Karamo Brown has had quite the 2018 so far, as being one fifth of the new “fab five” on the Queer Eye reboot has found him some incredible success both on and off the camera. His show alongside his other four cast members was just renewed for a second season, and his outspokenness and honesty on several topics as it relates to the LGBTQ community just earned him a major award last night.
He was honored with the HRC Visibility Award at their 21st Annual HRC Houston Gala on Saturday night. The award was presented to him by Empire star Jussie Smollett. It was announced that he would receive this honor in late March by HRC.
“As an out and proud gay man, Karamo Brown is using his incredible talent and public visibility to raise awareness and find solutions to the unique challenges LGBTQ people face,” said HRC President Chad Griffin. “We are honored to have him marching alongside us as a vocal champion for equality, and we are proud to honor Karamo Brown with the HRC Visibility Award at the 21st Annual HRC Houston Gala.”
Outside of Queer Eye, Karamo has done quite a lot to earn this prestigious honor. According to HRC, he currently serves on the board for OutRight International, a leading international LGBTQI human rights organization dedicated to improving the lives of people who experience discrimination or abuse on the basis of their sexual orientation, sex characteristics, or gender identity worldwide.
He also co-founded the non-profit organization, 6in10.org, which provides tailored mental health support for black gay and bisexual men in order to eradicate the 6 in 10 HIV statistic plaguing this community. In 2016, Karamo was invited by the Obama Administration to work with the White House to create policy/ legislation to support LGBTQ youth and their allies after school hours.
Karamo had this to say during his acceptance speech at the gala last night:
“Being visible helps others to be their authentic selves. It is up to us to share the difficult parts in our lives to encourage others. I saw the possibility of my life reflected back at me.”
Congrats to Karamo on this amazing honor, and for more info on him, check out our exclusive here.