From: MMOW2000@aol.com Date: Fri, 12 Nov 1999 17:22:05 EST Subject: Veteran Grassroots Activists Expand MMOW Leadership Team Millennium March on Washington for Equality April 30, 2000 . Washington, DC N E W S R E L E A S E For Immediate Release: Nov. 12, 1999 Millennium March on Washington Expands Leadership; Announces New Co-Executive Directors Texas Lobbyist and Organizer Dianne Hardy-Garcia Joins Leadership Team; Move Addresses Unprecedented Grassroots Interest, Response Washington, DC -- Organizers for the Millennium March on Washington (MMOW) have announced an organizational expansion which provides for two full-time Co-Executive Directors to oversee the final six months of planning and organizing for the March. "We are pleased to announce that LGBT activist and grassroots organizer Dianne Hardy-Garcia, Executive Director of Lesbian and Gay Rights Lobby of Texas, will join Malcolm Lazin as Co-Executive Director of the March," said Ann DeGroot, Co-Chair of the March. "It is now evident that the Millennium March on Washington will be the largest gathering of gays, lesbians, bisexuals, transgendered persons and our families, friends and allies," added DeGroot. "These two capable organizers will help us expand our organization to address all of the needs and requirements of this historic March." Lazin was earlier appointed Interim Executive Director of MMOW during organizational meetings in New Orleans. Under the expanded MMOW structure, Hardy-Garcia will manage the Washington, DC offices of the March and assume responsibility for communications, outreach and community organizing on the local, state and national levels. Lazin will focus on day-to-day management, fundraising, and financial reporting. Hardy-Garcia and Lazin will jointly handle production and programming for the March and Rally. "I am pleased to have Dianne and Malcolm at the helm of MMOW. Both of them are committed and talented activists," said Donna Red Wing, one of four Co-Chairs on the MMOW Board of Directors. "Grassroots response has exceeded all earlier expectations and the growing list of thousands of local volunteers has prompted the board to speed up our timetable for expanding the staff. The division of key responsibilities between two Co-Executive Directors allows us to keep the March on a solid financial footing while also moving forward with grassroots organizing," added Red Wing. Hardy-Garcia has served as Executive Director of the Lesbian/Gay Rights Lobby of Texas (LGRL) since 1993. LGRL is one of the nation's largest GLBT statewide organizations and lobbies and organizes for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender equal rights in Texas. Hardy-Garcia also has served as a co-chair of the Federation of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender State Organizations, a national coalition of state GLBT organizations. For her courageous leadership and extensive organizing efforts, Hardy-Garcia has been honored by organizations including the League of United Latin American Citizens, Metropolitan Community Churches, the Austin Chronicle, the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, and the Human Rights Campaign. Her work has also been covered extensively in the national media, including Prime Time Live, Texas Monthly, Out Magazine, the Justice Files, the Advocate, New York Times and Vanity Fair. Lazin is the founder and Executive Director of PrideFest America, the nation's largest annual gay and lesbian symposium and festival headquartered in Philadelphia. In 1999, 64 regional and national organizations presented substantive programs along with 10 community-wide social events. PrideFest America 2000 features more than 100 programs and social events making it the largest event of its type ever staged. Lazin is also an attorney, having served in the US Department of Justice, where he earned the Department's highest honor. In addition to having served as Chair of the Philadelphia Waterfront Developers Council, he also served as a local partner for the Blockbuster Sony Entertainment Center on Camden, New Jersey's waterfront, which includes a 25,000 seat state of the art amphitheater. Among other accomplishments, Lazin chaired the Pennsylvania Crime Commission, supervising more than 60 law enforcement personnel investigating organized crime, is a progressive political activist and has long been active in the LGBT communities. Organizers indicated that an announcement would be forthcoming on the opening of national March offices in Washington, DC. The Millennium March on Washington, scheduled for April 30, 2000, is the 4th national GLBT civil rights march and he first human rights march of the new millennium. A free e-mail newsletter is available upon request by writing MMOW2000@aol.com. For more information on the March on Washington for Equality, visit the official website at www.mmow.org or write to MMOW2000@aol.com. (END) FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION OR PRESS INTERVIEWS, CONTACT: Dianne Hardy-Garcia, MMOW Co-Executive Director Tel: 512-474-5475 Fax: 512-474-4511 E-Mail: LGRLTexas@aol.com Malcolm Lazin, MMOW Co-Executive Director Tel: 215-732-FEST Fax: 215-732-7376 E-Mail: PF98@aol.com Ann DeGroot, MMOW Board Co-Chair Tel: 612-822-0127, Ext. 107 Fax: 612-822-8786 E-Mail: ADG@outfront.org