Jon W. Davidson to Receive Monette/Horwitz Award for Distinguished Achievement

(New York, April 10, 2002) - The Monette/Horwitz Trust has named Jon W. Davidson a recipient of its fifth annual Distinguished Achievement Award for his extensive contributions to fighting homophobia as an attorney for Lambda Legal, and for his work to educate the public about lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender issues.

The Monette/Horwitz awards recognize groundbreaking scholars, organizations, and activists whose work combats homophobia through research, public policy work, and community activism. Davidson, senior counsel of Lambda Legal’s Western Regional Office in Los Angeles, has had a long career as a gay public interest attorney and activist. He has won legal victories ranging from protecting the rights of lesbian and gay students and employees, to helping secure asylum for gay people persecuted in their home countries, to stopping AIDS-related discrimination. Davidson also has helped reform anti-gay practices of the Los Angeles Police Department, and worked to eliminate judicial bias in state and federal courts. Prior to joining Lambda Legal, Davidson was head of the Lesbian and Gay Rights Project of the ACLU of Southern California. He has been an adjunct professor of law at the University of Southern California Law Center, Loyola Law School, and the UCLA School of Law. He is a graduate of Stanford University and Yale Law School. Other recipients of this year’s Monette/Horwitz Award include: Linda Garnets, licensed clinical psychologist and adjunct professor of psychology, women’s studies, and LGBT studies at UCLA; ONE Institute and Archives, the world’s largest known collection of LGBT information; and Barbara Smith, author, independent scholar, and co-founder of Kitchen Table: Women of Color Press. Lambda Legal is the nation’s oldest and largest organization dedicated to the civil rights of lesbians, gay men, bisexuals, the transgendered, and people with HIV or AIDS. Headquartered in New York, Lambda Legal has regional offices in Chicago, Los Angeles, Atlanta, and will be opening an office in Dallas later this year. WHAT: Monette/Horwitz Trust Awards
WHO: Lambda Legal Senior Counsel, Jon W. Davidson, recipient of Distinguished Achievement Award
WHERE: Lambda Literary Awards Banquet, Tribeca Rooftop, Penthouse, 2 Desbrosses Street, NYC
WHEN: Thursday, May 2, 2002 at 6 p.m.

Contact: Jon Davidson: 323-937-2728 x 228
Amanda Scioscia: 212-809-8585 x 241
Lambda Literary Banquet Hotline: 202-682-0952