Family Equality Council to Honor Transparent, Target, and Jonathan Murray and Harvey Reese at Impact Awards in Los Angeles

February 2, 2017

Awards Recognize Outstanding Support for LGBTQ Families; to be Presented at Annual Gala March 11 at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel.

January 31, 2017

LOS ANGELES, C.A. — Family Equality Council is delighted to announce the honorees for the annual LA Impact Awards, recognizing individuals and companies that have made outstanding contributions to supporting the wellbeing of LGBTQ families. The 2017 gala, held in Beverly Hills on March 11, will honor the creators of the Amazon series Transparent, Target, and longtime Family Equality Council supporters Jonathan Murray and Harvey Reese.

More than any other series, Transparent has brought issues facing LGBTQ families — and particularly transgender parents — into public view, in a format that is entertaining and educational in equal measure. For Family Equality Council’s supporters, Transparentis truly groundbreaking, with an LGBTQ family taking center stage as the sole focus of an award-winning web and television series.

“I am honored to receive a 2017 Family Equality Impact Award on behalf of Transparent,” said Jill Soloway, the show’s writer, creator, and director. “I created the show hoping it would make the world a safer place for my own trans parent and all queer families alike. In these uncertain times, the work Family Equality Council does to protect the rights of LGBTQ families is needed more than ever.”

Target has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to diversity and inclusivity for all people, particularly in regards to the LGBTQ community. Family Equality Council is proud to have worked with Target as a corporate sponsor for almost 10 years, and in 2016, Family Equality Council helped spearhead support for Target’s leadership in corporate social responsibility. For these reasons, Target’s 2017 Impact Award is well deserved.

“We’re incredibly honored to receive a 2017 Impact Award in celebration of our ongoing commitment to diversity and inclusion,” said Caroline Wanga, Chief Diversity Officer for Target. “Family Equality Council has been a long-standing and valued partner and advisor for Target and we’re humbled by this recognition.”

Jonathan Murray and Harvey Reese stand among Family Equality Council’s strongest supporters and have proven themselves to be vocal advocates for LGBTQ youth and families. Following Jonathan’s success with the groundbreaking MTV reality show Real World, he has turned his attention more recently to producing social issue documentaries like Autism: The Musical and Valentine Road, both of which aired on HBO, They Call Us Monsters, which airs on PBS this spring; and the current documentary series, Born This Way, which airs on A&E. Jonathan and Harvey are celebrating their 25th year together and their 18th year as parents to their son Dylan.

“We are thrilled to receive a 2017 Impact Award in honor of our professional work and long-time support of LGBTQ families,” said Jon Murray and Harvey Reese. “Since we became parents in 1998, we have been comforted knowing that Family Equality Council is fighting every day to better the lives of families like ours”

Reflecting on the significance of the 2017 Impact Awards, Stan J. Sloan — CEO of Family Equality Council — said: “Perhaps this year more than ever, the LA Impact Awards show the world how positive role models and empathic messaging create a fairer and more just world for families, for members of the LGBTQ community, and for all those fighting for legal and lived equality. Families like Jon, Harvey and Dylan’s, narratives conveyed through shows like Transparent, and corporations like Target taking courageous stances help form the inspiration that empowers Family Equality Council’s daily work. We are proud to honor each of them with our 2017 Impact Awards.”

The 2017 Impact Awards Gala is chaired by Stuart Bell, Greg Berlanti, David Marshall Grant, and Sarah Paulson, and the vice-chairs are Natalie Bergman and Seth Yanklewitz. The event’s table host co-chairs are Jeff Bernstein and Danielle Cooper.

Past honorees at the awards dinner include Greg Berlanti, Sara Gilbert & Linda Perry, Modern Family, Glee, NBC, Honey Maid, former football player Chris Kluwe, actor/screenwriter/director Peter Paige & producer Bradley Bredeweg, Houston Mayor Annise Parker, and ex-Cub Scout leader Jennifer Tyrrell. Past special guests include Sandra Bernhard, Darren Criss, Melissa Etheridge, Cheyenne Jackson, Adam Lambert, Sarah Paulson, and Sharon Osborne.

Family Equality Council gratefully acknowledges the support of the following sponsors: HBO and Target (Gold Level), Lyn and Norman Lear (Silver Level), Warner Bros Television, Bunim/Murray Productions, Thomas J. Swan, and International Fertility Law Group (Bronze Level). Family Equality Council would also like to thank Amy Shomer, show runner for the Impact Awards, and Amy Shomer Associates, for the production of this year’s gala.

For more information and to purchase tickets or tables, visit www.familyequality.org/la

Follow the hashtag #LAImpactAwards to get the latest news leading up to the Gala, and on the night.

About Family Equality Council

Family Equality Council connects, supports, and represents the three million parents who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer in this country today and their six million children of all ages. We are changing attitudes and policies to ensure that all families are respected, loved, and celebrated — including families with parents who are LGBTQ. We are a community of parents, children, grandparents, grandchildren and unattached youth that reaches across this country. For almost forty years we have raised our children and raised our voices toward fairness for all families. As we look to the next chapter of our work, we are also focused on LGBTQ youth needing families and the two million LGBTQ adults waiting to foster or adopt in our country.

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