| For Immediate Release
October 17, 2002
GMHC to Open Legal Clinic in Queens
Gay Men's Health Crisis (GMHC) in partnership with Queens
Pride House and
City University of New York (CUNY) Law School will open a legal
services program for people living with HIV/AIDS. The new program,
to be called GMHC @ Queens Pride House, is the first of its kind
in the borough of Queens. It will specialize in services for the
large and very diverse immigrant communities in Queens.
The ribbon cutting and open reception will take place on Tuesday,
October 29, 2002, at 7 P.M., at Queens Pride House, 67-03 Woodside
Avenue, Woodside, Queens. City Council Member Helen Sears will attend
and cut the ribbon to open the facility.
Ana Oliveira, executive director of GMHC said, "We are proud to
be working with Queens Pride House and CUNY Law School in creating
this very important program. Over the past 21 years the AIDS epidemic
has expanded into many different communities both ethnically and
geographically. Queens has a most diverse population including Latinos,
Asians, and Europeans from throughout the world. Queens also has
a very large gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender community as
well. AIDS has impacted all of these communities. People living
with HIV/AIDS have unique problems and challenges often increased
with stigma, language barriers, and immigration status. GMHC @ Queens
Pride House will be a safe haven staffed with caring and sympathetic
people who are trained to respond to these very unique legal needs."
"There is a substantial population of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and
transgender people living with HIV and AIDS in Queens that lacks
easy access to legal services of this kind," said Raymond-Anthony
Penko, executive director of Queens Pride House. "The establishment
of GMHC's program of legal services at Queens Pride House will help
meet that need."
Charles Ober, president of Queens Pride House said, "Queens Pride
House is committed to working in partnership with GMHC in order
to bring these much needed legal services to people in Queens, especially
HIV positive immigrants and people of color who are often reluctant
to seek help from social service providers in their communities
of origin."
This program will be an expansion of services provided by GMHC
at our main office in Manhattan and in five other off-site locations
in other parts of the city. Attorneys will assist clients with immigration
cases, landlord-tenant disputes, government entitlements, discrimination,
estate planning, family law, and permanency planning. Law student
interns from the CUNY Law School will assist the on-site attorneys.
These services will be free of charge.
GMHC is the oldest AIDS service organization in the United States.
It was founded by six gay men in January 1982 in response to the
AIDS epidemic in New York City. GMHC was first in the fight against
AIDS and created programs that were later duplicated by AIDS organizations
throughout the world. GMHC programs include the first HIV/AIDS Hotline,
the Buddy Program, the Meals Program, the David Geffen Testing Center,
Women and Family Services Program, Child Life Program, Soul Food,
a program for black men who have sex with men, Proyecto P.A.P.I.,
a program for Latino men who have sex with men, and the recently
launched Institute for Gay Men's Health. GMHC provides free services
to all people living with HIV/AIDS in New York City.
Queens Pride House was incorporated in the summer of 1996 as the
Queens Lesbian and Gay Community Center, Inc. The organization is
committed to providing a safe space and serving the special needs
of lesbians, gay, bisexual, and transgender individuals and in meeting
the needs of under served populations, with an emphasis on youth,
women, and immigrants. In May 2000, the current facility was opened
in a storefront in Woodside, Queens.
We gratefully acknowledge the Stonewall
Community Foundation for their support of this program.
© 2003 Gay Men's Health Crisis
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