This morning, GLAAD announced the nominees for the 26th Annual GLAAD Media Awards. Many of the nominated films, television series and journalism pieces reflect the diversity of the LGBT community, including the stories of LGBT people of color.
In the entertainment categories, the critically acclaimed film Dear White People was nominated for Outstanding Film - Limited Release. The film includes a lead character who is a Black gay nerd trying to find his place at college, and was written and directed by Justin Simien, an out gay man. On television, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Sirens, Glee and Orange is the New Black included African American LGBT characters. Reality show R&B Divas: Atlanta showcased the wedding of star Monifah Carter and Terez Thorpe. Big Freedia: Queen of Bounce and B.O.R.N. to Style also featured Black gay people headlining their own reality shows. Documentaries like Laverne Cox Presents: The T Word and L Word Mississippi: Hate the Sin, also told the stories of real people. Out rapper Angel Haze received a nomination for Outstanding Music Artist.
Black representation was also present in journalism pieces like: CNN's "Gay Rodeo" from This Is Life with Lisa Ling; MSNBC's Melissa Harris-Perry which featured a panel of Black commentators in the segment "Change is Coming to the South"; and The Root's "Black Parents, Gay Sons and Redefining Masculinity" examined how families react when their child comes out.
Latino LGBT characters were present in television shows like Grey's Anatomy, Faking It, Glee, and Looking, And among the journalism nominees, Fusion's article "Why did the U.S. Lock Up These Women with Men?" by Cristina Constantini, Jorge Rivas and Kristofer Rios shed light on the issues faced by transgender Latinas. GLAAD also nominates an entire slate of Spanish-language media, which may be found here.
Big-studio comedy Tammy, as well as How to Get Away with Murder, The Normal Heart and General Hospital featured Asian American LGBT characters, while Fusion's profile of transgender model Geena Rocero in "A Model with a Mission" on Alicia Menendez did so in journalism.
Multi-racial characters appeared the British film Lilting, and regularly in television shows like The Fosters, Last Tango in Halifax, Pretty Little Liars, Looking, and Days of Our Lives.
Several of the nominees featured LGBT people and characters from other countries. The Way He Looks, a Brazilian film, portrayed two gay teenagers falling in love. Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow told a quiet story of gay man living in Taiwan. Last Week Tonight with John Oliver featured an interview with Pepe Julian Onziema, a transgender man from Uganda. And Vice News was nominated for two online journalism pieces about LGBT people facing repression in Jamaica and Russia.
For a complete list of nominees, please click here or watch the video below.
The GLAAD Media Awards recognize and honor media for their fair, accurate and inclusive representations of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community and the issues that affect their lives. The GLAAD Media Awards also fund GLAAD's work to amplify stories from the LGBT community and issues that build support for equality.
The GLAAD Media Awards ceremonies will be held in Los Angeles on March 21, 2015 at The Beverly Hilton and in New York on May 9 at the Waldorf Astoria New York. Find out how you can buy tickets or host a table here.
To receive the latest updates on the GLAAD Media Awards, follow @glaad on Twitter and use the hashtag #glaadawards.
The 26th Annual GLAAD Media Awards corporate partners include: Presenting partners Delta Air Lines, Hilton, Ketel One Vodka, and Wells Fargo. GLAAD is also grateful to: Platinum partners ABC-Disney Television Group, Allstate Insurance Company, PwC, and Time Warner; Gold partners Nielsen; and Silver partners Citi and Omnicom Group. For a full list of corporate partners and information on how to become a corporate partner, purchase tickets, and place a tribute in the tribute book, please visit www.glaad.org/mediaawards.