04/07/23, Vol. 14 Issue 2

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Main photo by Divine Ikpe

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A CRITICAL DEVOTION TO GOD

I have a complex and colorful relationship with religion and spirituality. I was raised primarily by my father, who is an ardent Buddhist, but I grew up in Winder, Georgia, a Bible-thumping small town. Bible studies and church youth groups were a bedrock of the social scene among my peers, so I assimilated, even though I never felt the true faith my friends apparently felt. When I left Winder for college in Atlanta, I quickly let go of this Christian roleplaying and allowed myself to be comfortably atheist, drunkenly (and annoyingly) bitching about the imperialist control Christianity had over Western culture every chance I got.

Through the discovery of tarot (about which you can read more on page 14), I moved away from atheism to a New Age-y “God is love, I am the universe” form of spirituality, which was immensely influential in establishing a healthy sense of love inside myself and still in many ways makes up my current spiritual understanding and practice (although I am now far more skeptical and critical of the narcissism often endemic to the online spiritual community, but that’s a discussion for another editorial).

While I am not religious, the heart of my belief system aligns closest with two people in my life who are: one who is Christian and another who is Jewish. That is because, despite their beliefs being culturally different, they exemplify both humility in not only

believing in, but revering God, and bravery in, despite that reverence, still criticizing the religions they are a part of. I think the balance between humble devotion and critical examination is the sweet spot where faith thrives.

Devotion is a slippery slope to indoctrination when you do not regularly question what you believe and the others who believe it. Religious leaders and politicians take advantage of this fact to enable and encourage homophobia, transphobia, and misogyny. Christianity, being a religion based entirely in the belief that your salvation is guaranteed to you not by doing good deeds or abiding by your duty to others but by virtue of simple belief in Jesus, can enable the persistence of harmful behavior when you don’t want to look critically at the consequences of your actions. I recently read Melissa Chadburn’s “A Tiny Upward Shove,” in which (spoilers ahead) a mother loses custody of her daughter, who then has to live in a group home. Instead of going to the classes necessary to earn custody back, the mom turns to religion and abandons her daughter, as she has already been perfectly forgiven by Jesus for her transgressions in a way her daughter will never be able to. Her daughter becomes addicted to heroin and is murdered.

This is a real aspect of organized religion that alienates many, with good reason. But, as the people featured in this issue prove, that is not all that religion is. Finding a truth to revere and devote yourself to can be transformative, especially when you consciously create that space for yourself where you can bask in the love of whatever god you worship without the pressure to alter what is true about you.

“There is no such thing as not worshipping,” the late author David Foster Wallace said in his famous “This is Water” speech. “Everybody worships. The only choice we get is what to worship. And an outstanding reason for choosing some sort of God or spiritual-type thing to worship — be it J.C. or Allah, be it Yahweh or the Wiccan mother-goddess or the Four Noble Truths or some infrangible set of ethical principles — is that pretty much anything else you worship will eat you alive.”

It is no secret that organized religion has been historically hostile toward the LGBTQ community. While my intention with this issue is not to explicitly encourage religiosity or spirituality among the queer community, it is to encourage reflection on, like Wallace says, what it is you do worship and to celebrate the queer people fighting against the notion that religion has no place for us.

Katie Burkholder

PHOTO BY SHUTTERSTOCK.COM / TANYA ANTUSENOK

Read these stories and more online at thegavoice.com

Florida Lawmakers Pass Bill to Expand ‘Don’t Say Gay’ Law

On International Transgender Day of Visibility (March 31), hundreds of students from across Florida descended on the Capitol to protest the legislature’s fast-tracking of Gov. Ron DeSantis’ agenda of book banning and classroom censorship and assaults on academic and medical freedom.

Buses arrived from Central and South Florida in a collaboration between high school, college and university students called the Student Unity Coalition.

Organizers marched the coalition from Florida State University campus into the halls of the Capitol building just as the House of Representatives voted 77-35 in favor of House Bill 1069, which would expand the “Don’t Say Gay” law’s censorship provisions through 8th grade, ban parents from requiring the school system use their child’s correct pronouns, and escalating book bans, allowing one person from anywhere in the nation to challenge a book in a Florida school, prompting its immediate removal pending a lengthy review.

“The students who mobilized in the hundreds today sent a clear message about the Florida they want to grow up in,” said Equality Florida Senior Political Director Joe Saunders. “They want a Florida that values freedom — real freedom. Free states don’t ban books. Free states don’t censor LGBTQ people from society or strip parents of their right to ensure their child is respected in school. Students and families across Florida are fed up with this governor’s agenda that has put a target on the backs of LGBTQ people. Shame on DeSantis’ legislative cronies for peddling more anti-LGBTQ lies on the House floor today and ramming through an expansion of the censorship policies that have emptied bookshelves across the state and wreaked havoc on our schools. Shame on them for ignoring the voices outside demanding a state that respects all families and protects all students.”

The rampant right wing censorship has

exacerbated Florida’s exodus of educators, with vacant teacher positions ballooning to more than 8,000, and, according to a recent survey from the Williams Institute, has led a majority of LGBTQ parents in the state to consider leaving Florida altogether.

The “Don’t Say Gay” expansion bill’s Senate version, Senate Bill 1320, will move next to its final committee, Fiscal Policy.

Disney to Host LGBTQ Conference Amidst Anti-LGBTQ Legislation in Florida

Amid increasing anti-LGBTQ legislation being introduced and passed in Florida, Disney World has announced that it will be hosting a major LGBTQ conference.

The Out & Equal Workplace summit, the largest LGBTQ conference in the world, will be held at Walt Disney World in Orlando in September. The conference focuses on workplace equality, bringing together more

than 5,000 executives, ERG leaders and members, and HR and DEI professionals and experts every year. Disney, Apple, Bank of America, and Uber are among Out & Equal’s top partners.

“Over more than 20 years, Summit has grown to become the preferred place to network and share strategies that create inclusive workplaces, where everyone belongs and where LGBTQ employees can be out and thrive,” Out & Equal’s website reads. “Through our worldwide programs, strategic corporate partnerships, and soughtafter events, we help LGBTQ individuals realize their fullest, most authentic potential, while supporting organizations in creating cultures of belonging for all.”

Disney World has committed to hosting the conference this year and next, according to the  Miami Herald. Next year’s summit will coincide with the presential election campaign, in which Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is expected to challenge former President Donald Trump for the Republican nomination.

Disney to host LGBTQ conference amidst anti-LGBTQ legislation in Florida. PHOTO VIA FACEBOOK

Georgia Senate Bill 140 Endangers More Children Than it Claims to Protect

Georgia Senate Bill 140, signed by Republican Gov. Brian Kemp on March 23, 2023, bans most gender-affirming medical treatments for minors. The ban, effective July 1, includes gender-affirming surgeries and hormone replacement therapy, but does not include puberty blockers.

All gender-affirming care targeted in SB 140 is considered safe and effective and endorsed by the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Psychiatric Association, the American Psychological Association, and the American Medical Association. SB 140 is one of almost 500 anti-trans bills across the country, according to Trans Legislation Tracker.

SB 140 passed just 13 days after the suicide of Eden, a young trans woman whose parents hired government contractor Michael Pocalyko to pressure Eden to stop her transition and mend her relationship with her parents. For months, she was subjected to forced detransition attempts, her parents repeatedly confiscated her hormones, and she was told her desire to transition was wrong and unnatural.

