Oprah’s Favorite Gay Royal Returns to the US and Schedules a Stop in Saugatuck-Douglas

Oprah Winfrey’s favorite gay royal, India’s Prince Manvendra Singh Gohil, will be traveling to Douglas, Michigan on Sunday, August 17th to discuss his new public awareness campaign: “Free Gay India” during a royal brunch and Q & A session. The event, a royal brunch which takes place at The Kirby (294 W. Center Street in Douglas), will be hosted by Chicago human rights attorney, Jay Paul Deratany, an accomplished author, playwright, screenwriter, and movie producer who wrote the GLAAD-nominated play "Haram Iran” – based on the true story of the hanging of two Iranian teenagers who were alleged to be gay. “I have followed Prince Manvendra’s compelling story and the challenges he faced when he chose to come out about his sexual preferences in 2002,” says Deratany. “I’m honored to welcome him to The Kirby,” he adds. “I’m thrilled that he chose our community to discuss the important work he is doing with his Free Gay India campaign.” The Hindu Prince is the 39th heir to a 650 year old Indian dynasty, and is the only openly gay prince in the world. In 2006, Manvendra received the UNAIDS Civil Society Award from the United Nations, and has appeared twice on The Oprah Winfrey Show to share his story of struggle and how he ultimately found peace. After India recently re-criminalized homosexual acts, Prince Manvendra launched a global public awareness campaign (Free Gay India) to confront LGBT discrimination in his homeland and around the world. The royal brunch is $30 per person and takes place on Sunday, August 17th from 11 am to 2 pm at The Kirby (294 W. Center Street in Douglas), a historic mansion that Deratany recently purchased and renovated to create a boutique hotel and wine bar. Space for the brunch and presentation is limited and reservations are required by emailing Mindy Trafman, General Manager for The Kirby, at mindytrafman@gmail.com. For more information please visit www.FreeGayIndia.org, www.ektatransglobal.org and www.thekirbyhotel.com. Additional Background Information: Prince Manvendra Singh Gohil is an out and proud member of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender (LGBT) community and has been honored around the globe; most recently presented with the Humanitarian Award from the Gay Men’s Chorus of Los Angeles. He has also been a favored repeated guest on The Oprah Winfrey Show and was the recipient of the United Nations UNAIDS Civil Society Award. Prince Manvendra is launching a public awareness campaign, Free Gay India, on Indian Independence Day, which is Friday, August 15, 2014. The Crown Prince challenged a 650-year-old tradition to come out to his parents in 2002. They tried to change him with therapies and being taken to religious leaders. The Maharaja and Queen threatened to out him publically if he did not “become straight.” He succumbed to the thought that if they were going to out him as a threat, he might as well out himself. And that is exactly what he did on the front page of a local newspaper on March 14, 2006. At that point, he was disowned by his family, burned in effigy, and withstood calls to strip him of his title and make him an outcast. On July 2, 2009, a Delhi Court struck down a colonial British law that criminalized homosexual sex. But on December 11, 2013, the Indian Supreme Court set aside the 2009 ruling and reinstituted the 153 year old British law that allows arrests for “unnatural offences” and 10 years imprisonment. Manvendra has remarked: "Gay rights will be fought for in courts of law, but they will be won in the hearts and minds of the people." And in this spirit he is launching FREE GAY INDIA to educate the public and change the hearts and minds of the public, ultimately ending LGBT discrimination in India. Manvendra achieved global recognition with his HIV/AIDS organization of which he is the chair, the Lakshya Trust. Their mission is to work to improve the lives of Gay, Bisexual, Transgender/Hijra and Koti minority groups in India, with a main focus on cultural, social, spiritual, physical and mental health of all sexual minority groups. This organization now operates in three cities and has served more than 50,000 people. Please help the prince spread the word by tweeting and RT: Hashtag: #FreeGayIndia and please follow: @PrinceManvendra @TheKirbyHotel #FREEGAYINDIA @Oprah @OWNtv #WhereAreTheyNow Prince Manvendra in the News GAY MENS CHORUS OF LOS ANGELES SPEECH: www.youtube.com/watch?v=TuaCsymPcdQ FRONTIERS COVER STORY: www.frontiersla.com/exclusive-interviews/2014/05/15/meet-crown-prince-manvendra-the-worlds-only-out-royal PRINCE MANVENDRA MISSION FILM: www.youtube.com/watch?v=NYXrs81G_YE ON OPRAH: www.oprah.com/oprahshow/Royalty-on-The-Oprah-Show/3 HUFFINGTON POST: www.huffingtonpost.com/nish-gera/manvendra-singh-gohil-out-proud-and-princely-in-india_b_3132955.html DAILY BEAST: www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2011/05/21/indias-first-gay-prince-prince-manvendra-singh-gohil.html FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/manvendra.singh.gohil TWITTER: www.twitter.com/PrinceManvendra