Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Rainbow History Project Oral History Collection Description An account of the resource Eye-witness accounts of what we’ve seen and experienced provide a valuable resource to researchers and future generations to understand our past and how we arrived where we are today. Each interview in this collection has a narrator telling the story and a documenter guiding the process. Collected since the founding of the RHP, this collection is growing and is open to researchers. All interviews have been digitized and are described in the catalog; only some of them have transcripts available. None of the interviews stream online. To obtain access to an interview, you must request by contacting us directly, providing a brief description of your project and your research interests. Our email address is: info AT rainbowhistory DOT org One of our team will share the file from our Google Drive, and you can listen from home. Please be sure to have "Music Player for Google Drive" enabled on your machine to play the recording. www.driveplayer.com Table Of Contents A list of subunits of the resource. To see all interviews in the collection, click on "Items in the Rainbow History Project Oral History Collection" link below. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Rainbow History Project Various narrators per oral history Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview. <a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=2&amp;advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&amp;advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Cassandra+Ake">Cassandra Ake</a> Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed. <a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=3&amp;advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&amp;advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=David+Michael+Perez">David Michael Perez</a> Location The location of the interview. Washington, D.C. Transcription Any written text transcribed from a sound. No, not yet available. Original Format If the image is of an object, state the type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data .wav file Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Oral history interview with David Perez, 1983- Description An account of the resource Interview describes D.C. Latino Pride, Latino LGBT History Project, D.C. Latino Pride, D.C. Mayor's Office LGBT advisory council. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource <a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=40&amp;advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&amp;advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=04042015">04/04/2015</a> Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=47&amp;advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&amp;advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=This+interview+belongs+to+the+Rainbow+History+Project.+The+RHP+release+form+was+used+and+all+rights+belong+to+RHP.">This interview belongs to the Rainbow History Project. The RHP release form was used and all rights belong to RHP.</a> Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Coverage: 2000 to present. David M. Perez, 1983-present. Born in Torrance, Califonia to a tight-knit evangelical Christian family with roots in New Mexico, Mexico, and Detroit, David attended the evangelical Biola University to study Latin American studies, religion, and Spanish language. Although he began questioning his sexuality midway through college, it wasn’t until he moved to DC in 2005 to attend graduate school at Georgetown that he began making gay friends and entering more gay spaces. Though his friends never pushed him, he came out in 2006 to a largely supportive family and friends. He eventually felt less comfortable attending his home church in San Diego with his family and switched to the open and affirming St Thomas’ Episcopal Church in Dupont Circle, but his family knew that none of his core values, like the importance of volunteerism and family, had changed. He joined the building and grounds community for the church and began seeking out events that honored both his gay and his Latino identity. He had a hard time finding any details about DC Latino Pride, but eventually he found it at the HRC with a panel moderated by Jose Guttierez, founder of the Latino GLBT History Project, and Laura Esquivel, Political Director for the Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund. Laura told a story from her time in the first national Latino LGBT Organization, Llego, when it marched on Washington in 1987 accompanied by Cesar Chavez. She had also been involved in mobilizing farm workers, and she told Cesar that she was having a hard time choosing which cause to dedicate her energies to. And Cesar said, ‘you can do both.” This was a story that resonated strongly with David, who had often noted that events honoring LGBT or Latino leaders rarely had anyone representing both communities. He then got more involved in volunteering for Latino Pride and the Latino GLBT History Project, becoming its board chair in 2011 along with Vice President Esther Hidalgo, who founded Mujeres en el Movimiento. They found letters to pride from the 80s and 90s complaining about lack of inclusion, and David still saw problems with that today in the way groups of color were clumped together at the back of the parade and not announced properly. However, they found Pride to be generally responsive to their comments and grew Latino Pride programming. Events included the selection of a Royal Court to serve as media ambassadors, a bilingual interfaith service at MCC DC, an annual fundraising dance party at Town, and the Plactica panel. The group also facilitated increased participation from El Sol Radio station in Pride festivities, from marching in the Pride Parade to DJ’ing the dance party at Town, and holding radio spots to discuss HIV and trans issues. David has also focused his advocacy efforts at the local government level, and is passionate about language access, increasing support for victims of hate crimes, and serving on Mayor Gray’s GLBT advisory committee. On that committee, they discussed issues like public safety, health, housing and homelessness, trans inclusivity, and the effectiveness of competency training provided to DC government employees. David values working in coalition with other groups of color to ensure that they all have a seat at the table and are visibly honored whenever award nominations are possible, and intends to continue his involvement in the community for years to come.