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2008 Black LGBT Awards Recipients |
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Advocacy
| UK Lesbian and Gay Immigration Group
UK Lesbian & Gay Immigration Group began in 1993, as Stonewall Immigration Group, when there was no provision in UK immigration rules to allow a foreign person to live in the UK with their same sex partner and no provision allowing people to claim asylum on the grounds that they feared or experienced persecution because of their sexual orientation. The service is based in London but provides assistance to anyone who telephones their helpline, e mails or attends meetings. They are currently funded by membership fees, donations and a small grant. Although there has been enormous change over the last 12 years because of the work of the group, they continue to work for fairer rules in respect to asylum and immigration for lesbians and gay men. There is currently no other dedicated organisation tackling the multifaceted problems faced by lesbian and gay asylum seekers in the UK.
www.uklgig.org.uk |
Arts 
| Dean Atta
Dean is a talented writer, poet and youth worker. In the past year he has performed his one-man show as part of the London’s Gaywise LGBT Arts Festival, featured as part of Channel 4’s Generation Next season in a ‘3 Minute Wonder’ about life as a Black gay man, and co-produced and directed a musical ‘Scratched Out’ at the Lyric Theatre in Hammersmith.
www.deanatta.com | | | | Communications
| Pink Paper
Pink Paper is Britain’s only national lesbian, gay and bisexual newspaper and the biggest circulating gay publication of any kind in the country. But it’s unique in many more ways than that. While it’s one of the oldest queer titles, founded in 1987, it now has one of the country’s most modern gay websites and we were the first title in the market to put citizen journalists at the forefront of what they do, through Your.PinkPaper.com. Pink Paper have made real efforts to cover stories affecting Black LGBT people and have been media sponsors for both UK Black Pride and Outburst Festival in 2008. www.pinkpaper.co.uk | | | | Community Development 
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Eddie Lockhart
Eddie is a Director on the board of Outburst UK and as a long serving member of our community she continues to inspire & entertains us with her musical finesse.
She is a positive role model who is always there to provide support & advice to young BLGBT people. She has made valuable contribution to supporting women’s centre’s, and women’s self organisation. Also she was one of the first supporters campaigning for LGBT equality.
She has been involved with the black gay community for over 20 years. In the early eighties, she formed a sound sytem called Sistermatic which consisted of female DJs, as women were not given the right platform to show their skills. Sistermatic proved a great success for two decades. She is also a director of The Barnyard Collective, a black lesbian/gay led community organisation that aims to provide a creative & social network for our integrated communities & our supporters. | Club of the Year
| Bootylicious | Health Promotion 
| Big Up
Big Up is the Black Gay men’s project at GMFA. Started by a group of Black Gay men in the late ‘90s, the group has been part of GMFA for the past seven years. With recent funding from the National Lottery, Big Up was re-launched in 2008 with a film screening as part of the Pride London festival. It now works with a group of dedicated volunteers to deliver projects supporting Black men in making healthy choices.
http://www.gmfa.org.uk/aboutgmfa/our-work/bigup | Woman of the Year 
| Mz Fontaine
Mz Fontaine is a highly successful recording artist. In 2008 she released her latest album ‘Spoken Thoughts’, and appeared at Bootylicious, Pride London, ILGFA World Cup, Outburst and UK Black Pride. Her performances are electric and empowering. In addition to being an artist, Mz Fontaine is also a business entrepreneur having founded an independent Label “Fondation Entertainment” catering for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transsexual (LGBT) artistes in 2001. This label is now housed under the “Fondation Group of Companies“. Through Fondation Entertainment, Mz Fontaine has challenged homophobia and racism through working in schools and with youth groups, and worked to support young LGBT artists and musicians.
www.myspace.com/naechane | Man of the Year 
| Ajamu
Ajamu is an internationally acclaimed fine art photographer, community archivist and the co –founder of rukus! Federation- an arts company dedicated to celebrating and showcasing the best in challenging, provocative works by black Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Trans Artists nationally and internationally.
Ajamu is the currently the Archive Manager of the rukus! Black LGBT Archive, which seeks to collect, preserve, exhibit public, cultural, and artistic materials related to the Black Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Trans heritage, history and lived experience in the UK.
Ajamu has initiated various projects in 2008, including Outside Edge: A Journey through Black British Lesbian, and Gay History at the Museum in the Docklands, Glorious Outpourings at Brixton Library, and this year rukus! was awarded The Archives Landmark Award for In this Our Lives: The Reunion, which marked the 20th anniversary of the first and only national Black Gay Mens conference and he was this years creative director for Outburst UK. www.rukus.co.uk
| Lifetime Achievement AwardDr. Claire Andrews
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