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PORTLAND, Ore., Apr. 7, 2014 – The Equity Foundation, a 501(c)3 nonprofit and Oregon’s only grant-making institution for the progression and advancement of underrepresented communities, announced today its honorees for the 2014 Women Who Lead Leadership Awards and Lifetime Achievement Award: This year, Jeana Frazzini (Basic Rights Oregon) and Melanie Davis (PQ Monthly/El Hispanic News) have been awarded the Women Who Lead Leadership Award, and Kathleen Saadat is the recipient of the Women Who Lead Lifetime Achievement Award.
These three women will be recognized for these accolades at the Women Who Lead 2014 Luncheon, which will be held from 11:30am – 1pm, May 15, on the 6th floor of The Nines hotel. To purchase a ticket for the Women Who Lead Luncheon, please visit http://portland.strangertickets.com/events/13368058/women-who-lead-luncheon.
About the honorees:
Melanie Davis:
In a field typically dominated by men, Davis has broken through barriers and worked effortlessly to become the publisher of two of Portland’s most notable news sources, PQ Monthly and El Hispanic News. Davis also regularly presents at community colleges, universities and institutions, speaking about being a female publisher, an out lesbian and a Latina. Through PQ Monthly, El Hispanic News and social media, she regularly promotes businesses and events that empower the Latino and LGBTQ communities.
Jeana Frazzini:
Frazzini has pushed to ensure that all activities Basic Rights Oregon (BRO) engages in support the values of creating a diverse and inclusive movement. Because of Frazzini’s leadership and her BRO team’s political activism, LGBTQ Oregonians cannot be fired from their jobs or denied services because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Additionally, trans-Oregonians have much greater access to health care and communities of color have a greater voice in the LGBTQ movement. As a direct result of Frazzini’s influential leadership skills, BRO is now seen as a national leader in the marriage equality movement and is likely to achieve marriage equality for Oregonians this year.
Kathleen Saadat:
Saadat quintessentially personifies permanent, cross-cultural contributions to Oregon’s LGBTQ communities. She has been involved with numerous ethnic-, minority- and LGBTQ-based movements and organizations, including: Black Women’s Rap Group; International Women’s Day Celebrations; Bradley Angle House; Lesbian Community Project; Portland’s African American Alliance; and African Americans Voting No on Nine. Not to mention in 1976, Saadat helped organize and lead Portland’s first gay rights march.
About the Women Who Lead Awards & Luncheon
Created by the Equity Foundation in 2012, the Women Who Lead Awards seeks to recognize and raise the profile of women whose efforts offer pathways to improved opportunities and expanded political and social participation for minority communities in the greater Portland area. The Women Who Lead Luncheon also serves as a medium for these leaders to share their work with a broad range of new audiences, allowing them to promote their ideas and ensure that their insights inform and advance the work of other social innovators.
Past honorees include: Governor Barbara Roberts (2012), Sherri Murrell (2012), Susie Shepherd (2013) and Samantha Swaim (2013).
