Frommer (facing the camera, left) and the State Department’s Tom Gallagher fielded questions from LGBTI activists brought here for the International Visitor Leadership Programs.
Photo by Maggie Berkvist.
To the Editor:
I was happy to see the July issue of WestView News mentioned the LGBT tour that I led on June 21, quoting from the introductory speech outside the Stonewall Inn by the State Department’s Tom Gallagher, who made history in 1975 by coming out publicly of his own accord. Since this tour was for a special group of visitors, hosted by the US State Dept, I thought your readers would appreciate knowing a little more about the guests this month.
They were a special group of up-and-coming young leaders who were brought to our country by the U.S. Department of State’s International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP). The goal is for these individuals to interact with professional counterparts and have a direct experience of America and with Americans. Over three-hundred and thirty-five leaders of foreign countries are alumni of this program, which celebrates its 75th anniversary this year.
In our case, our two dozen visitors were all LGBTI activists. The group had meetings with such organizations as the LGBT Center of New York, which enabled them to speak with Robert Woodworth who discussed its history and current initiatives. The escorted visit to the famous “Stonewall Inn” bar (see photo), generally accepted as the birthplace of the American LGBTI movement, was a highlight.
It takes a lot of people to make this “people-to-people diplomacy” happen. We were especially lucky to have working with us Ms. Carolyn Nomura, and Mitchell Cohn who arranged the New York part of the program.
In the process, we have both taught and learned, and so have in our own ways, brought the world a little closer.
Laurence Frommer
