Meet the community leaders, role models and trailblazing groups nominated in PinkNews Awards 2022
By Amelia Hansford
The PinkNews Awards is back with a bang in 2022 with a live and in-person ceremony for the first time since before the COVID pandemic.
The annual ceremony recognises the incredible contributions of the people, organisations and companies that campaign for LGBTQ+ people and equality worldwide. Each year, the community comes together to celebrate the unprecedented achievements of businesses, organisations and individuals alike.
The last in-person PinkNews Awards in 2019 saw awards presented by political heavyweights like Labour MP Diane Abbott, then-Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and speaker of the US House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi.
Since then, the ceremony has remained a virtual event due to COVID-19 restrictions and safety precautions, but it takes more than a pandemic to stop the celebrations. In 2020, the PinkNews Awards saw Labour leader Keir Starmer call for greater unity against homophobia and transphobia, while mayor of London Sadiq Khan kicked off the ceremony by thanking activists and frontline heroes for going “above and beyond” in support of LGBTQ+ minorities.
“I speak from the heart when I say that I’ll always stand in solidarity with our LGBTQ+ communities,” he said in his opening statement. “No one should have to endure hatred, discrimination, or violence simply because of who they are and who they love.”
Winners in 2020 including trailblazing trans doctor, US health secretary and four-star admiral Dr Rachel Levine, who called for greater acceptance unity to help defeat coronavirus, and the cast and crew of groundbreaking trans Netflix documentary Disclosure, accepted by Laverne Cox.
This year’s PinkNews Awards takes place on 19 October in Central London, and we are proud to announce the first-round of nominations across seven categories, including awards for Business Equality, Public Sector Equality, Third Sector Equality, Community Group of the Year, Business Role Model, Community Role Model and Local Leader.
Pink News Awards 2022 nominees
Community Role Model
While the figureheads leading the equality-driven charge at the top are certainly worth writing home about, the Community Role Model award is for those unsung heroes who aim to tackle the roots of a certain issue. Whether it’s through on the ground political activism or advocating for a societal shift in their respective fields, these industry professionals are worth awarding. The nominations for the Community Role Model award are:
Liz Kippax
A volunteer at LGBTQ+ youth homelessness charity akt who has been welcoming vulnerable young people into her home since February 2017.
Gurchaten Sandhu
Director of programmes at ILGA WORLD, an association to support LGBTQ+ people and rights internationally.
Ramses Oliva
Transgender inclusion specialist and ambassador for LGBTQ+ young people’s group Just Like Us.
Tate Smith
Legal secretary and passionate trans activist advocating for trans inclusion in the charity sector, education, recruitment, law and banking, among others.
Vaughan King
Passionate volunteer and advocate for LGBTQ+ inclusion, having spearheaded numerous diversity initiatives in his previous role as AV Manager at Hearts & Science.
