Pedro Julio Serrano
Encyclopedia
Pedro Julio Serrano is a human rights activist and President of Puerto Rico Para Tod@s, a non-profit organization that strives for inclusion of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT
) individuals and for social justice for all in Puerto Rico since 2003.
, part of the metropolitan area of San Juan, Puerto Rico
, where he attended primary and secondary school at the Colegio La Piedad. He then studied Communications at the University of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras Campus
.
Serrano has received numerous awards for his fight against social injustice and for the rights of LGBT communities of Puerto Rico and the United States. At his high school graduation in 1992, he won the "Sister Sheila O'Brien Award", the highest honor given at his school, for his outstanding contribution to the community. He also received the Leadership Award from the Rotary Club of Isla Verde.
Serrano made history in 1998 by announcing his desire to run for the House of Representatives of Puerto Rico
as the first openly-gay candidate ever.
lists, and more than 20,000 cyber members receive daily news regarding the struggle for social justice in Puerto Rico and the world. Later, he served as Director of Policy and Media for the Fundación de Derechos Humanos (Human Rights Foundation) in Puerto Rico and then served as Director of Communications of LLEGO, the National Organization for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Latinos in the United States, which was based in Washington, DC. In 2005, Serrano moved to New York
where he worked as Program Coordinator for Voices for Equal Freedom to Marry, an organization that fights for equality in marriage for gays and lesbians. He currently works in New York City
as Communications Manager for the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force
, one of the LGBT movement's leading organization in the United States.
Serrano has been a member of the Commission for Combating Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Discrimination of the Puerto Rican Bar Association and a member of the Advisory Board of the Puerto Rico Chapter of the ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union). He has also been a member of the Advisory Committee on Human Rights of the Civil Rights Commission of Puerto Rico and the Advisory Committee of the Puerto Rican Initiative to Develop Empowerment (PRIDE), an organization that advocates for the Puerto Rican LGBT community in New York City. He also served as co-chairman of the National Latino Coalition for Justice, which advocates for equality in marriage. These efforts culminated with the establishment of "Unid@s", the national Latino Human Rights LGBT organization for Latinas/os in the U.S. and Puerto Rico. Serrano has served as co-chair of Unid@s.
In 2000, for his advocacy of the LGBT community, Serrano received the Solidarity Award as Male Activist of the Year for Christ the Healer Church. In 2003 he was recognized as one of the 10 most prominent LGBT activists of the year in Puerto Rico by orgulloboricua.net. Furthermore, in 2004 he was recognized by the Environmental Magazine as one of the 10 most prominent LGBT activists in the LGBT Latino community that year. In 2005 he was recognized as one of the 5 most prominent LGBT activists in the anniversary issue of the journal Tentaciones. In 2007 he was awarded the PRIDE Award from the PRIDE organization in New York City. In 2009 he received the Bronze Star, Silver Star and Bravo Award (highest award) by Radio Pride Connection by request of the public during the Pride Weekend in Boquerón, Puerto Rico
. He also served as the grand marshal of the 7th LGBT Pride Parade West held in Boquerón. Moreover, in the same year he was chosen by MiApogeo.com as one of the 25 most influential Latino LGBT people.
Serrano maintains a blog, The Blog of PJ, which is published on his website PedroJulioSerrano.com and in several newspapers such as El Vocero, Diálogo, Biler GConcierge Magazine and The Project. Currently, Serrano lives in New York City with his boyfriend Steven A. Toledo and their dog Coquí
.
LGBT
LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...
) individuals and for social justice for all in Puerto Rico since 2003.
Biography
Serrano grew up in Isla VerdeIsla Verde, Puerto Rico
Isla Verde is a District of Carolina located east of Santurce next to the Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport above the Teodoro Moscoso Bridge...
, part of the metropolitan area of San Juan, Puerto Rico
San Juan, Puerto Rico
San Juan , officially Municipio de la Ciudad Capital San Juan Bautista , is the capital and most populous municipality in Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 395,326 making it the 46th-largest city under the jurisdiction of...
, where he attended primary and secondary school at the Colegio La Piedad. He then studied Communications at the University of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras Campus
University of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras Campus
The University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras , also referred to as UPR-RP, is a public research university located on a campus in Río Piedras, San Juan, Puerto Rico...
.
Serrano has received numerous awards for his fight against social injustice and for the rights of LGBT communities of Puerto Rico and the United States. At his high school graduation in 1992, he won the "Sister Sheila O'Brien Award", the highest honor given at his school, for his outstanding contribution to the community. He also received the Leadership Award from the Rotary Club of Isla Verde.
