

Health and Wellness Expo Entertainment ($15)

J Holiday Headlining

Washington Convention Center

Sunday May 30, 2010
1 – 7 PM

Segment #1 2:00 – 3:00 PM

Host: Rayceen Pendarvis

1.    Running Water
2.    Romance
3.    Sabrina Blue
4.    Yarde
5.    Monet Dupree
6.    Tina Tuna Adams
7.    Telle Thomas
8.    Eric Rainbow
9.    Shadina/Topaz
10.    Yahzarah
11.    Beat Ya Feet Kings

Segment #2  4:15 – 4:45 PM

Host: Shi-Queeta Lee

1.    Shi-Queeta Lee
2.    Epiphany Bloomingdale
3.    Tyria Iman
4.    Raquel Savage
5.    Lacountress Farrington
6.    Brandi Courvisler

Segment #3 6:15 – 7:00 PM

Host: ButtaFlySoul

1.    DJ Flexx
2.    J Holiday