MAY 13 - NYPL WITH WRRQ Presents Love and Resistance: Stonewall 50

Hudson Park Library, 66 Leroy St, New York, NY 100146 - 8 PMLiving Authentically Post Stonewall: The WRRQ Collective on the Changing Trans Cultural MovementJoin us for a conversation with Elizabeth Marie Rivera and Kristen Lovell from the WRRQ Collective, as they tell stories about the old days, the stroll, Sylvia Rivera's legacy, historical erasure of trans women of color, trans tipping points, movement leadership, and how we got to where we are now. Moderated by WRRQ co-founder Quito Ziegler.For nearly a decade, Kristen Parker Lovell has worked vigorously to carry on Sylvia Rivera's legacy to support transient young people. A survivor of the streets who was mentored by Sylvia herself, for over eight years Kristen has been a symbol of strength, and resilience in her work at Sylvia's Place/MCCNY Charities Inc., NYC's only emergency queer youth shelter. Kristen also works as a performer in front of the camera A fierce advocate for trans women, Kristen founded an empowerment group, Trans in Action, which has produced two documentaries about trans representation in the media. Kristen has a passion for history and ensures that the young people of today know it as well. Kristenl is also an actress and producer, known for various levels of involvement with The Garden Left Behind(2019), Saving You, Saving Me(2019), Random Acts of Flyness(2018) and Pose(2018).Elizabeth Marie Rivera is a proud Puerto Rican trans woman born in Brooklyn and raised in Southern California. Elizabeth returned to NYC as a young adult and has been an advocate and activist, working primarily for the rights of sex workers and the trans community, for 20 plus years. Elizabeth is a member of the House of Ninja ballroom community and was featured, along with her sister, Stefanie Rivera, in two episodes of PBS’ In the Life. She has worked for the Audre Lorde Project’s TransJustice group, Cambridge Cares About AIDS/AIDS Action Committee TransCEND program, Make the Road NY Queens, and Harlem United. Elizabeth is currently the data entry manager for the Latino Commission on AIDS’s Oasis Latino LGBTS Wellness Center, advocating for the Latinx community.WRRQ is a multi-racial, intergenerational, cross-class, all-gender collective of artists and activists that have been collaborating since 2013, though some relationships date much farther back. An intersectional mix of queer and transgender sex workers, formerly homeless, people with disabilities, HIV+, indigenous, immigrants, first gen, survivors and accomplices, WRRQ makes art and food for visual resistance and community healing.To see the full list of Stonewall 50 programs taking place in branches, visit www.nypl.org/events/stonewall50