Tag Archives: Hyatt

Empathy Week: June 1-7

Posted on May 31, 2023 by Kevin Allen | 1 comment

The Calgary Gay History Project has been invited to participate in Empathy Week: a seven-day festival where people come together to celebrate human connection and foster empathy. The festival features events, discussions, workshops and exhibitions which discuss or promote empathy, diversity, inclusion, and our shared humanity.

On Sunday, June 4th at 4 PM, join the Calgary Gay History Project’s Kevin Allen on a walk through the city centre. We will highlight significant political and social events that affected the gay community. On the way, we will pass several former watering holes where Calgary queers gathered. Reserve your free tickets: here. The one-hour walk begins and ends at the Hyatt Regency Calgary (700 Centre Street SE), specifically at their 8th Avenue Entrance.

*Steve Polyak, from Gay Calgary Magazine, taking a photo the 2017 downtown gay history walk.*

Empathy Week has amplified the voices of hundreds of artists, changemakers, and people who experience systemic barriers in the last six years. Thousands of Calgarians have participated. Please consider volunteering for Empathy Week. Sign up: here.

Come out for empathy this week!

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Tagged bisexual, Calgary, Empathy Week, gay, Gay history, Gay History Walk, human-rights, Hyatt, lesbian, queer, transgender

2016 Pride Panel: Resiliency

Posted on August 18, 2016 by Kevin Allen | Leave a comment

The Calgary Gay History project has been invited to participate in a panel discussion during pride titled: Resiliency through Time and the Pride Movement. Happening on Wednesday, August 31st at 4 PM, it will be a similar format as last year’s Pride Origins Panel, with a reception before and after – all taking place at the Hyatt Regency Hotel downtown. We hope you can join us.

The panel will explore how pride movements have changed over time and the impact it has had on resiliency within the LGBTQ community at both the macro and individual levels.

The Schedule:

4pm to 5pm, Pre-panel reception, cash bar

5pm-6pm, Panel Discussion

6pm, Post-Panel Reception with Complementary Appetizers

The event is hosted by the Hyatt Regency, with Calgary Outlink and Pride Calgary as sponsoring organizations. One can RSVP via Facebook: here.

Panel Members include:

Robert Fracassa, HyPride Founder

Robert is the Senior Manager of Digital Analytics & Optimization Strategy for Hyatt Hotels Corporation in Chicago and holds a BS in Computer Science and an MBA from the University of Michigan. Four years ago Robert and a few fabulous friends had a vision to create a Hyatt employee networking group focused on LGBT diversity and inclusion, and is proud to be one of the original 4 founders of Hyatt HyPride. Today, Hyatt HyPride has grown to over 600 Hyatt employee members, and Robert is now the Global Chair of the Hyatt HyPride LGBT Diversity Business Resource Group representing dozens of chapters throughout the world.

Jahida Laribi, Author

Jahida is a lesbian activist-freelance writer concerned about LGBTQ issues, especially in the Arab countries. “Through my writings based on background research, I try to contribute to the awareness of the Arab society about the LGBTQ population and to inform the Arab lesbian and gay individuals around the world about homosexuality (history, laws, truths and misconceptions, etc.). I believe in and I am supportive of the LGBTQ cause and I hope that one day we can gain our rights in the Arab world as others did.” She is an exemplar for living in a resilient way and now encourages pride in everyday living, both here in Canada and internationally. She has create various blogs and articles in Arabic and French. Jahida also created an Algerian lesbian a collective called N’DéeSses.

Kevin Allen, Calgary Gay History Project

Kevin Allen is the research lead of the Calgary Gay History Project whose family has lived in Calgary for four generations. Kevin’s work has uniquely detailed Calgary’s gay history, including bringing back to life many forgotten stories of LGBT struggles that have helped to shape our society today. Kevin is also a founder of the Fairytales Presentation Society and is currently on the board of directors of Calgary Outlink.

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Phew. YYCGayHistory Pride Week Recap.

Posted on September 11, 2015 by Kevin Allen | Leave a comment

There was lots of gay history this year as Pride Calgary celebrated its 25th Anniversary. In sharp contrast to our past, politicians from many political stripes were thick at events. Their speeches respectfully acknowledged the founders of Pride and we hosted a special Origins Panel Discussion, sponsored by the Hyatt Regency downtown.

Pride Founders (L to R): Nancy Miller, Stephen Lock and Richard Gregory, and Moderator: Kevin Allen. Photo credit: Twitter @MastersMatt

There were three gay history walks, well attended, despite the cool wet weather, and lots of people came to speak to us at the Gay History Booth at the Pride Festival.

Finally, we did a lot of media interviews during Pride Week. Here are links to a couple of the more significant pieces in case you missed them.

CBC’s Calgary Pride Celebrates 25 Years – with archival footage from the original Pride rally in 1990, by Danielle Nerman.

Calgary Sun’s How the persecution of a popular Calgary bus driver half a century ago prompted Canada’s decriminalization of homosexuality, by Michael Platt.

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