bossip.com

Last night the the 2012 GLAAD Media Awards kicked off in New York City with a gala event hosted by “Glee” stars Naya Rivera and Cory Monteith.

The first of three events — the other two will take place in Los Angeles on April 21 and San Francisco on June 2 — included a who’s who of the LGBT community and its allies like actress Dakota Fanning, hip-hop icon Russell Simmons, “Top Chef” star Padma Lakshmi, Olympic figure skater Johnny Weir, the Food Network’s Ted Allen, Wendy Williams, Jay Manuel and Isis King from “America’s Next Top Model” and more.

The purpose of GLAAD is to not only celebrate and recognize the best of the best in LGBT-inclusive journalism, film, music, television, and more, but to also  serve as a benchmark for the media industry, helping to improve representation and inspire more thoughtful depictions of the LGBT community throughout the year.

Many stars came out to celebrate, check it out right here…