Eden shared her final message on Twitter on March 12, the day before her family confirmed her death, writing, “I hope that the world gets better for us. I hope our people get old. I hope we get to see our kids grow up to fight for us. I hope for trans rights worldwide.”

“Governor Kemp should be ashamed of himself — taking lifesaving care away from vulnerable youth is a disgusting and indefensible act,” Human Rights Campaign State Legislative Director and Senior Counsel Cathryn Oakley said in a statement. “This law harms

transgender youth and terrorizes their families, but helps no one — there will just be young people left without medically necessary, ageappropriate care … and the entire transgender community in Georgia feeling like they are unwelcome in their own state.”

In opposition to the passage of SB 140, over 500 medical professionals signed an open letter to the Georgia General Assembly, including Dr. Izzy Lowell, a family medicine physician and the founder of QueerMed. Founded in 2017, QueerMed seeks “to provide care for transgender and nonbinary people across the Southeast,” Dr. Lowell told Georgia Voice.

QueerMed treats approximately 300 minors in the state of Georgia.

“Why all this to-do for a couple of hundred kids?” Dr. Lowell asked. She said some of her patients are already experiencing difficulty with refilling prescriptions. Publix Pharmacy refused to fill one of her patient’s prescriptions for hormones, even though there was no reason not to do so. SB 140 allows for minors already on hormone therapy to be grandfathered in before the law takes effect on July 1, 2023.

“It’s affecting families tremendously,” Dr. Lowell said. “In the last week, well the last few

months, but especially in the last week, I’ve gotten many calls, messages, and emails from distraught parents. Families are panicking. Teens themselves are terrified that they’ll be cut off from hormone therapy or won’t have access to it. It’s just complete panic.”

The importance of familial and societal support for trans people cannot be overstated. Studies show that support from parents and medical professionals results in “socially transitioned transgender children [having] notably lower rates of internalizing psychopathology than previously reported among children with [gender dysphoria] living as their natal sex.”

A 2022 survey conducted by The Trevor Project consisting of 34,000 participants found that nearly half of LGBTQ youth have seriously considered suicide. The survey says one in five trans and nonbinary youth have attempted suicide in the past year. Dr. Lowell expects tragedies like Eden’s as a result of SB 140.

“That doesn’t surprise me that someone would be pushed to that extreme,” she said. “That’s exactly what we’re talking about.”

Dr. Lowell told Georgia Voice that QueerMed has opened up to take new patients seeking hormone therapy until midnight on June 30 to ensure they can begin their transitions before SB 140 takes effect. To set up an appointment, they can visit queermed.com. No referral is required.

If you or someone you know is in crisis, visit thetrevorproject.org/get-help or call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-8255, text TALK to 741741, or visit suicidepreventionlifeline.org for more information.

Adalei Stevens

Dr. Izzy Lowell PHOTO VIA QUEERMED

The Hideaway and Kink Down South Celebrate Gear Night Anniversary

Katie Burkholder

On the second Wednesday of each month, Atlanta’s kink and leather community gathers at the Hideaway for Gear Night.

Founded and hosted by David Elsea and Paul Beauchamp, formerly known as Good Boy Productions, the event was started to fill a gap they felt had opened in the community after the pandemic and closure of the Eagle.

“Paul and I had been typical members of the community ... but then the pandemic happened, and the Eagle closed,” Elsea told Georgia Voice. “We were seeing left and right that we were losing so much of our community. One night, Paul and I were hanging out and bemoaning the state of things. We had just enough cocktails that we had this genius idea to do something ourselves. We weren’t seeing anything do what we loved most about the community in terms of events.”

They decided to host it at the Hideaway and expected an intimate happy hour of a few friends. Instead, over 100 people attended.

“It was really overwhelming in a great way,” Elsea said. “It was impressive to see that people really respond to this, they need this. They had been wanting something like this.”

That initial success only grew, and the event became a monthly mainstay for the community. Now, Gear Night is celebrating its first anniversary with a special event on April 12.

From 8pm to 10, kinksters, leather daddies, pups, doms, subs, and everyone in between will don their best leather gear, meet new friends, reunite with old ones, and dance the

night away with music from DJ Rob Reum. As on every Gear Night, everyone who orders a drink from the bar dressed in their gear (even if it’s as simple as a leather arm band) will receive a raffle ticket for a chance to win a prize. Elsea says the prizes will be amped up for the anniversary, but common prizes include a $25 bar tab at the Hideaway, items from Barking Leather, gift bags, and more. Professional photographers will also memorialize the night and capture everyone in their gear.

“We really take pride in it, it’s a good event to have,” Jay Malloy, Events Manager of the Hideaway, told Georgia Voice. “It’s a safe space, it’s a fun space.”

“For this anniversary event, we really just want to look back on how far both we have come as this Gear Night as well as how the community has grown and changed post-

pandemic since we’ve started doing these events, Elsea said. “We’re still here, Atlanta still has a leather gear kink scene.”

Along with celebrating the kink scene, the event also serves to attract new people to the community.

“Because it’s a neighborhood pub, there are a lot of people who will come to just take part and enjoy [who are not yet part of the community],” Malloy said. “If someone just wants to experience it but may be fearful of going to a leather bar can come to our bar and find it’s fun, fantastic, and wonderful.”

“It helps other people see, ‘Hey, this exists and there is this community here. Maybe I can do that, too,’” Elsea said.

The one-year mark also serves as an opportunity for Good Boy Productions

to rebrand to Kink Down South. Those looking for even more leather goodness can rejoice, as Kink Down South will also be hosting a weekend street fair akin to those found in major cities like Chicago and New York. Kink Down South Weekend will be held from June 2–4. The festival on June 3 will include an outdoor vendor market with demos, classes, discussion panels, educational resources, and sellers, all relating to the kink leather community. Beyond the festival, fetish theme parties will be held at several venues all weekend, including the Hideaway, the Heretic, and the Eagle.

For more information on Kink Down South Weekend, visit kinkdownsouth. com. Gear Night will be held on April 21 from 8pm to 10 at the Hideaway. Learn more about the Hideaway at facebook.com/ atlantahideaway.

David Elsea (left) and Paul Beauchamp. PHOTO BY COURTESY PHOTOS

Paul (left) and David

INCLUSION, AND THE LOVE OF GOD

Bishop O.C. Allen: ADVOCACY,

From working on public health policies to being a pastor to acting as a leader and an entrepreneur, Bishop O.C. Allen plays many roles in his life. But all projects he’s built have been linked by one common thread: advocacy.

Growing up in a highly conservative and religious household in Los Angeles, Allen interacted a lot with the tensions between religion and queerness. But in college, his studies in philosophy, religion and theology led him to work on reconciling his faith and his identity. Over time, he decided he had a big calling in his life and started looking for ways to help others.

Much of the work Allen does involves creating safe spaces for Black and queer people to feel comfortable being themselves. For many, the world can be unsafe; navigating coming out or learning to accept yourself, your faith, and your religion is not easy. People might feel like something is wrong — that they’re not created in God’s image, causing dysfunction, shame and stigma.

“I’ve seen the power of creating a safe space,” Allen told Georgia Voice, “the power of a bold space, and letting people know God loves them no matter what.”

