Home #Hwoodtimes Heartstopper Actor Joe Lock, The Gilded Age Actress Louisa Jacobson and Digital Influencer RasShanda Lias Honored…

Heartstopper Actor Joe Lock, The Gilded Age Actress Louisa Jacobson and Digital Influencer RasShanda Lias Honored…

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Heartstopper Actor Joe Lock, The Gilded Age Actress Louisa Jacobson and Digital Influencer RasShanda Lias Honored…

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 2, 2025
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VIDEOS AND PHOTOS: Heartstopper Actor Joe Locke, The Gilded Age Actress Louisa Jacobson, and Digital Influencer RaeShanda Lias Honored at the Human Rights Campaign 2025 Greater New York Dinner

NEW YORK, NEW YORK – FEBRUARY 01: (L-R) Joe Locke, RaeShanda Lias and Louisa Jacobson attend the Human Rights Campaign 2025 Greater New York Dinner at Marriott Marquis Times Square on February 01, 2025 in New York City. (Photo by Bryan Bedder/Getty Images for Human Rights Campaign)

Photo credit: Getty Images for HRC

NEW YORK — Last night, the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the nation’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ+) civil rights organization, brought together more than 1,000 LGBTQ+ advocates and supporters from across the country for its annual Greater New York Dinner.

This year’s event honored LGBTQ+ superstars including Heartstopper and Agatha All Along actor Joe Locke, The Gilded Age actress Louisa Jacobson, and social media star RaeShanda Lias. Other special guests included U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, U.S. Rep. Sarah McBride, Alex Edelman, Ashlyn Harris & Sophia Bush, Brita Filter, Dana Goldberg, David Archuleta, Denée Benton, Dylan Mulvaney, Kevin Aviance, Marti Gould Cummings, and more.

HRC President Kelley Robinson gave a heartfelt and inspiring speech outlining HRC’s mission to push forward and fight for change at this time when the community, country, and world need it most.

View video of Kelley Robinson’s speech.

“The bottom line here is that no executive order can override our constitutional protections or the federal law…. So you can try all you want to change laws and policies, but you will never erase the LGBTQ+ community. Lesbian, gay, bi, trans and queer folks have always been here and we are not going anywhere. And what we are here fighting for are the most American of ideals: we’re fighting for the right to live safely in our neighborhoods, schools, and workplaces, and the right to love openly, to build families and get the healthcare that we need. These are not special rights. These are human rights. And when we protect these rights every single person wins.”

Joe Locke was awarded with HRC’s Impact Award for bringing meaningful LGBTQ+ stories and voices to audiences across the world.

NEW YORK, NEW YORK – FEBRUARY 01: Joe Locke attends the Human Rights Campaign 2025 Greater New York Dinner at Marriott Marquis Times Square on February 01, 2025 in New York City. (Photo by Bryan Bedder/Getty Images for Human Rights Campaign)

View video of Joe Locke accepting the Impact Award.

“I have had so many conversations with people about how a show like Heartstopper would have positively impacted their life if it had been made when they were younger. We can’t fix the mistakes of society’s past, but I am so proud that a show as outwardly queer as Heartstopper can be made today, and I hope with every fiber of my being, that we never return to a world that young queer people can’t see themselves represented in the media they consume…. I promise to continue to use the platform that I have been given to do the right thing, not the easy thing.”

NEW YORK, NEW YORK – FEBRUARY 01: Joe Locke attends the Human Rights Campaign 2025 Greater New York Dinner at Marriott Marquis Times Square on February 01, 2025 in New York City. (Photo by Bryan Bedder/Getty Images for Human Rights Campaign)

Prolific actress Louisa Jacobson was awarded with the HRC Visibility Award recognizing her impactful work expanding LGBTQ+ representation on and off-screen.

NEW YORK, NEW YORK – FEBRUARY 01: Louisa Jacobson attends the Human Rights Campaign 2025 Greater New York Dinner at Marriott Marquis Times Square on February 01, 2025 in New York City. (Photo by Bryan Bedder/Getty Images for Human Rights Campaign)

View video of Louisa Jacobson accepting the Visibility Award.

“To be visible is to be vulnerable. Unfortunately, vulnerability is often seen as a weakness. But in truth, it’s one of the most powerful tools that we have for connection. As an actor, I’ve learned that the most powerful performances happen when the actor allows themselves to be revelatory—when they drop the mask and stand in the raw truth of who they are. It’s the same in life. The moments where we drop the mask, and allow ourselves to be seen, those are the moments when we truly connect with others.” 

NEW YORK, NEW YORK – FEBRUARY 01: Louisa Jacobson attends the Human Rights Campaign 2025 Greater New York Dinner at Marriott Marquis Times Square on February 01, 2025 in New York City. (Photo by Bryan Bedder/Getty Images for Human Rights Campaign)

RaeShanda Lias was awarded with the HRC Influence Award, honoring the use of her platform to amplify LGBTQ+ issues – and their intersection with racism – in the fight for equality.

NEW YORK, NEW YORK – FEBRUARY 01: RaeShanda Lias attends the Human Rights Campaign 2025 Greater New York Dinner at Marriott Marquis Times Square on February 01, 2025 in New York City. (Photo by Bryan Bedder/Getty Images for Human Rights Campaign)

View video of RaeShanda Lias accepting the Influence Award.

“Is this going to be a fight? Yes. Are we up for it? Absolutely. Even this morning… It’s February 1st. There’s no way that you think that whatever you sign, with whatever pen, that you’re going to stop Black History Month. We’re going to celebrate 365 days a year. As a mom of four, my oldest son is a trans man. This is very important to me. As a lesbian, this is very important to me. As a mom of a pansexual child, this is very important to me. When you meet people that intersect like that, everything matters and you cannot stay quiet. And for me, it’s okay that I’m a target. It’s okay because you’re going to miss every time.”

NEW YORK, NEW YORK – FEBRUARY 01: RaeShanda Lias attends the Human Rights Campaign 2025 Greater New York Dinner at Marriott Marquis Times Square on February 01, 2025 in New York City. (Photo by Bryan Bedder/Getty Images for Human Rights Campaign)

Trailblazer and U.S. Congresswoman Sarah McBride gave a speech on the need for understanding and compassion and the importance of hope, especially when it feels impossible.

View video of Sarah McBride’s speech.

“While I wish we could convince people of the rightness of our cause from the comfort of our own quiet… the reality is that democracy is not easy. Changemaking is not easy, and it’s not always fair, but it is possible…. I am not naive to the challenges that we face. I now have a front row seat to them, and on more than a few occasions I’ve been on the receiving end of them, but I simply do not believe that the answer to hate is more hate…. Hope is the only way forward, and there is no better organization in this movement better prepared or with a stronger track record to do that work than the Human Rights Campaign.”

NEW YORK, NEW YORK – FEBRUARY 01: Chuck Schumer speaks onstage during the Human Rights Campaign 2025 Greater New York Dinner at Marriott Marquis Times Square on February 01, 2025 in New York City. (Photo by Craig Barritt/Getty Images for Human Rights Campaign)

The Human Rights Campaign is America’s largest civil rights organization working to achieve equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer people. HRC envisions a world where LGBTQ+ people are embraced as full members of society at home, at work and in every community.