New York, NY — Family Equality, the nation’s leading organization for current and future LGBTQ+ families, is delighted to honor Louisiana lawyer and advocate Nicholas Hite with the Hostetter-Habib Family Award for his extraordinary dedication to serving LGBTQ+ youth and families in the south as they navigate challenging legal hurdles.
“One in three LGBTQ+ people live in the South,” says Stacey Stevenson, CEO of Family Equality. “Yet, I know from experience that accessing quality LGBTQ+ specific legal representation in states like Louisiana or Texas is near-impossible. Nicholas is working to change that. At a time of increased attacks against LGBTQ+ youth and families—especially in the South—Nicholas’ tireless efforts to support Louisiana families as they face legal barriers to healthcare, secure legally recognized parent-child relationships, and seek to protect the safety and well-being of their trans children is more important than ever. We are thrilled to honor his work with the Hostetter-Habib Family Award.”
The Hostetter-Habib Family Award is given each year in honor of Alex Habib, Mark Hostetter, and their entire family to recognize those who demonstrate a commitment to advancing equality for all families through work on the front lines.
As the founder and Principal of the only openly queer-run, queer-centered law firm in Louisiana, Nicholas has served over 1,000 clients across 13 parishes in Louisiana and continues to provide leading-edge legal services for LGBTQ+-identified clients, especially adult and child survivors of intimate partner violence and sexual assault. Instrumental in spearheading policy and practice changes for transgender and gender non-conforming (TGNC) Louisianans making ID corrections more accessible, Nicholas is the sole TGNC-competent legal resource in Louisiana recognized by the Transgender Legal Services Network, Transgender Law Center, and Transgender Legal Defense and Education Fund. He also serves as a qualified family law mediator, juvenile public defender, co-founder and managing attorney for the non-profit Family Justice Legal Center, and legal counsel for the New Orleans Family Justice Alliance. In 2022, Nicholas was recognized as one of the 40 Best LGBTQ+ Lawyers Under 40 by the national LGBTQ+ Bar Association.
Nicholas will be recognized alongside Visibility Award honorees, Amrit Kapai and Nicholas Kouchoukos.
About Night at the Pier
Night at the Pier will take place at Pier Sixty, Chelsea Piers in New York City on May 15. With hundreds of anti-LGBTQ+ bills introduced in states across the country that seek to silence and erase the experiences of LGBTQ+ youth and families, Night at the Pier is a special evening spotlighting and celebrating the stories of LGBTQ+ families, advocates, and allies. It’s also an opportunity to garner support for this critical work. Past honorees have included Jordan Roth and Richie Jackson, Scott Ellis, Sergio Trujillo, Katie Couric, ABC’s miniseries When We Rise and more.
The 2023 Night at the Pier Honorary Chairs are Daryl Roth and Nick Scandalios, and this year’s event chairs are Agneishka Burke, Luigi Caiola, Merritt Johnson, Jeannie Uyanik, Samantha Lippitt, Andrew Van Degna, Xavier Van Degna, Jeannie Uyanik, and Jason Weinberg.
Family Equality gratefully acknowledges the support of the following Night at the Pier sponsors: (Diamond Level) Caiola Productions and the McGill Caiola Family; (Platinum) The Nederlander Organization (Gold) Nick Scandalios and the John Gore Organization; (Bronze) Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, Christopher Street Financial, Hiro Premium Japanese Sake, Kramer Levin, Sam Rosenblatt and Mario D’Andrea, The Shubert Organization, Weeks Lerman, and Weill Cornell Medicine at the Ronald O. Perelman and Claudia Cohen Center for Reproductive Medicine; (Friend) Agnieshka and Jared Burke, Boston IVF, Cigna, Growing Generations, Hiro Premium Japanese Sake, Insperity, KVL Audio Visual Services, Nicholson Events, and Reproductive Medicine Associates; (National Corporate Sponsors) Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner, Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, California Cryobank, CCS Fundraising, Clockwork, Fidelity,Care with Pride, the LEGO Group, Nederlander, Organon, Playbill, Target, and Warner Brothers Discovery.
Purchase tickets at nightatthepier.com.
About Family Equality
Family Equality is creating a world where everyone can experience the love, safety, and belonging of family. As the leading national organization for current and future LGBTQ+ families, we work to ensure that everyone has the freedom to find, form, and sustain their families by advancing LGBTQ+ equality through advocacy, support, storytelling, and education.
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Press Contact
Tonya Agnew,
Chief Communications Officer
(765) 490-4709 / tagnew@familyequality.org