04/08/22, Vol. 13 Issue 2

IMPORTANT FACTS FOR BIKTARVY®

This is only a brief summary of important information about BIKTARVY and does not replace talking to your healthcare provider about your condition and your treatment.

(bik-TAR-vee)

MOST IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT BIKTARVY

POSSIBLE SIDE EFFECTS OF BIKTARVY

BIKTARVY may cause serious side effects, including:

BIKTARVY may cause serious side effects, including:

 Worsening of hepatitis B (HBV) infection. Your healthcare

 Those in the “Most Important Information About BIKTARVY”

provider will test you for HBV. If you have both HIV-1 and HBV, your HBV may suddenly get worse if you stop taking BIKTARVY. Do not stop taking BIKTARVY without first talking to your healthcare provider, as they will need to check your health regularly for several months, and may give you HBV medicine.

section.

 Changes in your immune system. Your immune system may get

stronger and begin to fight infections that may have been hidden in your body. Tell your healthcare provider if you have any new symptoms after you start taking BIKTARVY.

 Kidney problems, including kidney failure. Your healthcare

ABOUT BIKTARVY BIKTARVY is a complete, 1-pill, once-a-day prescription medicine used to treat HIV-1 in adults and children who weigh at least 55 pounds. It can either be used in people who have never taken HIV-1 medicines before, or people who are replacing their current HIV-1 medicines and whose healthcare provider determines they meet certain requirements.

BIKTARVY does not cure HIV-1 or AIDS. HIV-1 is the virus that causes AIDS. Do NOT take BIKTARVY if you also take a medicine that contains:  dofetilide  rifampin  any other medicines to treat HIV-1

BEFORE TAKING BIKTARVY Tell your healthcare provider if you:  Have or have had any kidney or liver problems, including hepatitis

infection.  Have any other health problems.

provider should do blood and urine tests to check your kidneys. If you develop new or worse kidney problems, they may tell you to stop taking BIKTARVY.

 Too much lactic acid in your blood (lactic acidosis), which is a

serious but rare medical emergency that can lead to death. Tell your healthcare provider right away if you get these symptoms: weakness or being more tired than usual, unusual muscle pain, being short of breath or fast breathing, stomach pain with nausea and vomiting, cold or blue hands and feet, feel dizzy or lightheaded, or a fast or abnormal heartbeat.

 Severe liver problems, which in rare cases can lead to death. Tell your

healthcare provider right away if you get these symptoms: skin or the white part of your eyes turns yellow, dark “tea-colored” urine, lightcolored stools, loss of appetite for several days or longer, nausea, or stomach-area pain.

 The most common side effects of BIKTARVY in clinical studies were

diarrhea (6%), nausea (6%), and headache (5%).

These are not all the possible side effects of BIKTARVY. Tell your healthcare provider right away if you have any new symptoms while taking BIKTARVY.

 Are pregnant or plan to become pregnant. It is not known if

You are encouraged to report negative side effects of prescription drugs to the FDA. Visit www.FDA.gov/medwatch or call 1-800-FDA-1088.

BIKTARVY can harm your unborn baby. Tell your healthcare provider if you become pregnant while taking BIKTARVY.

Your healthcare provider will need to do tests to monitor your health before and during treatment with BIKTARVY.

 Are breastfeeding (nursing) or plan to breastfeed. Do not

breastfeed. HIV-1 can be passed to the baby in breast milk.

HOW TO TAKE BIKTARVY

Tell your healthcare provider about all the medicines you take:

Take BIKTARVY 1 time each day with or without food.

 Keep a list that includes all prescription and over-the-counter

GET MORE INFORMATION

medicines, antacids, laxatives, vitamins, and herbal supplements, and show it to your healthcare provider and pharmacist.  BIKTARVY and other medicines may affect each other. Ask your

healthcare provider and pharmacist about medicines that interact with BIKTARVY, and ask if it is safe to take BIKTARVY with all your other medicines.

