Rob Byrnes
Rob Byrnes is the president of the
East Midtown Partnership, which
is a business improvement district
encompassing all or parts of 47 blocks of
Midtown Manhattan.
Since 2002, Rob has led the organization’s
efforts to improve the quality of life in the
district and promote commercial activity.
Over the years, he has brought inclusionary
programming to East Midtown, including a
Lunar New Year event highlighting Asian culture
and, more recently, a month-long celebration of
WorldPride/Stonewall 50 in 2019.
That event included a block party with SUNY
Pride, displays of panels from the AIDS Memorial
Quilt at sites throughout the district, and
fundraising activities with The Trevor Project,
among other components.
Rob is a former co-chair and longtime member
of the board of directors of the NYC BID
Association. He is also the author of six novels,
TS Candii
TS Candii is an activist in the movement
for social justice for Black and Brown
transgender individuals in New York
City.
As a former sex worker, TS Candii uses
her first-hand experience with racial
and transgender profiling, as well as
employment and housing discrimination, to
expose the roots of transphobia and white
supremacy.
Last year, TS Candii founded Black Trans
Nation and Black Trans Nation NY, which
are organizations that seek to uplift Black
and Brown trans people and gender nonconforming
people by advocating for policy
changes and working to elect trans people to
public office.
including “When the Stars Come
Out,” which won a 2006 Lambda
Literary Award, and “Straight
Lies,” a 2009 Lambda Literary
Award finalist.
In 2016, Rob was inducted
into the Hall of Fame of the
Saints & Sinners Literary
Festival, for which he funds an
annual Emerging Writer Award,
and he serves on the steering
committee for The Publishing
Triangle, an association of LGBTQ
people in publishing.
A native of Rochester and graduate of
Union College in Schenectady, Rob previously
served as chief of staff to two New York State
assemblymembers and director of business
Services at the Madison Avenue BID. He
currently lives in Jersey City with Brady Allen,
his partner of 18 years.
TS Candii was instrumental in
generating support among state
lawmakers for the successful
movement to repeal a state law
known as a ban on “walking
while trans,” and she has been a
leader in the broader movement
to decriminalize sex work. She also
leads panel discussions on sex work,
safety, and other issues.
TS Candii has been active in the community
at critical junctures in LGBTQ activism in
recent years, including when she delivered a
fiery speech at the Stonewall Inn in June of
last year just hours after the Supreme Court
issued a ruling in the landmark Bostock v.
Clayton County case.
East
Midtown
Partnership
Black
Trans Nation
LLC
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