Out actor-singer Jussie Smollett
(Empire) will present the HRC Visibility Award to Queer
Eye's culture guy Karamo Brown at the Human Rights Campaign's
(HRC) 21st annual HRC Houston Gala on Saturday, April 7.
“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,” HRC President Chad Griffin said in a statement. “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.”
Netflix announced in January that it
would produce a “reimagined” Queer Eye. Netflix premiered
the reality series featuring five openly gay stylists on Wednesday,
February 7. The streaming network earlier this month announced a
second season.
The 37-year-old Brown led hundreds of
HRC members and supporters in the #MarchForOurLives in the nation's
capital, where hundreds of thousands of people called on state and
federal lawmakers to enact stricter gun control measures.
The march was organized by survivors of
last month's mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in
Parkland, Florida, where 17 people died when a former student entered
the school and opened fire on February 14.
Brown graduated from Marjory Stoneman
Douglas in 1999. Aaron Feis, a football coach who died in the
shooting, was Brown's classmate.
(Related: Queer
Eye's
Karamo Brown lost a former classmate in Parkland shooting.)