The International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission will honor activists from Sri Lanka, Jamaica, and Chile at its 2001 Felipa Awards Ceremony May 9 at the Lesbian & Gay Community Services Center in New York.
This year’s awardees are Companions on a Journey (CJ) and its Women’s Support Group (WSG) of Sri Lanka, and the Jamaica Forum for Lesbians, All-Sexuals and Gays (J-FLAG). A posthumous award will honor the life and achievements of Chilean activist Luis Gauthier (1950-2000).
The seven-year-old Felipa Awards recognize activists around the world “striving to defend the human rights of all those who are subject to discrimination because of their sexual orientation, gender identity or HIV status,” the organization said. The awards are named in honor of Felipa de Souza, a woman convicted and tortured in Brazil by the Portuguese Inquisition in 1591 for having sexual relationships with other women.