The Shout Out Awards, 2014

Last night I was in Bristol for the second annual Shout Out Awards ceremony, hosted by my good friends from Shout Out Radio. A full list of winners and runners up is available here.

The award for Best Trans Event went to Glitzy Girls. Huge congratulations to them. But in second place was the Trans Day of Remembrance Ceremony. I think that a memorial ceremony doing that well in a set of awards that are mainly for the LGBT night life scene in Bristol speaks volumes for how important human rights issues still are for trans people. Thanks are, of course, due to Bristol City Council for providing the venue for the event. Not many cities in the world do that. But mainly this award is a message of support from the people of Bristol to the people, almost all of the trans women of color, who live in fear of their lives simply because of who they are.

Congratulations are also due to Steffi Barnett who was runner up in the Best Community Radio Show category for her Handbags & High Heels show on Bradley Stoke Radio.

And finally, I was overjoyed to see Orange is the New Black come in as runner up in the Best TV Show category. Doctor Who won, of course, but it is great to see a show featuring a fine trans actress getting such recognition. Well done, Laverne Cox. I may have whooped a little loudly on air when that was announced.

Congratulations to all of the winners, of course, including my pals at Bristol Bisons, and to the lovely Daryn Carter.