Four champions announced as finalists for Person of the Year at Victoria’s LGBTI awards
Image: L - R: Dolly Diamond, Melissa Griffiths, Anthony Wallace, Micah Scott. Images: Supplied.
Four longtime champions in Victoria’s queer community have been listed as finalists for the Person of the Year award at the upcoming GLOBE Community Awards.
The 2017 will help to highlight the excellent work that supports the LGBTI community across Victoria with business leaders, volunteers, sports people, and community groups making up the list of incredible finalists across ten categories.
鈥淲e received 80 nominations, our highest number yet, and the calibre of the nominees was just amazing,鈥� said GLOBE president David Micallef.
鈥淭he awards are an opportunity for us to recognise the great work of those people that are making a real impact in Victoria鈥檚 LGBTI community.
鈥淲ith the same-sex marriage postal survey now going ahead, there has never been a more important time to build up our community, celebrate our successes and our unsung heroes, and highlight that we all belong.鈥�
Finalists for the major award, the LGBTI Person of the Year, include Anthony Wallace, Melissa Griffiths, Micah Scott, and Dolly Diamond.
Wallace is a passionate and long-time advocate for marriage equality and co-ordinator of the Equal Love Campaign.
For over ten years he has worked to bring members of the community to the front lines, while also creating The 86 Bar, which prides itself as a safe space for LGBTQI people and performers.
“I’m exceptionally humbled to be nominated as a finalist, it’s a bit overwhelming I must say,” he said.
“We live and participate in a wonderful rainbow community, so my personal efforts on the marriage equality campaign with Equal Love and as venue operator of The 86 is only made possible by the exceptional support of many individuals.
“Advocates whom I have enjoyed working closely with and the artists and producers who keep lifting the bar on creative works are truly the heroes of our community.
“To the many others not nominated but who work tirelessly for our inclusions and equalities, you are recognised and valued. I salute the many un-sung hero’s of our community.”
Griffiths is a passionate transgender volunteer and advocate whose experience of discrimination and harassment drives her toward providing an outlet for a community in need.
She has done interviews for Iceberg employment agency and Scout Jobs on how to make the workplace more inclusive for transgender people, and has also been interviewed on radio in Melbourne and the U.S.A. and
More recently, she was on Channel 10鈥檚 popular morning show Studio 10 continuing to raise awareness.
鈥淚t was a surprise to be nominated for Victorian LGBTI person of the year,” she said.
“It is an honour to be nominated and a recognition of the work I do in the community. I have worked countless hours this year to raise awareness on gender identity and issues transgender people face in their daily lives.
“I know Anthony, Dolly and Micah all do amazing things in the LGBTI community as well and are true champions.聽 Together we all make a difference and are making society a better place to live in.”
She is a shining light raising awareness and a champion for her community. She lends her time freely to speak at events, seminars, write blog posts, and record podcasts to further her outreach.
Scott began his career as a volunteer for Minus18 at the age of seventeen, and after profound changes in the organisation has escalated to CEO.
The organisation boasts a reach of over 150,000 people, and provides LGBTQI resources used the world over.
“It’s been a really tough slog for LGBTIQ youth and everyone at Minus18 the past year as we grow and become more of a target for anti-queer campaigns,” he said.
“But the outpouring of support from within our community has been beautiful and given us a heck of a lot of strength.
“That’s all I’ve ever wanted to do – build a platform to raise the profile and experiences of queer youth around Australia, and a place to go for support and connection.
“It’s a pretty great feeling to receive the support and recognition for the work as we inch closer to that goal.”
Dolly Diamond聽is the stage name of Michael Dalton, a much beloved entertainer and performer who鈥檚 called Australia home since 1999.
Touring the nation with shows and festivals, Dolly is one of the country鈥檚 finest cabaret talents, and works to promote LGBTQI causes and emerging talent.
“It always makes me laugh when people say, 鈥業t really is an honour just to be nominated 鈥�… well it turns out it really is,” he said.
“I鈥檝e had such a great year and this nomination feels like the icing on a very fruitful cake.
“I鈥檓 celebrating 15 years of performing in Australia in 2018, so I鈥檓 happy to be doing what I love and being appreciated for it.”
The GLOBE Community Awards will take place on Saturday 28 October. The dress code for the night is black tie鈥攐r optionally rainbow tie. Tickets are available online from: .
