BRING CHANGE TO MIND 3rd ANNUAL PRIDE CELEBRATION

Bring Change to Mind (BC2M), the nonprofit organization co-founded by award-winning actress Glenn Close to end the stigma and discrimination surrounding mental illness, presented their 3rd Annual Pride Celebration, on Monday, June 10th at 7pm.

The event featured a private dinner at Bangkok Supper Club, followed by an evening at National Historic Landmark, The Stonewall Inn, where acclaimed Producer, Writer, and Director, Lee Daniels, was presented with the inaugural BC2M Pride Award for his inspiring leadership in the LGBTQ+ community. Golden Globe Winning and Academy Award Nominated Actress, Singer, and Songwriter Andra Day, Emmy Award Winner Actor and TV host Wayne Brady, and Broadway performers Bradley Gibson and Mars Rucker performed in honor of Lee.. The evening also featured remarks from current students and alumni from Bring Change To Mind’s high school programs The evening was hosted by actress Annie Starke and current star of RuPaul’s Drag Race All-Stars, Season 9, Nina West.

The evening, Produced by Erich Bergen and Chuck Thomas, was dedicated to raising funds for Bring Change To Mind’s nationwide high school clubs which empower youth mental health advocates and cultivate a more educated, supportive, connected and empathetic community. Currently spanning across 43 states, Bring Change to Mind has worked with more than 100,000 teens over the last nine years of this evidence-based and peer led club model. Almost half of the teens currently in Bring Change To Mind clubs identify as LGBTQ+. Because of those staggering numbers, in 2024 Bring Change To Mind launched the LGBTQ+ Youth Mental Health Task Force, whose focus is to build empathetic allies and activists, break the stigma surrounding mental health and provide crucial support to LGBTQ+ youth.

About Bring Change To Mind:

BC2M is a national organization working to end the stigma and discrimination surrounding mental illness through widely distributed public education materials and programs based on the latest scientific insights and measured for effectiveness.

In 2009, Glenn Close assembled a group of the nation’s most influential mental health advocates to help her identify the most challenging and difficult aspect of their advocacy. Erasing stigma was at the top of everyone’s list. In 2010, Bring Change to Mind was born when Glenn decided to use her platform and network of contacts to confront stigma through messaging and to normalize the conversation around mental illness. At Glenn’s side, as her inspiration and fellow advocates, have been her sister, Jessie, who lives with Bipolar Disorder and her nephew, Calen, who lives with Schizoaffective Disorder.

Bring Change to Mind’s High School Program, BC2M HS, is an evidence-based, student-led club program that provides teens with a platform to promote mental health and self-care in a way that is relevant to them and their peers. Since its launch in fall 2015, the initiative has grown at an unprecedented rate, with over 530 high schools currently enrolled, and 14,000 annual members across the United States. More than 100,000 students have participated in the evidence-based program over its nine years.

In our nationwide high school program, almost half of the teens identify as part of the LGBTQ+ community. LGBTQ+ individuals are more likely to experience mental health conditions and are four times more likely to attempt suicide than their peers. In January 2024 Bring Change to Mind launched an LGBTQ+ Youth Mental Health Task Force whose focus is to build empathetic allies & activists, break the stigma surrounding mental health, and provide crucial support to LGBTQ+ youth. Through a diverse coalition of passionate individuals, including both LGBTQ+ individuals and allies, we will foster safe spaces, expand resources and amplify the voices of BC2M students in the LGBTQ+ community to share experiences on a larger scale. This national initiative ensures that the needs of LGBTQ+ youth are recognized and addressed within our programs and advocacy efforts.

About Lee Daniels:

Lee Daniels is an Academy Award® nominated filmmaker whose work is trademarked by authenticity and candor, providing audiences with a unique experience and raw character insight with each of his projects. Throughout his career, Daniels has been a trailblazer, using his platform to amplify underrepresented voices and shed light on pressing societal issues. He sits on

numerous boards, including that of Ghetto Film School, a nonprofit that helps to develop the next generation of great American storytellers. He is a longtime LGBT activist, and since the earliest days of the epidemic has been an HIV/AIDS activist. Before his career in filmmaking, he ran the first nursing agency under contract with AIDS Project Los Angeles, taking care of people with HIV. On World AIDS Day 2016, he was honored with the Heroes in the Struggle Award from the Black AIDS Institute.

Daniels recently wrapped production on his next film, THE DELIVERANCE, a psychological thriller for Netflix, which he wrote, directed, and produced. The film stars Glenn Close, Mo’Nique, Andra Day, and Aunjanue Ellis.