Having served as the senior pastor at the Vision Church of Atlanta for 17 years, the crux of his inspiration for advocacy is allowing people to be who they are.

“When you bring light to a dark world,” Allen said, “it changes things.”

Seventeen years ago, the Vision Church was founded when one of Allen’s ministers was sick and he was with him at the hospital. They talked about reconciliation and love,

and the minister asked Allen, “Will I be okay? Did God love me?”

Allen thought he had reconciled his sexuality with his faith, but those questions still remained deeply rooted in religious trauma. As Allen tried to explain, the minister passed.

As Allen told the story, he reemphasized the importance of his work and the importance of increasing this message of love so people will eventually be able to love themselves and never question whether God loves them.

In collaboration with the church, Allen also founded and acts as the CEO of iElevate+ TV, a television network and conference centered around Black and queer content creators; and the Vision Community Foundation, which provides clothing and resources for homeless children, GED training, and other programs focusing on public health initiatives, such as women’s health, youth programs, HIV/ AIDS prevention initiatives, and training faith leaders on sexuality and health. On their platform, iElevate+ has films, docuseries, and podcasts about relationships, faith, HIV, and anything relevant to queer lives. The goal for Allen is to “show the totality of who we are,” because everyone has a story to tell.

“It’s our job to tell our story,” Allen said. “The world should see us, and if we want that to happen, the world needs to hear us.”

Through all of his ventures, one of the biggest challenges he faced was for Black LGBTQ content creators to understand the value and significance of their work. Many of them don’t often feel like they have the opportunity to put their content anywhere. Not a lot of LGBTQ content receives much awareness on the Internet, so creating a specific location where Black queer media is available and accessible is crucial.

“[The LGBTQ community] is bold in other ways because we’re trying to prove something,” Allen said, “but when you give permission to people to be bold in all areas of your life, it makes the world beautiful and makes their life beautiful.”

In 2015, Allen worked with former President Barack Obama after being appointed to the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV and AIDS (PACHA), working to help craft the national HVI strategy for the country, develop an HIV plan for the president and to influence national public policy.

Allen’s persistence and fight for social justice is inspired by seeing how people’s lives have changed.

“My motto is to live in truth, so you don’t have to die in a lie,” he said.

When asked about the advice he’d give to himself or to others 17 years ago, Allen said, “Better days are coming,” echoing a Biblical analogy that faith needs only to be the size of a

mustard seed. You don’t need a tree or a forest, just something enough to get you through.

“I want to help make [it] safe for people to love and safe to grow, but it doesn’t end there: that’s just the first step; the second thing is making sure people live a bold life, making no apologies for [their] vision and dream the things [they] want to accomplish,” he said.

Allen believes he’s living the dream, but this is just the start. There’s still more to come. Ultimately, he lives to embody Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

“I see and pray for what he prayed for: equality, love, justice, equity and compassion,” Allen said. “[I see a] more inclusive world and see myself as doing just my part; I believe we all have a part to play. If everyone does their part and move beyond their biases and themselves, we can create a beautiful world.”

Learn more about Vision Church of Atlanta at thevisionchurch.org and iElevate+ at visioncommunityfoundation.org/ielevate-tv.

Sophia Ling

Bishop O.C. Allen COURTESY PHOTO

Augusta Church Shares God’s Love with the LGBTQ Community

Katie Burkholder

A year before the Stonewall riots in New York, the world’s first church group for LGBTQ people was formed. The beginnings of what would become the Metropolitan Community Church (MCC) were humble: 12 people gathered in Rev. Troy Perry’s living room in California on October 6, 1968. The goal was to create a space for LGBTQ people like Rev. Perry who had been unwelcome in other denominations to worship and learn about God.

Since then, MCC has exploded into a global denomination with a presence in over 20 countries.

The events of 1968 — namely, the Civil Rights Movement and assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy — motivated MCC to be a church focused on social justice. That legacy continues here in Georgia at MCC of Our Redeemer (MCCOOR) in Augusta.

“In addition to [being] a place of worship and safe space, MCC has been, at its core, a social justice juggernaut,” MCCOOR’s senior pastor, Rev. Marc Trimm, told Georgia Voice. “Part of our heart to this day is to be involved locally in our government and our communities and striving for social justice wherever it’s needed. Unfortunately, we’re still fighting some of those battles that they were in 1968. That’s part of the heart of any MCC church, is that they’re involved locally to seek out social justice and be part of the solutions to see equality and love spread wherever we’re planted.”

With its foundation in 1987, MCCOOR has its roots in providing a safe space for the LGBTQ community during the height

of the AIDS crisis. Rev. Trimm joined the church in 2013 as the director of music and was immediately “inundated with hugs and love.” He has served as a pastor of MCCOOR since 2017.

Growing up in the church, Rev. Trimm knew from a young age that he wanted to be the best person he could be by living by the gospel. He also knew that he was gay.

“There was a constant conflict inside me about that, obviously,” he said. “… I had gone through conversion therapy. I went through that nightmare. It’s very detrimental. Conversion therapy is based in

nothing that I feel is ethical.”

As Rev. Trimm grew up and pursued his calling as a minster of the gospel, this conflict deepened as he heard how his colleagues would speak about people like him.

“It’s really a puzzlement to me from the standpoint of why people would read Scripture, take the Bible, read what Jesus taught, and think that the method of excluding people would drive people towards fellowship with God and harmony with each other,” he said. “… I didn’t believe [being gay] was sin, and I didn’t believe God hated us. But my peers did. They said, ‘Well we

hate the sin but love the sinner.’ But you’re driving the ‘sinner’ away through hate. It was so self-righteous.”

He prayed on the issue, asking God how he could pursue a calling of ministry while being himself. The answer he found is the core of MCC’s vision.

“The only thing I could ever come to was that God loved me, no matter what,” he said. “The scripture is clear with that. None of that changed [throughout the Bible], it only reinforced the message of Jesus. I knew that no matter who I was and what I’ve done or would do, that I would be loved by God.”

MCCOOR spreads the love of God to the local LGBTQ community with organizations like Augusta Pride and the Progressive Religious Coalition. Along with hosting Pride events during June, MCCOOR also teaches classes on the scriptures people commonly use against the LGBTQ community, does a service for National Coming Out Day, hosts a weekend once or twice a year dedicated to “our transgender friends,” and, above all else, preaches the message of God’s love.

“We present that affirming message of God’s love every service,” Rev. Trimm said. “… The first thing you’ll see coming in the [sanctuary] is our communion table, and on the front of our communion table it specifically says, ‘All are welcome, and all are celebrated.’ We’re all God’s children, who are we to push away someone who God would embrace? … When you release that compassion, that desire for peace, and that message of love, it truly draws all different walks of life to you.”

Learn more about MCC at mccchurch.org and MCCOOR at mccoor.com.

Main: MCC of Our Redeemer (MCCOOR) in Augusta. Inset: Rev. Marc Trimm at last year’s Pride service.

PHOTOS VIA FACEBOOK

Congregation Bet Haverim Fights for Celebration and Freedom

Katie Burkholder

A major Jewish holiday celebrating the Biblical escape from slavery by the Israelites in Egypt, Passover is underway, lasting until the evening of April 13. While Passover is a celebration of freedom among all Jewish communities, at Congregation Bet Haverim (CBH), Passover also serves as the context for its foundation by gay pioneers in 1985.