 This is only a brief summary of important information about BIKTARVY.

Talk to your healthcare provider or pharmacist to learn more.

 Go to BIKTARVY.com or call 1-800-GILEAD-5  If you need help paying for your medicine, visit BIKTARVY.com for

program information.

BIKTARVY, the BIKTARVY Logo, GILEAD, the GILEAD Logo, GSI, and KEEP ASPIRING are trademarks of Gilead Sciences, Inc., or its related companies. Version date: February 2021 © 2022 Gilead Sciences, Inc. All rights reserved. US-BVYC-0085 02/22

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#1 PRESCRIBED

HIV TREATMENT * *Source: IQVIA NPA Weekly, 04/19/2019 through 05/28/2021.

DIMITRI LIVING WITH HIV SINCE 2018 REAL BIKTARVY PATIENT

KEEP ASPIRING. Because HIV doesn’t change who you are.

BIKTARVY® is a complete, 1-pill, once-a-day prescription medicine used to treat HIV-1 in certain adults. BIKTARVY does not cure HIV-1 or AIDS.

Ask your healthcare provider if BIKTARVY is right for you.

ONE SMALL PILL, ONCE A DAY Pill shown not actual size (15 mm x 8 mm) | Featured patient compensated by Gilead.

Please see Important Facts about BIKTARVY, including important warnings, on the previous page and visit BIKTARVY.com.

Scan to see Dimitri’s story.

3/30/22 10:06 AM

voice

georgia VOLUME 13• ISSUE 2 About the cover:

Cover photo by Anatasia Beverly Hills Cosmetics

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‘An Organization to Save My Life’ – Remembering Brothers Back 2 Back Craig Washington

Editorial Contributors: Sukainah Abid-Kons, Brammhi Balarajan, Melissa Carter, Jim Farmer, Emma O’Loughlin , Fletcher Varnson, Craig Washington

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All material in Georgia Voice is protected by federal copyright law and may not be reproduced without the written consent of Georgia Voice. The sexual orientation of advertisers, photographers, writers and cartoonists published herein is neither inferred nor implied. The appearance of names or pictorial representation does not necessarily indicate the sexual orientation of that person or persons. We also do not accept responsibility for claims made by advertisers.

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4 EDITORIAL APRIL 8, 2022

GUEST EDITORIAL

When AIDS descended, it almost seemed too intelligent and intentional for its form. It was as if it had a personality, that of a beast possessed by an insatiable thirst to disrupt and destroy life, merely masquerading as a disease. To appreciate the true valor of the men who belonged to Brothers Back 2 Back in early ’90s Atlanta, we should consider the regularity with which this beast ravaged bodies and tortured souls.

We must understand how, in the spirit so assuredly pledged by Essex Hemphill, a handful of committed men organized to save their own lives. As if the scourge of sickness and death were not enough, the stigma attached to being Black, gay and HIV-positive wrought an emotional trauma arguably unmatched by any other condition.

Brothers Back 2 Back is a historical example of how Black gay men in Atlanta answered the call of their day.

Brothers Back 2 Back member Billy Yarborough is the founder of Columbia Coffee Co, a popular men’s support organization in South Carolina. He remembers the choking effects of stigma and shame during the early years.

“Having AIDS meant that you were gay,” he said. “We were not just sick from HIV, we were sick from the secret.”

Founding member Eric Wilson tells of the scorn gay men endured in the very place from which they sought refuge: “The preachers would preach that this was God’s punishment and we were getting exactly what we deserved.”

Calvin Murray, who served as a board

member, recalled living under the shadow of HIV criminalization (which today remains in place in 33 states).

“I felt under attack by the government,” he said. “If you were positive, it was up to you to tell somebody, not up to them to ask”.

