Highly Favored Returns with Honorees Hailie Sahar and Elegance Bratton (Photos)

Hundreds of community members gathered under the stars at The Village at Ed Gould Plaza on Saturday night for the return of Highly Favored, the Center’s annual Black History Month celebration honoring Black queer culture and nightlife.

This year’s event—inspired by the enduring legacy of Jewel’s Catch One and its founder, the late Jewel Thais-Williams—transformed the Village courtyard into a dance floor, paying tribute to spaces where Black queer and trans Angelenos have found safety, built community, and shaped culture. DJ sets by Mez Monty and DeFacto X brought the night to life as guests arrived in their best ballroom- and streetwear-inspired style.

Our ancestors did not fight for applause. They fought for survival. They fought so that rooms like this could exist. So that centers like this could save lives.
Hailie Sahar, Highly Favored honoree

The celebration also featured JOY!, a gallery exhibition by Los Angeles-based artist Nikko LaMere, currently on view at the Center’s Advocate & Gochis Galleries, exploring Black queer identity and worldbuilding through the visual language of nightlife.

The evening also honored Pose star and advocate Hailie Sahar and the award-winning filmmaker Elegance Bratton for their work expanding and preserving cultural memory for Black queer and trans communities. In their acceptance speeches, the honorees spoke to both the legacy of those who forged the movement for Black LGBTQ+ liberation and the urgency of the current political moment.

“Our ancestors did not fight for applause. They fought for survival,” said Sahar. “They fought so that rooms like this could exist. So that centers like this could save lives. So that someone like me could stand here freely … This is the time to put aside differences, to lock arms across generations, across identities, across experiences, and stand together.”

They believe that if they shrink our spaces, they shrink our future. They are wrong.
Elegance Bratton, Highly Favored honoree

“When power fears its own decline, it lashes out,” said Bratton. “When it senses its grip slipping, it looks for someone to blame. They fear for their survival—so they decide to challenge ours. They believe that if they shrink our spaces, they shrink our future. They are wrong.”

At a time when LGBTQ+ communities nationwide continue to face coordinated legislative attacks, Highly Favored stood as a powerful reminder that gathering in joy is not escapism: It is resistance. Through art, music, and community, the event reaffirmed that Black queer nightlife remains a vital force in shaping culture and sustaining collective care.

Highly Favored 2026 is made possible by Official Sponsors ADP and United Airlines. Photos by Jess Lobo Gomes.