At a Passover Seder (a ritual meal retelling the Biblical story of liberation from slavery) at the height of the AIDS crisis, four gay men discussed the struggle they had experienced finding acceptance in Atlanta’s Jewish community. What started then as a small group of Jewish gay men and lesbians, a “house of friends” according to CBH President Lauren Levin, has grown today into a community of 350 families.

“We were founded by folks that I like to call halutzim, which means pioneers [in Hebrew],” CBH Rabbi Mike Rothbaum told Georgia Voice. “And they really were pioneers. If you’re in the South in the ’80s and you want to be openly gay and openly Jewish — or even not openly! — to step forward into that space, own your identity, and say, ‘I deserve a community where that is expected,’ is an act of self-inclusion and powerful act of self-affirmation.”

Since its inception, CBH has served as a space for LGBTQ Jews to find complete acceptance.

“I first got involved in CBH in the early ’90s,” Levin said. “I was a Jewish lesbian who

attended both The Temple and Congregation Ahavath Achim. At that time, neither congregation was welcoming to gays and lesbians. CBH was known to be welcoming to gays and lesbians, and I felt it was a place I could be both Jewish and gay.”

While CBH has long since voted to include straight people and families, the synagogue continues to specifically and consciously not only include, but celebrate the LGBTQ community. Along with a special Pride Seder held every June — adapted from the Passover Seder to chart the course from oppression to freedom for the LGBTQ community — at every service a “Prayer for the End of Hiding” is recited. While the prayer discusses the importance of LGBTQ Jews being accepted for who they are, it resonates with all members of the congregation.

“Everybody reads it, because it also talks about hiding being Jewish,” Rabbi Rothbaum said. “In a bigger society, the pressures to keep quiet and keep hidden who you are, if you’re not somebody who is visibly different — I can take off my yarmulke, a Black person can’t take off their skin — there’s a different kind of mental gymnastics that a person that

can hide goes through. How much do I want people to know I’m Jewish?”

In the years since the election of former President Donald Trump, the urge for Jews — especially LGBTQ Jews — to remain hidden has escalated as danger rises for them. According to a report from the AntiDefamation League, antisemitic incidents rose by 36 percent, the highest level recorded since even before the inception of CBH in 1979. This included a rise in assault (26 percent), harassment (29 percent), and vandalism (52 percent). In response to this increased risk of danger, CBH has increased security with the help of a federal grant.

“When I was in rabbinical school, the idea that we would keep our front door locked would be anathema to me,” Rabbi Rothbaum said. “It’s obvious now we have to. When we have services, we have Dekalb County police officers stationed at the front of our building. A lot of our people are ambivalent about that based on the experience of law enforcement with people of color in particular. On the other hand, there are people who want to hurt us, both as a Jewish community and as a gay community. We know the presence of an

officer out front would be a deterrent … We are really grateful that there are ways [with the federal grant] that we can put shatterresistant film on the glass in case somebody shoots or throws something through the window. We’re grateful for help with alarm systems and perimeter movement detectors.”

This rise in antisemitism aligning with rises in anti-LGBTQ and anti-trans legislation, as well as an increase in hate crimes in general (the majority of which are antiBlack), is not a coincidence, according to Rabbi Rothbaum, who says the path to liberation is dependent on solidarity among all of us. That’s why CBH aims not only to be celebratory of LGBTQ Jews, but also of Black Jews, other intersectional Jews, and even non-Jews; members of Jewish families who aren’t Jewish themselves are welcome and able to serve on committees and the board, and regardless of how or what they theologically believe (even if they don’t believe in God at all), all members of the Jewish community are welcome.

“What I think is really important for folks who are horrified by [the rise in hate] — and I hope most Americans are — is that we will get to liberation and celebration of who we are when we do that together,” Rabbi Rothbaum said. “The people who hate Jews also hate immigrants, also hate trans people, also hate Black people, also want to restrict the rights of women to control their own bodies. They favor guns and military and police over community, cooperation, and love. What I really hope for is a movement for queer liberation and Jewish safety happening in tandem with movements to liberate and celebrate all marginalized communities. When we get free together, that’s the best way to make sure it lasts.”

To learn more about CBH, visit congregationbethaverim.org.

Congregation Bet Haverim members. PHOTO VIA FACEBOOK

Amid rising antisemitism, the gayfounded synagogue is fostering a space of loving safety for all

TAROT AND THE GOD OF SELF

Quotes have been edited for clarity. Read the full article online at thegavoice.com.

If you were speaking to somebody who’s never heard of tarot, how would you describe what it is?

Katie Burkholder

When it comes to the world of magic and divination, there is no tool more popular and well-recognized than the tarot. The tarot is a deck of 78 cards separated into two groups. The minor arcana are made up of 56 cards, 14 of each suit: cups (water, emotion and intuition), pentacles (earth, the material world), swords (air, thoughts and intellect), and wands (fire, passion). The major arcana are 22 named and numbered cards representing the journey of the Magician, starting at 0 (the Fool) and ending at 21 (the World).

The tarot is intended to represent the universal cycles of the human experience and is used by readers to help them navigate those cycles and their own Magician’s journey. For many young queer people, tarot offers the opportunity to foster a sense of spirituality and an unconditionally loving connection with themselves that traditional religion often gatekeeps from them.

That is the case with Elle Cornell and Rachel Isaza. Both are young queer femmes, people of color, artists and makers, and tarot readers. I sat down with Elle and Rachel to discuss their relationships with tarot and how it’s helping them carve out a space for them not only to unapologetically be themselves, but also to find the divine power existing within them.

E: Tarot is a mirror. It reflects what you put into it, it reflects what you ask of it. It’s a tool for you to guide yourself or ask different questions or just gain a deeper understanding through the symbols, through the spread, through the intention you put into it, through the setup, all of it. I pull some cards, whether that be for a question, an affirmation, or some insight, and I look at the symbols, pictures, people, colors. I really try to use what I’m feeling to pull more from the card.

R: You can use it as a tool to communicate with one another. It’s a portal to a vulnerable space. I definitely describe it as an introspective state, and that’s also how I describe astrology.

I’ve always believed tarot to be a source of personal empowerment based in this belief that we are our own gods in charge of creating our own narratives and reality. Can you talk about the empowerment of tarot?

R: It’s just nice to pull out the wisdom that I already have within me. It’s very relatable in the way that it just makes me feel seen. There’s a lot of deep-seated things that I’m constantly being thrown around by, so to get some light in the fog means a lot.

E: I’ve been uncovering a lot within my ancestry ... I do feel like I venerate my ancestors when I call on tarot, especially when I’m calling on the ancestors that want

the best for me and my highest self. [Tarot] is about going back to the wisdom that has existed far beyond what exists now, what’s been conditioned for centuries.

Organized religion has been a source of hostility toward both the queer community and women/femme-presenting people. Can you talk about your faith backgrounds and how tarot provides a space of self-acceptance as queer femmes?

R: It pulled me out of the agnostic state because I was raised Christian. I have a lot of practice with being spiritual and believing and having that hope. Instead of ignoring that side of me, it’s nice to have it channeled. I feel like I am very loyal and disciplined and I do believe in things I can’t see. Being able to anchor that has been really helpful.

