LGBTQ Director Gerald Garth is Stepping Onto New Stages
Gerald Garth’s calendar is bursting with meeting invitations ranging from monthly check-ins to festive outings. He is a man-about-town wearing several hats, lending his advocacy along his travels. This afternoon, he’s taking it easy—a Zoom call here and there, a coworker dropping off items, and a hard stop at 2 p.m. He’s wrapping up his to-do list before attending a string of holiday parties and year-end celebrations.
Garth had a good 2021, personally and professionally. He describes prioritizing joy, setting boundaries, and tweaking his work-life balance. Sounds like sage advice, considering he’s stepping into multiple new roles in 2022. For one, he will be Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion with the Los Angeles LGBT Center. He was elected to two positions: vice president of community initiatives and programs with LA Pride and the head of media and communications for Global Black Pride.
“I start [at The Center] at the top of the year, building strategies,” Garth said. “We are taking a robust view, looking at the hiring practices, programs, protocols, staffing structures, opportunities, next steps, and so forth.”
The 800-employee-strong Los Angeles LGBT Center sprawls over nine locations. Close to 50,000 Angelenos receive services ranging from primary care, HIV specialty care, and legal assistance to gender-affirming services through the agency.
“The L.A. LGBT Center serves as a beacon around the world. A lot of organizations look to the Center or are supported through the Center, get resources through the Center. I recognized that this role and opportunity would be bigger than just the L.A. footprint,” he said. “Then with my unapologetic approach to uplifting Blackness, I really see it as a wide-reaching opportunity to do one of a couple things. To one, address, dismantle, reimagine, deconstruct systems. Also uplift, empower, amplify Black folks and other underrepresented groups.”
“With my unapologetic approach to uplifting Blackness, I really see it as a wide-reaching opportunity to do one of a couple things. To one, address, dismantle, reimagine, deconstruct systems. Also uplift, empower, amplify Black folks and other underrepresented groups.”
- Gerald Garth
Garth’s new job at the Center calls for greater visibility, and up until recently, he was perfectly fine working behind the scenes. This was his norm. Dating back to the theater days in his native Baton Rouge, Garth set out to help wherever he could. UpStage Theatre Company, seated in his hometown, served as a creative hub for a 20-something year-old Garth. There, under Dr. Ava Brewster-Turner’s direction, he hoped to hone his storytelling craft as a budding playwright and set designer—somewhere in the background. He assisted with the wardrobe or swept the floors. One day, while striking the set (theater-speak for breaking down pieces of the stage), Dr. Brewster-Turner commented, “You look good on stage.” He said thank you and continued the task at hand. She added, “Your voice is really good onstage also.” He kept picking up cups. She then suggested he audition for an upcoming play, UpStage’s rendition of August Wilson’s Radio Golf. Reluctantly, Garth auditioned but bombed badly and returned to his duties. Brewster-Turner offered him a second go. This time, she gave him notes and extra encouragement. He retreated to his car where he devoured the monologue, returned inside, and delivered it, scoring the lead.
“That was foreshadowing,” he said. “Those times in gestation are in preparation for what’s next. I do feel like all of those steps along the way [where it] felt like I was in hiding were actually just preparation. I’m prepared. I am actually excited. I feel like I have all of the tools. Even from my time in the media, my time as an actor, my time as an advocate. All these things have baked together to this newest chapter.”
Continue reading here.
Editor's Note: This article was originally published in Positively Aware Magazine, and is presented here as an excerpt.
stephen is a writer, filmmaker, and public health advocate. He was the 2021-2022 Narrative Justice Fellow at CNP and is based in Washington, D.C. (Twitter: @stephenhicks)