Serrano made history in 1998 by announcing his desire to run for the House of Representatives of Puerto Rico
House of Representatives of Puerto Rico
The House of Representatives of Puerto Rico is the lower house of the Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico, the territorial legislature of Puerto Rico...
as the first openly-gay candidate ever.
"Puerto Rico para Tod@s" - present
Since 2003, as president of Puerto Rico para Tod@s, Serrano maintains several emailEmail
Electronic mail, commonly known as email or e-mail, is a method of exchanging digital messages from an author to one or more recipients. Modern email operates across the Internet or other computer networks. Some early email systems required that the author and the recipient both be online at the...
lists, and more than 20,000 cyber members receive daily news regarding the struggle for social justice in Puerto Rico and the world. Later, he served as Director of Policy and Media for the Fundación de Derechos Humanos (Human Rights Foundation) in Puerto Rico and then served as Director of Communications of LLEGO, the National Organization for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Latinos in the United States, which was based in Washington, DC. In 2005, Serrano moved to New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
where he worked as Program Coordinator for Voices for Equal Freedom to Marry, an organization that fights for equality in marriage for gays and lesbians. He currently works in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
as Communications Manager for the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force
National Gay and Lesbian Task Force
The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force builds the political power of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community from the ground up. The Task Force is the country’s premier social justice organization fighting to improve the lives of LGBT people, and working to create positive, lasting...
, one of the LGBT movement's leading organization in the United States.
Serrano has been a member of the Commission for Combating Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Discrimination of the Puerto Rican Bar Association and a member of the Advisory Board of the Puerto Rico Chapter of the ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union). He has also been a member of the Advisory Committee on Human Rights of the Civil Rights Commission of Puerto Rico and the Advisory Committee of the Puerto Rican Initiative to Develop Empowerment (PRIDE), an organization that advocates for the Puerto Rican LGBT community in New York City. He also served as co-chairman of the National Latino Coalition for Justice, which advocates for equality in marriage. These efforts culminated with the establishment of "Unid@s", the national Latino Human Rights LGBT organization for Latinas/os in the U.S. and Puerto Rico. Serrano has served as co-chair of Unid@s.
In 2000, for his advocacy of the LGBT community, Serrano received the Solidarity Award as Male Activist of the Year for Christ the Healer Church. In 2003 he was recognized as one of the 10 most prominent LGBT activists of the year in Puerto Rico by orgulloboricua.net. Furthermore, in 2004 he was recognized by the Environmental Magazine as one of the 10 most prominent LGBT activists in the LGBT Latino community that year. In 2005 he was recognized as one of the 5 most prominent LGBT activists in the anniversary issue of the journal Tentaciones. In 2007 he was awarded the PRIDE Award from the PRIDE organization in New York City. In 2009 he received the Bronze Star, Silver Star and Bravo Award (highest award) by Radio Pride Connection by request of the public during the Pride Weekend in Boquerón, Puerto Rico
Boquerón, Puerto Rico
Boquerón is a beach village located in the town of Cabo Rojo, Puerto Rico. The village is one of the main tourist attractions in the southwestern part of the island. As of the United States 2000 Census, the barrio population was 4,963....
. He also served as the grand marshal of the 7th LGBT Pride Parade West held in Boquerón. Moreover, in the same year he was chosen by MiApogeo.com as one of the 25 most influential Latino LGBT people.
Serrano maintains a blog, The Blog of PJ, which is published on his website PedroJulioSerrano.com and in several newspapers such as El Vocero, Diálogo, Biler GConcierge Magazine and The Project. Currently, Serrano lives in New York City with his boyfriend Steven A. Toledo and their dog Coquí
Coquí
The Common Coquí or Coquí is a frog native to Puerto Rico belonging to the Eleutherodactylus genus of the Leptodactylidae family. The species is named for the loud sound the males make at night. This sound serves two purposes...
.
External links
- Puerto Rico Para Tod@s
- Pedro Julio Serrano Official Website
- Pedro Julio Serrano - National Gay and Lesbian Task Force
- http://www.primerahora.com/noticia/politica/noticias/serrano:_uniones_de_hecho_no_brindan_la_igualdad_deseada/50252Serrano appearance before the Joint Committee for reform of the civil code. Primera HoraPrimera HoraPrimera Hora is a newspaper based in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico and distributed daily throughout the island.The newspaper is characterized by its light format and easy reading. Its tagline is "Easy to read".- History :...
] - Serrano's work in Puerto Rico. EDGE Boston
- http://www.primerahora.com/diario/noticia/politica/noticias/comunidad_gay_protesta_en_contra_del_proyecto_1725/345260Serrano's statement against "project 1725". Primera HoraPrimera HoraPrimera Hora is a newspaper based in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico and distributed daily throughout the island.The newspaper is characterized by its light format and easy reading. Its tagline is "Easy to read".- History :...
]