It just gave me a personal space to be myself. I gave that to myself ... [That space] has always been there, and now it’s available in a way that’s not clouded by fear and conditioning.

Being able to have that solace is something that the Christian faith didn’t have a lot of. Having [tarot] resonate on so many levels with me is something that I was always looking for with God, who I never thought was relatable because it was just a white man.

E: I grew up Catholic, and I didn’t connect with it as much as I wanted to. Tarot helped [teach me that] everything will be what it is, everything will work out. That’s how I want to live my life ... The only constant is change and chaos.

R: Going back to that original power of all these archetypes that have been recorded for so long that are still being felt to this day just gives a lot of power to emotions. The hardest thing about being queer and POC is actually being allowed to feel the emotions because it’s so much easier to ignore it at this point. It can give a liberating feeling to life as opposed to feeling like everything is out to get you and always will be.

Elle Cornell (left) and Rachel Isaza. PHOTO BY DIVINE IKPE

How the divination tool is empowering queer femmes to find faith from within

Tennessee’s Drag Ban is Far More Dangerous than Anything I Ever Faced in the 1970s

Here’s why…

Mr. Charlie Brown

Read the full column online at thegavoice.com.

Way back in 1971 at start of my drag career at the Watch Your Hat and Coat Saloon in Nashville, we had to enter and leave the club on Second Avenue with our drag concealed in a garbage bag. We were equally careful to enter the club as men in our street clothes and to scrub our faces free of makeup before leaving each night.

Otherwise, you could encounter a redneck looking for an excuse to beat up a faggot in a dress.

Now, over 50 years later, reading the news coverage of the drag ban that goes into effect April 1 in my home state of Tennessee, I feel sick to my stomach. The hate-filled redneck bullies are no longer lurking in the alley waiting to beat us up after work. In 2023, they’ve been elected to the Tennessee state legislature. They work at the state capitol. They reside in the governor’s mansion.

And I’m here to tell you as someone who performed in drag on stage 50 years ago in Nashville at the Watch Your Hat and Coat and later, at The Cabaret in Printer’s Alley and The Carousel in Knoxville, Tennessee’s new law is far more dangerous than anything we ever faced back in the 1970s. I say that as a drag queen who was on stage in 1973 when someone intentionally set fire to the Watch Your Hat and Coat and burned that packed club to the ground.

Under this new Tennessee law, drag performers could face six months in jail on a misdemeanor charge for a first offense. The second time, it’s a

felony punishable by up to six years in prison. So, if you ride on a float in a pride parade or read a storybook to children in a public library, you’re risking arrest and jail — for entertaining people. (Editor’s note: On March 31, hours before the new law was set to begin, a federal judge temporarily halted the ban, citing concerns about the constitutionality of the new law).

In contrast, aside from requiring all performers to get an entertainer’s license from the City of Nashville and making us put a Mr. in front of our stage names so our audiences knew we were men in dresses, the cops didn’t really mess with us back in the 1970s. In fact, they used to sit in the audience. Hell, the mayor of Nashville himself, Beverly Briley would bring guests to our shows.

Now at age 73, as someone who has

performed in drag all over the world, it tears me up to see things slide backwards. I’m currently working on my memoirs, so I’ve been doing a lot of reflecting lately. Back in the early 1980s, Atlanta hosted Much Ado About Midtown, which was a family-friendly weekend-long street party. And Illusions, the drag show bar on Peachtree Street where I worked at the time, was ground zero for the festivities.

All weekend long, we entertained families at special afternoon drag shows. The material was completely clean and family friendly. I went out and performed Dolly Parton’s “9 to 5” and the kids loved it. Seeing the expressions of amazement and joy on their faces made getting into a wig and a dress while the sun was up all worth it. I have no idea if they knew we were men in dresses or

if they thought we were Disney princesses. All I know is they laughed, clapped and had a good time.

Like our drag sisters in Tennessee, we’re now strategizing here in Georgia as well. I’ve told my entertainers at the Atlanta Eagle to start saving their money. Why? Because these hate-filled culture war bills are spreading like wildfire in state legislatures across the country. And just like Tennessee Governor Bill Lee immediately signing the new drag ban, Georgia Governor Brian Kemp couldn’t get the cap off his pen fast enough to sign Georgia’s new ban on gender-affirming care for transgender kids under 18. I told my girls last weekend at our Saturday night show at the Eagle, it’s coming. Be prepared. It’s only a matter of time before Georgia follows Tennessee’s lead on criminalizing drag entertainers and attempting to deny us an opportunity to make a living doing what we love — making people happy.

As the grandson of a Tennessee Missionary Baptist preacher, I would ask the legislators passing these hate-filled laws in my home state to consider the following: In March, a Memphis youth pastor was sentenced to 45 years in federal prison for exploiting children. In Chattanooga, a youth pastor and former PTA president has been charged with three counts of child molestation. Meanwhile, a youth pastor in Knoxville was arrested for sexual battery and is now listed on the Tennessee Sex Offender Registry. And in Nashville, a person with a small arsenal of weapons just shot their way into a Christian school and killed three nine-year-olds sitting in their classrooms.

Drag queens are the least of your problems.

Editor’s note: This op-ed was republished with permission from Eldredge ATL.

Charlie Brown with Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens receiving the city’s Phoenix Award at the mayor’s Pride reception on Oct. 4, 2022 at Atlanta City Hall. COURTESY PHOTO

THE LGBTQ COMMUNITY IN Muslim-Majority Countries

In December, the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar brought to light a subject that periodically gains international media attention: the laws regarding homosexuality in Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) countries. In the case of Qatar, what began as public outcry against the Qatari government advising against rainbow flags at soccer matches turned into public protest from soccer teams. Teams from across Europe, such as Belgium, Germany, and England, either planned or attempted to wear OneLove Armbands in protest of Qatar’s stringent laws against homosexuality.

The media attention on Qatar has brought on larger conversations about the treatment of LGBTQ people in the MENA region. Beyoncé received backlash after performing in Dubai, which has anti-LGBTQ laws similar to Qatar’s, and the story of the death of Eden Knight, a young trans person living in Saudi Arabia, gained global media attention.

But these laws are not universal across Muslim-majority countries. In early 2022, the Malaysian Federal Court ruled that a proposed law, which would have banned same-sex intercourse, was unconstitutional.

Even in the MENA region, these laws vary from country to country. In Jordan and Turkey, same-sex intercourse isn’t explicitly illegal, though there remains a stigma against it. In Egypt, Iraq, and Lebanon, the enforcement of morality or public indecency laws — which are most commonly used against same-sex couples — are irregularly practiced, offering LGBTQ individuals more

freedom than in countries such as Qatar or Saudi Arabia, though these individuals and couples are often forced to keep a low profile.

These conversations raise the questions: how did these laws come to be in some MENA countries and why are some Muslimmajority countries more accepting of their LGBTQ residents than others?

To gain more insight into this topic, Georgia Voice spoke to a professor of Islam and religious studies who has examined this topic in the past. The professor, who asked to remain anonymous due to potential backlash from community members or a travel ban from a Muslim country, has earned master’s and doctoral degrees in the subject of religious studies.*

This professor noted that, like every other region, the Middle East has always had gay people living there, adding that these laws have actually changed over time to become more strict. What changed to make so many countries criminalize being gay since the 20th century? The answer, according to the professor, is colonialism.

