West Hollywood will Suspend Parking Meter Enforcement for New Official City Holiday on Harvey Milk Day, Fri., May 22
One City One Pride LGBTQ Arts Festival Screening of ‘Nelly Queen: The Life and Times of José Julio Sarria’ Will Kick Off 40 Days of Arts Programming on Fri., May 22
On Sat., May 23, Day of Service will Take Place at West Hollywood Gateway
Each year in May, the City of West Hollywood proudly joins communities around the world in recognizing and celebrating the extraordinary accomplishments of civil rights leader Harvey Milk, who was the first openly gay person to hold elected office in the United States.
This year, West Hollywood will become the first city in the nation to observe Harvey Milk Day as a holiday. The City of West Hollywood passed a Resolution in April 2015 to add Harvey Milk Day to its calendar of official holidays and, in recognition of Harvey Milk Day on May 22, the City will not enforce parking regulations for meters and associated meter time limits. The enforcement of meters and associated meter time limit regulations will resume the day after Harvey Milk Day, on May 23.
On Harvey Milk Day, Friday, May 22, 2015, the City of West Hollywood will launch its 8th annual One City One Pride LGBTQ arts festival. The festival will run 40 days from May 22 through June 30, in celebration of Pride month. The festival launch event features a work-in-progress assembly screening of an upcoming documentary, Nelly Queen: The Life and Times of José Julio Sarria, which celebrates the life of José Julio Sarria, the first openly gay person to run for political office in the nation, in San Francisco in 1961. At the unexpected intersections of politics and high camp, Nelly Queen reveals an intimate portrait of the Latino civil rights pioneer whose heroic drag has long been overlooked as a cornerstone of the LGBTQ rights movement. Sarria was a friend and supporter of Harvey Milk and many people credit him with helping pave the way for Harvey Milk’s run for Board of Supervisors in San Francisco. Sarria was also a popular drag performer — he founded the Imperial Court. The screening will take place on Friday, May 22, 2015 at 7:30 p.m. at the City’s Council Chambers/Public Meeting Room, located at 625 N. San Vicente Boulevard. There will also be a reception, sponsored by Tender Greens West Hollywood, and a Q&A with the filmmakers. Validated parking is available in the five-story parking structure. Admission is free; no RSVP is necessary. For a full calendar of this year’s One City One Pride events, please visit www.weho.org/pride.
On Saturday, May 23, 2015, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., there will be a West Hollywood Harvey Milk Day of Service event at West Hollywood Gateway, located at 7100 Santa Monica Boulevard. Volunteers will be handing out shopping lists to patrons in support of a food and clothing drive to benefit the SOVA Community Food and Resource Program and the Los Angeles LGBT Center’s Youth Center on Highland. Members of the community can take part by dropping donations off and/or shopping for donations. There will be a curbside drop-off available. Volunteers will also host a letter-writing table for members of the public to write thank-you letters and cards to active-duty service members and veterans in support of Operation Gratitude.
For more information about the West Hollywood Harvey Milk Day of Service event, please call (323) 848-6885 or email wehovcorps@gmail.com.
For additional information about the One City One Pride LGBTQ arts festival visit www.weho.org/pride or contact Michael Che at (323) 848-6377. For people who are deaf or hard of hearing, please call TTY (323) 848-6496.
