NEW YORK (1010 WINS/ WCBS 880 NEWS) – Ahead of the Hetrick-Martin Institute’s 18th annual awards ball, themed "The Year of the Dragon," which is set to take place on Saturday, Jan. 27, Amy Harclerode, CEO and Jermaine Ellis, director of community engagement and program operations at HMI shared their insights into the organization's mission and ballroom events with 1010 WINS’ Sharon Barnes-Waters.
A place that focuses on creating safe spaces for queer and trans youth, especially those of color, HMI was founded in 1979 by Dr. Emery Hetrick and Dr. Damien Martin. After learning about a gay 15-year-old boy who was beaten and forced out of his shelter, Hetrick and Martin founded the Institute for the Protection of Lesbian and Gay Youth.
“Our founders decided that something had to happen because queer and trans youth are the same as all youth," Harclerode said. "They need the same things, a safe place to be kids."
HMI offers a range of free services at their drop-in center at 2 Astor Place in the East Village and through outreach programs. Services include meals, medical care, counseling, academic support, and more, all provided in a nurturing environment for kids between the ages of 13-24.
"You don't need medical insurance,” Harclerode said. “You don't need anything like that. You just need to demonstrate that you're of age and you get everything from a hot meal every night, medical care, counselors, group counseling sessions ... The really beautiful part of that is that it all happens in a place where there are other caring queer and trans adults that have shared life experience and your identity is celebrated, not pathologized."
In addition to the drop-in center, HMI extends its reach through outreach programs. Ellis, overseeing these programs, said, "There are a lot of young people that will never come to HMI for a lot of different reasons. Geographies, fear of systems because they've been burned in the past... We do a lot of outreach with the house ballroom community, which is what our ball will celebrate."
HMI has been operating for 45 years, reaching thousands of young people annually through direct services and community outreach.
The upcoming HMI awards ball, set to take place at Terminal 5 in Hell's Kitchen, is a platform for celebrating the achievements of young people in the house and ballroom community, according to Ellis.
The ball has evolved over the years, growing from a small gathering in HMI’s café to hosting about a thousand attendees at Terminal 5. It is not just a celebration but a culmination of HMI's year-round efforts to engage and empower LGBTQIA+ youth. "We're reducing depression and anxiety in trans and queer youth of color who are more than twice or three times as likely to have suicidal ideation, depression, and anxiety," Harclerode said.
HMI also has an ambassador program where they have celebrity ambassadors. For this year's ball, Dominique Jackson, who played Elektra Evangelista on the FX series "Pose," will be in attendance as their ambassador and will spend time speaking to everyone in the room.
The event, part of HMI's Key Coalition work, has been a significant part of the New York LGBTQIA+ community's calendar for nearly two decades. It started as a youth-focused event and has grown into a community-wide celebration.
"In the early 2000s, HMI, alongside GMHC, were the first that started to provide space for youth to really participate in the House and Ballroom community," Ellis said.
This year's theme, "The Year of the Dragon," was chosen to inspire creativity and excitement. "We just wanted to really honor the year of the dragon... and make sure that your theme allows the creativity of the categories and that young people and anyone gets excited to build costumes and build outfits around an elaborate theme," Ellis said.
The ball will feature various competitions, celebrating skills and talents across different aspects of the LGBTQIA+ culture. Categories include face, runway, performance, and realness, each reflecting the rich history and diversity of the ballroom scene.
"The art of passing, to blend as a cis hetero person, was very important back in the days when LGBTQ wasn't as accepted,” Ellis said. “Having to blend and having to pass was a particular category but also has validated people throughout many years."
The event will be hosted by Precious Ebony, a former youth member of HMI and now a renowned figure in the ballroom scene.
"Precious, our lead MC this year, was a youth member at HMI. One day just grabbed the mic and started to belt out these lyrical chants... Precious has been on television and shows like 'Legendary,' and they just want to give back to the community," Ellis proudly shared.
As the event approaches, both Harclerode and Ellis invite the community to join in this celebration. “Please come. It’s a place for you,” Harclerode said.
“It’s gonna be a great night and a great event,” Ellis said. “A lot of work, but that’s what we do.”
Anyone who would like to join the awards ball can sign up on the All Events website or email hmiyouth@hmi.org for more information.
