Post submitted by Stephen Peters, former Senior National Press Secretary and Spokesperson

Today, HRC announced that the organization will honor Academy Award-winning actress Anne Hathaway with the HRC National Equality Award at the 22nd annual HRC National Dinner next Saturday, September 15, 2018. As previously announced, the 47th Vice President of the United States Joe Biden will speak, as well as former Attorney General of the United States Eric Holder; trailblazing Virginia Delegate Danica Roem; and Nevada Secretary of State candidate Nelson Araujo. Earlier in the day, Stacey Abrams, the Democratic nominee for governor of Georgia, will address HRC members.

“Through her incredible talent and bold activism, Anne Hathaway uses her global platform to stand up for the LGBTQ community,” said HRC President Chad Griffin. “From speaking out against discriminatory legislation targeting the LGBTQ community to her leadership on workplace equality for women, Anne is making a real difference in the lives of countless people around the globe. HRC is proud to honor Anne Hathaway with the HRC National Equality Award at our 22nd annual HRC National Dinner.”

Anne Hathaway has been a powerful voice in the fight for LGBTQ equality. In 2012, Anne and her husband, Adam Shulman, sold their wedding photos and donated proceeds to organizations working to achieve marriage equality. In 2016, as lawmakers in Georgia were considering the passage of a sweeping license to discriminate against LGBTQ people, Anne joined an HRC-led petition with actors and film studios in making clear they would take their film and television productions elsewhere if the governor signed the discriminatory legislation into law. In response, the governor vetoed the harmful legislation. In 2008, Anne told a crowd of HRC members and supporters in Los Angeles, “I don’t consider myself just an ally to the LGBT community, I consider myself your family. And so, I’m doing what we should all do with our families — I’m loving you, I support you, I completely accept you as you are, as I hope you do me, and if anyone ever tries to hurt you, I’m going to give them hell.”

Anne was most recently seen in the highly-regarded Warner Bros. Ocean’s Eight and will also star in The Hustle and Serenity – both soon to be released. In 2012, Anne starred as “Fantine” in Tom Hooper’s screen adaptation of the musical phenomenon, Les Misérables, a role that garnered Academy, Golden Globe, SAG and BAFTA Awards for “Best Actress”. In 2008, she was nominated for an Academy Award, Golden Globe, and SAG Award for her performance in Jonathan Demme’s critically acclaimed Rachel Getting Married. The National Board of Review, Chicago Film Critics Association, and the Broadcast Film Critics Association all named Anne “Best Actress” in this role. She received an Emmy Award for her television voice-over in the Simpsons. A veteran of the theatre, Anne appeared in the Lincoln Center Encore series presentation of Carnival, for which she won the prestigious 57^th Annual Clarence Derwent Award.

Anne was appointed as UN Women’s Global Ambassador in 2016, where she works with the UN Women to foster more positive mindsets and practical arrangements around workplaces that build and support equality for women. She also serves on the advisory board for Lollipop Theater Network, which is an organization that screens movies in hospitals for pediatric patients suffering from chronic or life-threatening illness. She also recently began working at The Nike Foundation’s “Girl Effect”.

The 22nd annual HRC National Dinner will take place at the Washington Convention Center and is expected to draw more 3,500 guests from across the country and around the world. More information is available at www.hrcnationaldinner.org.