[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 4 (Friday, January 13, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E12]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




TRIBUTE TO THE INTERNATIONAL FEDERATION OF BLACK PRIDES' ANNUAL MEETING 
                    AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE MEETING

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON

                      of the district of columbia

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, January 13, 2012

  Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I rise to pay tribute to the International 
Federation of Black Prides' Annual Meeting and Technical Assistance 
Meeting, which will be held in Washington, D.C., from January 13-16, 
2012.
  The International Federation of Black Prides, Inc. (IFBP)--a 
501(c)(3) with offices in Washington, D.C., Jacksonville, FL, and Los 
Angeles, CA--is a coalition that promotes a multinational network of 
lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) Black Prides and 
community-based organizations dedicated to: promoting grassroots 
organizing around issues affecting the Black LGBT community; promoting 
community health and wellness; providing technical assistance to its 
member Prides; promoting unity; and ensuring educational development, 
economic empowerment, and individual and collective self-determination.
  The mission of the IFBP is to build awareness of and pride in the 
diversity of the black LGBT community. Each local Black Pride is a 
nonprofit organization dedicated to the mission of the IFBP. Each Black 
Pride hosts year-round services and activities in addition to a multi-
day festival that celebrates the rich cultural heritage of the black 
LGBT community through educational workshops, health seminars, artistic 
events, and activism on the local level. Since its formation in 1999, 
the IFBP has grown to include 32 domestic member-and-affiliate Prides 
and three international Prides. D.C. Black Pride, which will celebrate 
its 22nd anniversary in May 2012, was a charter member of the IFBP.
  The IFBP is led by a national board comprised of eight members--four 
officers, three At-Large members and one Ex-Officio member. The board 
consists of: Dwayne Jenkins, Chair; Kimberly Jones, Vice-Chair; Anthony 
Hardaway, Secretary; Elizabeth Burch, Treasurer; Victoria Kirby, Member 
At-Large; Rev. Eric P. Lee, Member At-Large; Charles E. Nelson II, 
Member At-Large; and Earl Fowlkes, Jr., Ex-Officio Member.
  I ask the House to join me in welcoming all who are attending the 
IFBP's Annual Meeting and Technical Assistance Meeting.

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