Christopher “Cree” Gordon, 20
Born to a white mother and black father into a homophobic and racially divided community in rural Louisiana, Cree struggled to be black enough for black people and white enough for white people. Coming out to his parents at 14, his mother tried to accept him, but his stepfather eventually threw him out of the house at 19, following his first semester of college. He lived on the streets of New Orleans, hustling his body to survive. He met a man from Eugene, Oregon who took him West before becoming abusive. On the streets again in Eugene, he took an HIV test to get the $10.00 a local clinic was offering and it came back positive. Within weeks of his diagnosis, Cree began volunteering and speaking out at local high schools and colleges. He shared his experiences about being HIV positive and queer through the Youth Education Program and Men Who Have Sex With Men (MSM) for The HIV Alliance and the Bridges program at University of Oregon. Cree says, “If in all the speaking I do (on HIV) I can save the life of one person, that would be worthwhile.” He became a leader in both his College LGBTQA and Black Student Union, working to bridge the two communities. A charismatic and energetic public speaker, Cree has a knack for opening eyes and hearts, his motto - “You gotta make them uncomfortable to make em comfortable.” Cree’s Youth Courage Award will enable him to complete his next semester of college.

Ana Lopez, 21
Ana endured a lonely and isolated childhood in East Los Angeles when she was outed at 14. Rejected by her family and friends because of their strong Catholic beliefs and disregarded by her teachers, Ana remembers, “I had no one.” Kicked out of the house at 17 by a father convinced her “bad” example was turning her younger sister gay, Ana coped by “cutting” or self-mutilating herself to “feel pain to numb the other pain I felt.” She attempted suicide at 14 and 16. She turned her life around through filmmaking and self-expression, following a classroom presentation by Reach LA, a youth media organization. She wrote an article on being queer and attempting suicide that was featured on NPR and has made five documentaries on life in East LA, which have been screened nationally and internationally. Her film interviewing 12 queer students is now being used to train teachers throughout the LA Unified School District. She founded three programs at Reach LA including: “Queer Youth Nation,” a nationwide survey of LGBT youth which has been screened at LA’s Outfest for the past three years; the “Be an Ally” program, which works in schools to educate teachers and students about queer issues through film “Reel Ghetto Queer,” a workshop to mentor queer youth in filmmaking. Ana is committed to using her creative skills to build bridges with the straight and queer Latino community and immigrant and non-immigrant communities. Helping to financially support her family, for whom she feels a great deal of responsibility, Ana works full-time doing graphic design for a community health center. Her 21st birthday present to herself was a pillow, a luxury her family could never afford. Her dream is to go to college and to pursue a career in filmmaking and communications.

Captain Young, 20
Growing up the eldest of ten children to a drug-addicted mother and a father in jail, Captain Young of Sacramento never experienced a true childhood. Raised in poverty by his grandmother, by the age of 14, Captain had already served six months in a juvenile detention facility before being released into a series of foster homes. At home and in foster care, Captain was questioned about why he wore men’s clothes. Tolerated as a lesbian, he was ostracized as a transgender by one of the few aunts with whom he was close. She cut him off completely, telling the 14-year old he was going to hell. Displaying uncommon courage for a high school student, Captain joined the boy’s football team and fought for accommodations under Title 9. Facing ridicule, he suffered daily pranks and blind-side tackles from his own teammates. Emboldened by his Title 9 success and dedicated to improving the lives of LGBT youth in foster care, Captain is a dedicated advocate. His work ranges from passing legislation to protect the civil rights of LGBT youth in foster care with the California Youth Connection to serving as a youth trainer in the foster care system for the National Center for Lesbian Rights to coaching youth, lawyers, judges, social workers and other service providers on LGBT sensitivity as a member of the Out of Home Youth Advocacy Coalition. He is a key member of the Karen Bass Committee on Foster Care Reform and is active with the San Francisco Children with Incarcerated Parents Partnership. A dedicated older brother, he is committed to making the world a better place for his nine siblings. Captain would like to become a writer, exposing the challenges and solutions for African-American youth in poverty, he “wants to be remembered not for who I am, but for the work I do that others can continue.”