Many countries in the MENA region were either directly colonized — such as Iraq, Algeria, Morocco, Syria, Jordan, and more — or indirectly faced threats and an unwelcome influence from Western countries, having elections meddled with or subjected to military presence from Western countries.

This colonialism, direct or indirect, made many countries lose parts of their culture or fear that they would lose part of their culture, the professor said. Thus, in an effort to remain different from Western countries,

many picked what the professor described as “fault lines” to distinguish themselves from Western countries and cultures. One of the fault lines, which the professor described as “arbitrarily picked,” was homosexuality.

In some countries that were colonized or experienced unwelcome Western influence or presence, topics such as secularization, the legalization of marriage equality, or even certain tenets of feminism were viewed as “Western ideals,” and to support these causes was to support the colonizers.

In these countries, the professor says there’s “a crisis of being culturally colonized.” Therefore, these “fault lines” that they earlier described also became markers of being “good” or “pure” Muslim countries.

Additionally, in countries that were directly colonized — like Pakistan, where homosexuality is criminalized — the original penal codes that made being gay illegal were written by the colonizing country.

Another factor that leads to these highly restrictive laws is how theocratic a country’s government is; in other words, how much a country includes the doctrines of Islam into its constitution and laws. Saudi Arabia and Iran include Islamic religious law in their

constitutions, with Iran functioning as an “Islamic Republic” since 1979 and Saudi Arabia adhering to Salafi Islam, one of the more conservative branches of the religion. In other countries like Qatar, the strong cultural ties to Islam lend to these laws.

Still, the professor says that the arbitrary nature of anti-gay laws is quite clear in countries such as the United Arab Emirates, where homosexuality is illegal in the constitution but the consumption of alcohol is not.

The professor added that this is not just an issue in majority-Muslim countries, but in many countries where the doctrines of an Abrahamic faith (Judaism, Christianity, and Islam) are included in the constitution or the culture.

So, what does the future of gay rights look like in some of the aforementioned countries? The professor says that they can’t predict the future, but that time may bring change, though they don’t know how quickly or slowly it may come.

“The Muslim community needs to come to their own understanding and acceptance of homosexuality,” the professor said.

*Editor’s note: credentials were confirmed by Georgia Voice.

Sukainah Abid-Kons

PHOTO BY SHUTTERSTOCK.COM / AJR_PHOTO

Modernism, Lesbianism, Paris, and Transit Points Between

María Helena Dolan

Read the full column online at thegavoice.com.

England was consciously refusing the 20th Century … Paris was where the 20th Century was — Gertrude Stein

There are many definitions of Modernism, but for the moment we can think of Modernism as an artistic and social movement that reacted to the constraints of the old: backward looking, holding onto tight class and artistic structures and concrete gender roles, spawned and enforced in particular by English and American strict heteropatriarchal culture.

The new culture embraced freedoms that sought the liberation of the arts and people’s lives, especially sexual norms. Especially for women.

Today, Modernism’s heroes are lionized, outsized figures — well, men — such as Picasso, Ezra Pound, Henri Matisse, and James Joyce. Important figures all, and all with Parisian lives and connections during the years from the turn of the 20th Century to World War II.

But while things may have gone Modern, the same viewpoints and chains proved stubbornly resistant to expurgation. So it is hardly surprising that today there are unrecognized and generally unappreciated lesbian/gender nonconforming women’s contributions to Modernism. But these women were upending artistic and cultural norms. We need to recognize that the transformative hand here was not so male.

In Paris, women breathed fresh air, created, squabbled, took lovers, and upended

expectations. They consciously sought to shed the iron encumbrances of fathers, husbands, brothers, children. And they founded and refined new lives.

The married, expat American writer Katherine Anne Porter also lived in Paris during this time and was possibly envious of the freedoms of the “Amazons,” as they were known.

I have written before about Ada Smith, better known as “Bricktop,” the Black impresario with clubs in the Montmartre district. I wish to introduce some of the “Women of the Left Bank.” They were largely European, American, and white, but their contributions need recognition, and I propose some reckonings.

I propose to depose some of the Amazons: Natalie Clifford Barney, of course. She was

the first. She arrived in Paris in 1902, the 22-year-old “wild girl from Cincinnati.” She ran a salon for “Amazones et Sirènes” for 60 years, and loved untold hundreds upon hundreds.

And Colette, the writer who caused riots with her performances. In 1907, she and her lover, Mathilde de Morny (who insisted on “Monsieur le Marquis”) appeared at the Moulin Rouge to a black tie crowd. Such rioting broke out over the scandalousness of the show that the police were summoned to break it up.

Naturally, Janet Flanner and her column, “Letter from Paris” that ran for five decades in The New Yorker. Those who stayed after the 1929 market crash. There are some great love stories, as well as art, that come from this time.

Trans Actor Tyler DiChiara Feels at Home in ‘Gotham Knights’ TV Series

Tyler DiChiara was working his nine-to-five job, auditioning for acting gigs on the side, when he got word from his agent about a potential new gig. When he saw it was a DC project, it caught his attention.

“I don’t care what my character is, I want to do this,” he remembers saying to himself. The project was TV’s new series, “Gotham Knights,” and when he read the character description, he connected on a deep level with Cullen Row, who is — like DiChiara — transgender.

In the series, which was filmed in and around Atlanta, Bruce Wayne has been murdered, and his adopted son Hunter bands together with the children of Batman’s enemies, including Cullen (DiChiara) and his twin sister Harper (Fallon Smythe).

DiChiara was familiar with Batman in his various incarnations and feels in this multiverse “you’re a whole new world away from the normal villains you see in Gotham.”

He loved the idea of a Batman struggling.

“He is just a man who is taking on too much after figuring out who his parent’s murderer was,” DiChiara said. “He takes on such a bigger role than figuring out the murder. He takes on being Gotham City’s protector and I think he needs help, someone to lean on and a family to back him up. [The series] is diving down the Bat family a bit more.”

Cullen is definitely an underestimated character. In the comic books, he was largely a victim.

“He got his butt whooped all the time and was largely a background actor, never really part of the action,” DiChiara said.

In “Gotham Knights,” that all changes, though.

“The writers on the team did a great job of creating a character that is the same but much stronger onscreen,” he said. “Why wouldn’t I be fighting back? My sister is doing all of this, and I want to be part of it. I don’t want her going in alone, especially dealing with our past situations. We do things together. The fact that they gave Cullen a voice and backbone and thick skin is beautiful to see.”

Cullen and his twin sister have grown up in the slums of Gotham and have had to battle an abusive parent. Now, they’re living on the streets.

“Fallon and I talked and agreed our characters were two years on the street and had to learn to protect and fend for ourselves,” DiChiara said. “Anyone in Gotham will do what they have to do to keep their lives. We’ve been by each other’s side and she has protected me and now Cullen feels he wants to protect [her] and him. His arc is I want to show his sis he can. She recognizes his strength and can take her motherly sister vibe down a bit.”

On the streets, Cullen and Harper band together with Duela (Olivia Rose Keegan), the daughter of the Joker, trying to make the most of their horrible situation.

“These are just kids trying to clear their

names, but we realize they can do more than just disappear, but can be there for Gotham,” DiChiara said. “We can do more. With what is going on in this world, I feel like the younger generation has a lot of cleaning up to do after the older generation. Batman has left such a big legacy to take on and [Hunter] knows he has a big shadow to fill in a sense. Knowing he has us to be there for him makes that job a little easier.”

