BAGLY honors Menino

The Boston Alliance of GLBT Youth will give Mayor Tom Menino a well-deserved honor at its 28th anniversary celebration at the Artists for Humanity Epicenter in South Boston on April 29.

Menino will receive the Michael Pumphret Distinguished Leadership Award, which is named for the late BAGLY youth who founded the organization's annual prom. "He's being honored for his longtime support of our community and the youth community," said BAGLY Executive Director Grace Sterling Stowell. Stowell noted that Menino has long been an advocate for LGBT youth; since 1996, for instance, he has opened the doors of City Hall for the annual BAGLY prom, which this year takes place on the evening of May 10, after the Youth Pride march.

Menino will be honored along with the Swampscott High School Gay/Straight Alliance (GSA), which will receive the Deborah Levi Distinguished Leadership Award, named in memory of a BAGLY adult advisor who also passed away. Stowell said the GSA was chosen for its courage to challenge a new school policy that mandated all student clubs to submit membership rosters to the administration. "Certainly for the GSA that was problematic," said Stowell. "That meant some youth would feel like they were being outed." Nonetheless, two of the GSA's youth leaders outed themselves in order to fight the policy. "They came out and challenged the policy and they won," said Stowell. "That's a perfect example of youth leadership and activism."

The anniversary celebration will also double as a fundraiser to support BAGLY's programming. To that end, there will be a silent auction in which guests can bid on Red Sox tickets, a private Boston Harbor yacht cruise for 12 and dinner with BAGLY youth, among other items.

Tickets for BAGLY's 28th anniversary celebration are $75.00 and can be ordered online at www.bagly.org/donate or by calling 617.227.4313.