The day after the U.S. took a giant step into the unknown with Donald Trump's win in the general election for president, the Nov. 9 Chicago LGBT Hall of Fame induction ceremony held at the Chicago History Museum ( CHM ) celebrated the 12 members of the community, two friends of the community and two organizations whose contributions helped the fight for LGBTQ rights make equally sizeable steps forward.
It was the Chicago Gay Men's Chorus who got the standing-room-only audience to their feet with an inspiring rendition of the National Anthem. The arrival of each of the inductees to the CHM stage along with the speeches from the preceding guests kept them there.
"The road we walk is long and difficult," outgoing Hall of Fame co-chair Mary E. Morten said as she opened the ceremony. "That was not going to be changed by one election. We still have a lot of work to do and now we must all come together, in ways that maybe we didn't even think about, to make sure that we continue to move forward and that we do not let anything with regards to rights or access be turned back. The call-to-action has never been greater than it is right now. Now, more than ever, we need to come together, to celebrate each other and hold each other up."
Chicago Commission on Human Relations Commissioner Mona Noriega seemed to echo the sentiments of many who were there not only to celebrate those individuals and organizations being honored but to lean on each other.
"I needed to be in community tonight," Noriega said, her voice cracking with emotion. "Tonight's celebration is about contributions and achievements. In the face of prejudice and discrimination, all of the inductees, all of us here tonight and some that we lost this year chose to act. We purposely and defiantly choose to make this world and city a better place for us to live in."
City of Chicago Deputy Mayor Andrea Zopp noted that the evening's opportunity for celebration was bittersweet.
"It was a tough night last night," she said. "We woke up feeling like 'our country turned its back on us.' I've been fielding calls and texts all day from people trying to process what happened and how we regain our footing and face a president who has spewed hate in so many directions for so many months."
"But we're here in community," she added. "We're here to recognize the power of what we can do when we stand up against hate. We're here to recognize the courage of the individuals who stood up at a time when it was dangerous, to fight on behalf of this community, to be part of what we can do when we come together."
Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle struck an equally optimistic tone.
"In the last couple of years the majority of Americans have finally concluded that the LGBT community and LGBT equality is a matter of fairness and a core civil right," she said. "It's also clear that this community has played a key role in a host of other issues and concerns."
Preckwinkle cited the LGBT community's response to the Orlando Pulse Night Club massacre in June of this year.
"We will not be taken back to a time when this community was not seen and not heard," she said. "We will not go back to a time when thousands of people were dying from AIDS. We will raise the visibility of trans women of color who are being killed at an alarming rate, we will take care of youth who are experiencing homelessness and seniors who are marginalized. While we have much to celebrate, we have a lot to do."
Before that work commenced, the names of the individuals and organizations who became Hall of Fame alumni in 2016 were read out by two 2015 Hall of Fame inductees; journalist, youth mentor and community leader Emmanuel Garcia alongside UIC Associate Professor and Clinical Psychologist Dr. Phoenix Matthews, Ph.D.
They included Robert Allerton ( 1873-1964 ) honored posthumously for his philanthropic work as the former president and trustee of the Art Institute and as a civil-rights activist who opened the door to the first legally recognized same-sex relationships ( by adopting his adult partner ); artist, musician and illustrator Tom Bachtell for his drawings and caricatures which appeared in magazines from The New Yorker, to Newsweek and Entertainment Weekly; Ronald E. Bogan who, in 1992, became the first man to publicly come out as gay in a major Chicago newspaper while still actively serving in the Chicago Police Department ( CPD ); Association for Latin Men for Action ( ALMA ) co-founder RomÃˇn Buenrostro for his work with people living with HIV/AIDS;Hell in a Handbag Productions co-founder and artistic director David Cerda for his groundbreaking theatrical work; acclaimed graphic artist/designer David Csicsko for his artwork and stained glass mosaics which can be seen everywhere from the Belmont EL station to The White House.
Patrick Dennis ( 1921-1976 ) was also posthumously inducted as the author if 16 books including the beloved classic Auntie Mame. Pride Action Network Executive Director, former executive director of Affinity Community Services and co-founder of the OUTSpoken storytelling series Kim L. Hunt was inducted for her tireless work in the community; openly gay physician Dr. Thomas Klein for his work on the front lines during the darkest days of the HIV/AIDS epidemic; activist Norma Seledon for her work elevating the women's, Latina, and LGBTQ communities; TransLatin@Coalition president Maritxa Vidal for her victories as a celebrated trans and Latinx community leader; and acclaimed filmmaker Dr. Yvonne Welbon for her work promoting understanding of the experience of Black lesbians, Black women, and the larger Black community.
The two Friends of the Community inducted were former Governor of Illinois Patrick Quinn for his support of the LGBTQ community during his tenure and The John Marshall Law School for its ceaseless advocacy of LGBT civil rights.
The organizations inducted were Chicago non-profit Amigas Latinas for its 20-year legacy of advocacy between 1995 and 2015 and the Uptown bar Big Chicks, which was honored as a hub of community events and performances and a longstanding center of LGBTQ fundraising and sponsorship. Michelle Fire, owner of the bar, accepted the award.
The two children of Allerton accepted his posthumous honor, and since Hunt was out of town, her two daughters accepted for her. Carrie Barnett of Gerber/Hart Library accepted the award for Bogan.
This year's inductees will be on display at Harold Washington Library in downtown Chicago starting soon, and on exhibit for a few months.
For more information on the Chicago LGBT Hall of Fame, visit www.glhalloffame.org .