Astraea Lesbian Foundation Celebrates 40th Anniversary Gala

On November 13, Astraea Lesbian Foundation for Justice celebrates their 40th Gala Celebration in New York, honoring the frontline activists and philanthropists who are leading the new era of resistance.

The event features emcee Gina Yashere and performer Toshi Reagon, and will be followed by an afterparty featuring DJ's Rimarkable and Robi D Light.

In the spirit of this celebration and four decades of LGBTQI grassroots support, we are proud to announce The Ise Bosch Transformative Philanthropy Award, in honor of Ise Bosch, who seeded Astraea's International Fund (then called the International Fund for Sexual Minorities) in 1996, making Astraea the first public foundation in the US to support global grassroots LGBTQI activism.

The Award recognizes outstanding philanthropic contributions to LGBTQI communities. We will also honor the incredible legacy, generosity, and innovation of Kobi Conaway & Andrew Owen, who seeded the world's first Intersex Human Rights Fund at Astraea in 2015, and Naomi Sobel, who co-founded the Funding Queerly Giving Circle, a group of young donors working in partnership with Astraea to give personally, raise money, and mobilize resources for LGBTQI community organizing groups in the United States.

In the words of Bosch: "A Goddess chooses to honor me -- who am I to say anything but 'thank you'! There's plenty of glitter left. I'm glad to be traveling with her, looking forward onto a long road. Happy anniversary, Astraea."

The event will honor Ise Bosch, who for over 20 years has proven her commitment to social equity by funding Astraea's International Fund for Sexual Minorities, as well as numerous other social investments in the arenas of human rights equality, women, and sexual minorities. She is also the founder and managing director of Dreilinden gGmbH in Hamburg, which supports the rights of lesbian, bi-, trans, and intersex people.

Also honored will be Kobi Conaway and Andrew Owen. Starting in 2015 Kobi Conaway & Andrew Owen aided in launching the Intersex Human Rights Fund in support of intersex-led activism to help raise visibility about intersex human rights and raise awareness of the intersex movement. Their other philanthropic activities focus on education and the arts.

Also recognized will be Naomi Sobel, a philanthropic activist who endowed Funding Queerly, a giving circle comprised of young donors, supports LGBTQI people, low-income individuals, and communities of color. Since its inception in 2012, Funding Queerly has distributed over $770,000 in grants to small organizations led by and for communities of color, indigenous communities, poor communities, and/or rural communities.

The Astraea Lesbian Foundation for Justice is the only philanthropic organization working exclusively to advance LGBTQI human rights around the globe. We support hundreds of brilliant and brave grantee partners in the U.S. and internationally who challenge oppression and seed social change. We work for racial, economic, social, and gender justice, because we all deserve to live our lives freely, without fear, and with dignity.

Astraea Lesbian Foundation for Justice 40th Gala Celebration will be held from 6:30-9:30 p.m. at The Angel Orensanz Foundation for the Arts, 172 Norfolk Street, New York, NY 10002. The afterparty follows, from 9:30 p.m. to midnight.