Havas Partners with Ali Forney Centre and New York Magazine to Highlight Issue of LGBTQIA+ Homelessness

Havas New York, the North America flagship agency for Havas Creative Group, has partnered with The Ali Forney Centre and New York Magazine on the ‘Issue within the Issue’ – a special advertising section devoted to shining a light on the struggles of the more than 8,300 LGBTQIA+ youth who find themselves abandoned and homeless. Shockingly, many LGBTQIA+ youth find themselves in heart breaking situations, which include sexual propositions, harassment, and countless other safety concerns compounded by them being cast out of their homes due to transphobia and homophobia. LGBTQIA+ identifying youths make up a staggering 40 percent of all homeless youth in New York City, and to underscore that number, forty percent of the advertising space in New York Magazine’s iconic “Reasons to Love New York” issue is dedicated to educating readers on this dilemma.

“Homophobia, transphobia, and lack of support and resources compound the challenges LGBTQIA+ youth face and make it hard to seek out social services designed to help unhoused people in our country,” says Alex Roque, president and executive director of The Ali Forney Centre. “We’re thrilled to partner with Havas New York and New York Magazine on this special project that will bring great awareness to our mission of eradicating homelessness.”

The Ali Forney Centre is the nation's largest non-profit organisation committed to saving the lives of LGBTQIA+ young people by protecting them from the harms of homelessness, empowering them with the tools needed to live independently, and providing a home for those who have been denied the love and support of their families. The ‘Issue within the Issue’ gives readers a glimpse into the lives of LGBTQ+ youth who found success through the Ali Forney Centre with a series of original essays, interviews, art, and poetry. 

“The Ali Forney Centre is such a crucial New York City institution, and we’re thrilled to work with them and Havas New York to feature this special advertising project that brings to light an important issue affecting LGBTQIA+ youth in our city in one our most iconic issues of the year,” says New York Magazine’s general manager Manny Getachew. 

With a publicly stated benefit of helping underserved youth, Havas New York, a Certified B Corp, is committed to balancing purpose, planet, and profit, and is proud to play an integral role in bringing this project to life. “Our goal is to make a meaningful difference in people’s lives and the ‘Issue within an Issue,’ one of the largest single-issue ad buys in recent years, is a great demonstration of advertising done with purpose,” says Dan Lucey, chief creative officer at Havas New York. “This is essentially a magazine within a magazine, and we hope this work inspires readers to help some of New York’s most vulnerable youth by supporting The Ali Forney Centre and by sharing these stories.”  

Oussama Zahr, a New York-based writer and creative consultant who served as the campaign’s editorial director, is honoured to be involved in the project, emphasising: “the concept for the 40% issue is clever and unique, and I’m excited to leverage the magic of magazine content to celebrate these incredibly brave young people, spotlight the Ali Forney Centre, and amplify LGBTQIA+ stories."

Timed to coincide with the anniversary of the tragic murder of Ali Forney, the gender-non-binary youth who inspired the formation of the eponymous organisation, the ‘Reasons to Love New York’ issue is available online and on newsstands on December 6th.

Each page within the ‘Issue within the Issue’ contains a tangible call to action and ways to donate to the cause. Those interested in donating to the Ali Forney Centre can also do so here.