A landmark year for the LGBT community opened with one of Taiwan’s own receiving a special award for activism.

The News Lens
Date: 2019/02/01
By: Jay Lin

When Newsweek publicly announced that I was one of the 15 members of the “Creative Class of 2019,” I seriously had to pinch myself. I was discussing video streaming services at a conference in Mumbai, where I had been invited to speak about GagaOOlala’s plans to forge Indian alliances in preparation for the roll-out of our services in South Asia

During the conference break, I read about the other 14 listed personalities, and felt immediately “outclassed” by the Noble Prize winners & nominees, and CEOs running billion-dollar companies.

The award salutes “innovators who have developed creative solutions to the problems that face our world,” and I was recognized as an LGBT rights activist.

I used the opportunity to reflect on whether I was indeed developing creative solutions to global problems, or indeed if I deserved the accolade as an “LGBT rights activist,” given that so many friends and people I admire work tirelessly and courageously in NGOs in Taiwan and beyond for marriage equality, transgender rights, decriminalization or HIV prevention.    [FULL  STORY]