DiChiara loved making the series here in Atlanta. It’s his highest-profile work ever.

“I loved every second of every day,” he said. “I am so blessed to be a part of this. My nerd butt lit up with excitement seeing [these sets].”

DiChiara has also been seen in the independent films, “Rush” and “No Ordinary Man,” as well as “The Virgin of Highland Park.”

The first person the actor ever saw on TV that he connected with was Laverne Cox on “Orange is the New Black.” He realized then who and what he was: “Laverne was a huge help in showing me I could be an actor,” he said.

His own transition was one done in stages. He told his mother he was bisexual, then told her he was a lesbian, and then eventually couldn’t hold it in and said he was a man. DiChiara knew she would be okay with it, but wanted to make sure she understood.

He’s now about six years into his transition and feels totally “at peace.” He feels representation in Hollywood is getting better, but is still far behind in a lot of ways.

Jim Farmer

Trans actor Tyler DiChiara PUBLICITY PHOTO

Jim Farmer

“SUMMER: THE DONNA SUMMER MUSICAL

APRIL 7-9, 8PM

AURORA THEATRE

“Summer: The Donna Summer Musical” is now onstage at Aurora Theatre. The electrifying Queen of Disco shot through the stars from gospel choir to dance floor diva. The five-time Grammy Award-winner is known for her mega-hits. What the world didn’t know was how Summer risked it all to break through barriers, becoming an era’s icon and the inspiration for every music diva who followed.

EASTER DRAG EGGTRAVAGANZA

APRIL 9, 1PM

ATLANTA EAGLE

Atlanta Eagle, Barking Leather, Oscar’s and Felix’s hosts Easter Drag – Eggtravaganza today, with the return of the Easter Bonnet contest. Charlie Brown and Brigitte Bidet host.

A VERY GOSPEL EASTER DRAG BRUNCH

APRIL 9, 2PM

ATL COMEDY THEATER UNDERGROUND

A Very GOSPEL Easter Drag Brunch features Atlanta’s best entertainers letting the holy spirit be their guides. Enjoy the show with a full brunch menu and $7 Mimosas and Bloody Mary’s.

PALS BINGO

APRIL 11, 7:30PM

LIPS ATLANTA

Hostesses Bubba D. Licious and Erica Lee and special guest performers will delight, amaze, and shock you as they call bingo, put on a show, and help raise money for Pets Are Loving Support (PALS). Tonight’s theme is “Rhinestones & Diamonds,” Dolly Bingo.

KARAOKE

APRIL 14

MY SISTER’S ROOM

Thad Steven hosts Karaoke every Wednesday night at My Sister’s Room, with no cover.

PFLAG SUPPORT GROUP

APRIL 16, 2:30PM

SPIRITUAL LIVING CENTER

The PFLAG support group for parents and families of LGBTQ children meets in person.

TRANS AND FRIENDS

APRIL 17, 7PM FOR YOUTH, 8PM FOR ADULTS

CHARIS BOOKS AND MORE

Trans and Friends is a youth-focused group for trans people, people questioning their own gender and aspiring allies, providing a facilitated space to discuss gender, relevant resources and activism around social issues.

THE INVISIBLE LIFE OF ADDIE LARUE

APRIL 19, 7PM

FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH DECATUR

Charis and the Georgia Center for the Book welcome V.E. Schwab and Roshani Chokshi for a celebration of “The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue.” In the vein of “The Time Traveler’s Wife” and “Life After Life,” “The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue” is New York Times bestselling author V. E. Schwab’s genre-defying tour de force. In France, 1714: in a moment of desperation, a young woman makes a Faustian bargain to live forever— and is cursed to be forgotten by everyone she meets. Thus begins the extraordinary life of Addie LaRue, and a dazzling adventure that will play out across centuries and continents, across history and art, as a young woman learns how far she will go to leave her mark on the world. hidden bookstore and he remembers her name. Schwab is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of more than a dozen books and Chokshi is the New York Times bestselling author of books for middle grade and young adult readers that draw on world mythology and folklore. She lives in Atlanta.

MOULIN ROUGE! THE MUSICAL

APRIL 19-30, 7:30PM

FOX THEATRE

Enter a world of splendor and romance, of eye-popping excess, of glitz, grandeur, and glory. A world where Bohemians and aristocrats rub elbows and revel in electrifying enchantment. Welcome to “Moulin Rouge! The Musical!.”  Baz Luhrmann’s revolutionary film comes to life onstage, remixed in a new musical mash-up extravaganza.

YOU(TH) BELONG… ON THE STAGE

APRIL 20, 430PM

OUT FRONT THEATRE COMPANY

The YOU(th) Belong...On the Stage Event invites everyone to share an evening of spoken word and creative expression, centering the voices and talents of our youth across Metro Atlanta.

EVENT SPOTLIGHT

MOULIN ROUGE! THE MUSICAL

FOX THEATRE

APRIL 19-30, 7:30PM

Enter a world of splendor and romance, of eye-popping excess, of glitz, grandeur, and glory. A world where Bohemians and aristocrats rub elbows and revel in electrifying enchantment. Welcome to “Moulin Rouge! The Musical!.” Baz Luhrmann’s revolutionary film

HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH

APRIL 20, 8PM

The Midtown Alliance is presenting an outdoor screening of the classic “Hedwig and the Angry Inch,” 8pm.

ATLANTA FILM FESTIVAL

APRIL 20-30

VARIOUS LOCATIONS

The Atlanta Film Festival, one of the largest film festivals in the city, opens tonight and runs through April 30th with LGBT titles such as “Passages” and “It’s Only Life After All.”

PRAYER FOR THE FRENCH REPUBLIC

APRIL 21-MAY 21, 7:30PM

ACTOR’S EXPRESS

Actor’s Express presents “Prayer for the French Republic,” written by Joshua Harmon. On the eve of the 2016 French presidential elections, a Parisian doctor fears for her family amid the rise of antisemitism in France. As she considers relocating to Israel, we flashback to her great-grandparents in 1945 anxiously awaiting the return of loved ones recently

liberated from the concentration camps. This uplifting family saga introduces us to five generations yearning for the safety of home.

LGBTQ BOOK CLUB

APRIL 22, 10AM

VIRTUAL

The LGBTQ+ Book Club, sponsored by Charis Books and More, is a group for LGBTQ+ folks and allies to read queerthemed books and books by queer authors. The goal is to have diverse thought-provoking discussions about queer identity, history and topical issues. All are welcome to join. This month’s book is “In the Watchful City” by S. Qiouyi LuRegister in advance for this meeting — https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/ register/tZUlfu6urD4vGddbR6YsX8qMOHHKGmi8vqJ

FOURTH FRIDAY WITH OUT GEORGIA BUSINESS ALLIANCE

APRIL 28, 6PM

OUT FRONT THEATRE COMPANY

Don’t miss Out Georgia Business Alliance’s 4th Friday event!

comes to life onstage, remixed in a new musical mash-up extravaganza. (Photo via Facebook)

LGBTQ NIGHTLIFE FORECAST APRIL 7-21

Katie Burkholder

QUEER BAIT

APRIL 7, 9PM

MARY’S

Gay pop videos with DJ Headmaster every Friday. $5.

