6th Annual NBJC OUT On The Hill Starts Wednesday

The 6th annual OUT on the Hill National Black LGBT Leadership Conference starts on Wednesday and runs through September 19, and I'm pleased to announce I will be in the OOTH house starting on Wednesday for the first time since 2012.

I get excited about this event because OUT on the Hill features Black trans, bisexual, lesbian, gay, queer, same gender loving activists, thought leaders, elected officials, educators, elders and young professionals gathering in our nation's capital for a unique, informative and important convening.

OUT on the Hill brings together more than 100 Black LGBTQ/SGL stakeholders and partner organization that include the Human Rights Campaign, the Trans Persons Of Color Coalition, the National LGBTQ Task Force, AIDS United, National Coalition for LGBTQ Health, amfAR, and Planned Parenthood Foundation of America.

The National Black Justice Coalition with the support of the Elton John AIDS Foundation launched in 2014 its Black LGBT Health and Wellness Initiative to address the current health crisis, HIV and the disparity in culturally competent  health and wellness programs that target the Black LGBT population.   It also seeks to shift the conversation about African-American holistic health by including the Black LGBTQ/SGL community in those broader Black community health conversations.

NBJC through this initiative is seeking to strategically and innovatively bring voice and visibility to the health and wellness concerns of the Black SGL and TBLGQ community, raise awareness, decrease stigma and provide culturally competent and accessible resources and services.

The theme for this year's OUT on the Hill Conference is We Are Family: Building Stronger Roots Together. with a call to action addressing health care issues rooted in four summit tracks: health care, social justice, economics and spirituality.  

OUT on the Hill 2015 gets underway with a pre conference networking reception tomorrow at the St Gregory Hotel entitled At the Table: Black Voices In Policy & Advocacy that gives attendees the opportunity to hear updates about the 2020 National HIV/AIDS Strategy for members of the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS.

Over the next few days there will be conversations that discuss policy issues impacting our community, briefings about the recently introduced in Congress LGBT Equality Act, several plenary session covering various topics including the bisexual and transgender sectors of our community, and the third annual State of the Black LGBTQ/SGL Community on Saturday  

If you'e seeking more information about Out on the Hill, press credentials or are just interested in attending the event, you can contact Isaiah Wilson at iwilson@nbjc.org or click on this link to peruse the #OOTH2015 schedule.

Hope to see y'all in DC.