Home | Lighthouse Foundation of Chicagoland

Join us on March 25 for free headshots, resume workshops, Black LGBTQ+-led panels, and more.

Since July 2019, Lighthouse Foundation has launched the nation’s first Black Queer Equity Index, paid over $300,000 dollars to Black Queer workers, and built community with 2,500 Chicagoans.

Lighthouse Foundation of Chicagoland is a Black Queer-led, multiracial social justice organization that advances justice for Black LGBTQ+ people across Chicagoland through empowerment, education, and entertainment.

2023 Workforce Development Conference

SATURDAY, MARCH 25
11:00 AM - 4:30 PM
HILTONS AT MCCORMICK PLACE

The Workforce Development Conference (WDC) will convene Black LGBTQ+ nonprofit staff and unemployed people from across Illinois for a keynote by an award-winning speaker, panel discussions with industry professionals, workshops geared towards subcommunities such as trans people and seniors, mock interviews, and more.

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Our Work

The Arts

The arts are an integral medium of self-care, healing, and justice, and so we infuse them throughout our work. Our signature art program is Voices of Light (VOL), a collective of musical performers that celebrate the Black LGBTQ+ talent, resilience, and joy.

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Spirituality

We understand spirituality broadly, as fostering emotional well-being and encouraging healthy communal practices. Our Black Queer Caucus meets monthly to design community programming.

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Racial Justice Organizing

Our flagship racial justice organizing program is the Black Queer Equity Index (BQEI), a participatory action project to improve how nonprofits treat Black LGBTQ+ board members and staff.

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Workforce Development

BQEI respondents emphasized the need for culturally responsive tools to foster Black LGBTQ+ mobility within the IL nonprofit sector, which employs over 600,000 people.

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