DANCE: 90S AND 00S DANCE PARTY

APRIL 8, 10PM

THE BASEMENT

If you like nostalgia, sing-alongs, dancing your problems away, and making new friends, DANCE is the party for you! Tickets at basementatl.com.

EDDIE MARTINEZ

APRIL 8, 10PM

HERETIC

Tickets at hereticatlanta.com.

A VERY GOSPEL DRAG BRUNCH

APRIL 9, 2PM

ATL COMEDY THEATER UNDERGROUND

Celebrate Easter with champagne and good old-fashioned gospel. Performances by Drew Friday, Dotte Com, Orchid, Tucker Bleu, Tuna Fiasco, and Tyra Rex. Tickets at atlcomedytheater.com.

EASTER DRAG REVIEW

APRIL 9, 3PM

THE HIDEAWAY

Celebrate Easter Sunday with performances from Lacie Bruce, Tatiana Tuesday, Calico DeVille, and Angelica

DiPage, plus music from DJ Devon Rex. The fun continues with an Easter Egg Hunt and fun and games hosted by Ruby Redd and Myah Ross Monroe, and close the night out from 7pm to midnight with DJ Rob Reum. No cover.

TUESDAY NIGHT TRIVIA

APRIL 11, 9:30PM

THE HIDEAWAY

With host DeWayne Morgan. No cover.

WUSSY VISION: HAIRSPRAY

APRIL 12, 7PM

PLAZA THEATER

Wussy Mag hosts a screening of 2007’s “Hairspray.” Come dressed in costume for a chance to win a prize! Tickets at plazaatlanta.com.

MARYOKE

APRIL 12, 9PM

MARY’S

COUNTRY NIGHT

APRIL 13, 9PM

HERETIC

Enjoy country two-step, line dancing, and more at the Heretic every Thursday. Need to learn? Show up for the free dance lesson at 8pm!

QUEER BAIT

APRIL 14, 9PM

MARY’S Gay pop videos with DJ Headmaster every Friday. $5.

FLAVA: THROWBACK CLASSICS

APRIL 14, 10PM

THE BASEMENT

Join DJs Nick the Quick and Dusei Da Great for the best throwback hip-hop and R&B party in the city! Tickets at basementatl.com.

JOHN DIGWEED

APRIL 14, 11PM

DISTRICT ATLANTA

Tickets at bit.ly/DIGWEEDATL2023.

JOE WHITAKER CELEBRATION

APRIL 15, 2PM

HERETIC

EVENT SPOTLIGHT

THUNDERPUSS

FUTURE ATLANTA

APRIL 15, 11PM

OF LIFE

Celebrate the life of Joe Whitaker with a memorial followed by a tea dance on the Heretic’s patio from 3pm to 8pm, benefitting Lost-n-Found Youth. Music by James Anthony. Tickets at hereticatlanta.com.

THUNDERPUSS

APRIL 15, 11PM

FUTURE ATLANTA

The legendary duo THUNDERPUSS brings their signature sound to Atlanta. This is 24 years in the making. You don’t want to miss this chance to hear some of the best mixes on the planet. This event will be held in Underground Atlanta’s indoor event space near Future. Tickets at future-atlanta.com.

MUG CHECK!

APRIL 16, 9PM

MY SISTER’S ROOM

Newcomers to tenured talent take the stage every month at My Sister’s Room’s

open stage drag show.

TUESDAY NIGHT TRIVIA

APRIL 18, 9:30PM

THE HIDEAWAY

With host DeWayne Morgan. No cover.

MARYOKE

APRIL 19, 9PM

MARY’S

WARP ZONE PUP NIGHT

APRIL 19, 10PM

HERETIC

Every first and third Wednesday, the Heretic turns into the puppies’ favorite play pen, featuring DJ Tracy Levine. No cover.

COUNTRY NIGHT

APRIL 20, 9PM

HERETIC

Enjoy country two-step, line dancing,

and more at the Heretic every Thursday. Need to learn? Show up for the free dance lesson at 8pm!

QUEER BAIT

APRIL 21, 9PM

MARY’S

Gay pop videos with DJ Headmaster every Friday. $5.

HOT MESS DANCE POP PARTY

APRIL 21, 10PM

THE BASEMENT

For pop lovers, this is the only night out where you’ll hear an expertly curated mix of the biggest and latest dance and pop music. Tickets at basementatl.com.

BEDOUIN

APRIL 21, 11PM

DISTRICT ATLANTA

Tickets at bit.ly/BEDOUINATL2023.

The legendary duo THUNDERPUSS brings their signature sound to Atlanta. This is 24 years in the making. You don’t want to miss this chance to hear some of the best mixes on the planet. This event will be held in Underground Atlanta’s indoor event space near Future. Tickets at future-atlanta.com. (Photo via Facebook)

What Really Matters About the Nashville Shooter

Mark Segal, Philadelphia Gay News courtesy of NGMA

Read the full column online at thegavoice.com.

Like many of you, I’m struggling to grasp the realities of the Nashville school shooting on March 27. If you were watching cable news on Monday and were in shock when they announced yet another school shooting, you quickly learned that this time was in Nashville at a private Christian school called The Covenant School. We all held our breath waiting to hear what we expected to be horrible news. Then it came, the sickening news that there were three children killed along with three adult staff members.

School shootings are becoming so commonplace that many people don’t feel much when they happen. But we shouldn’t be immune. The loss of life, especially children, feels overwhelming, and while we shout about the issue and wish for change, it seems no one is listening.

As the day went on, we all wanted to know what kind of person would shoot up a grammar school. Soon it went viral on the internet that it was a trans woman, and as you might expect, online trolls blamed trans people for every school shooting that ever happened. The next day, headlines in many newspapers like the New York Post were ”Transgender Killer Targets Christian School,” or “Trans shooter taken down.”

Let’s be clear, if you’re attempting to make a profile of what type of person is responsible for school shootings, it’s really simple, and it’s not their sexuality or gender identity or the color of their skin. It’s their mental state and that they have access to a gun and, usually, numerous guns. Any other claimed “cause” is passing the buck and not wanting to have a real discussion on the issue.

Blaming trans people for the ills of school

shootings or the ills of our society is ridiculous and will not solve the issue. The only real common denominator in all school shootings seems to be something that our Congress does not want to address: mental health issues and access to guns.

In this country we regulate almost anything that can cause harm. Alcohol, prescription drugs, safe working conditions, water supply, hair salons, even passing a test to get a driver’s license. But with guns or assault weapons? We do nothing. Actually, let me be more specific. Politicians in bed with the NRA do nothing.

Yesterday there was an interview with a Nashville elected official who, when asked about guns, said, “Let’s not make this political.”

It is political. We will not get strong gun control until elected officials vote to restrict or better license guns. Unfortunately, Congress does not seem to hear the cries of the children. We can only hope that maybe this shooting will lead to a reality that change is needed, and at the top of that list are restricting assault weapons like the kind used by the shooter in Nashville this week. These are military grade weapons. I’m not comfortable with knowing that I might have a neighbor with an arsenal like that in their home.  And thanks to this congress, that actually is a possibility, not just in my neighborhood, but also in yours.

PHOTO BY SHUTTERSTOCK.COM / EKARIN