Reginald Martin was a twenty-something college student receiving treatment at Southside Health Clinic when he began recruiting other HIV-positive Black men to form a self-led group. Martin motivated members who had underestimated their ability to effect change. He was also known as a respected HIV educator who spoke at high schools and churches. He appeared on “Rolonda,” a highly rated TV talk show, to discuss his HIV status and the destructive effects of homophobia and denial..

Martin led the first meetings at Southside Clinic. Discussions were loosely facilitated, with an openness to welcome any sharing that needed to be heard. Topics were not preplanned; members brought up what they wanted to talk about. Spirituality, grief and loss, drug and sex addiction, and intimate relationships were frequently discussed. Several members affiliated with other organizations provided access and insider information, like which case managers to avoid or request.

Peer-generated intelligence was vital, as service delays and glitches lessened one’s chances of surviving. All kinds of relationships, including lifelong friendships, occasional fuck buddies, and romantic couplings were kindled at these meetings, and none of it was frowned upon nor forced under the rug.

In addition to the meetings, parties and birthday celebrations were held at members’ homes. The late Dr. Barbara King, founding pastor of Hillside, hosted fundraising events for the group, which featured such gospel

icons as Dottie Peoples. Their self-published monthly newsletter, “Brothers Voices,” included health resources, birthday and death announcements, and editorials.

A visionary who saw the balm in Black men loving each other, Martin died on September 7, 1995. In a special Brothers Voices issue, Tracy Williams (now also deceased) wrote of Martin, “At Reggie’s funeral, I made a solemn promise to Reggie and his family that his dream, his vision will continue and strive for the best.” Williams and Victor Stewart (also deceased) stepped up from the ranks to ensure that the group would continue after Martin. After Williams relocated to California and Stewart’s health began to decline, Wallace Henry and Keith Kennard took on the role of co-chairs. Murray was serving as the group’s president during its final years. “I was trying to pass it on,” he recalled, “because I had other things going on, but no one wanted to take the baton.”

Once Murray left, the group ceased activity.

As a precious lifeline that a group of HIV+ people handed one another, the Brothers Back 2 Back story deserves to be learned and held in remembrance. It is a largely unknown example of Black people’s responding to the enormous threat of AIDS with love, competence, compassion and courage. Through Brothers Back 2 Back, Black gay men gave each other the hope that survival, however unlikely, was possible, and the certainty that they would die knowing they were loved. Khalid Idawu’s voice softened upon his reflection: “I felt like I was talking to men that had lives to live.”

“We organized at a time when we needed to bring attention to HIV in the Black community,” Wilson said. “Brothers Back 2 Back is Black history. I knew that because these men had my back, I was able to stand up.”

THEGEORGIAVOICE.COM

NEWS BRIEFS Staff reports

Bulldog Custom Leathers Moves from the Heretic to Southern Nights After eight years of operating out of the Heretic, Bulldog Custom Leathers is moving to Southern Nights Video (2205 Cheshire Bridge Rd NE) later this month.

Owners James Menge and Jeff Donaldson told Georgia Voice that a change to the Heretic’s lease, which prevented them from using the building’s basement for storage as they previously had, forced them to move locations.

“The Heretic’s lease changed a few months ago, and they ended up needing the space where our store was for storage,” Donaldson said. “We had some friends at Southern Nights who said, ‘Hey, the owner might be interested in partnering with your guys in our unused space.’ So, we brought them into our Heretic store and showed them our operations.”

Their new store in Southern Nights will soft open on April 22 before the grand opening on April 23. The preliminary hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 11am to 9pm.

In an appearance on Alex Jones’ podcast Infowars, Greene said she was “100%” going to write a bill banning discussions of LGBTQ people in schools receiving federal funding.

Menge and Donaldson said they are excited for the change and the opportunity to expand their clientele.

“Are you going to write a bill, are you going to introduce a bill because you’ve got the power to do it?” Jones asked. “We would all get behind a bill to pull federal funding out of any school that sexualizes children.”

“We are very excited,” Menge said. “Not only will it gives us our Heretic clientele back, but we will gain much more clientele from the heterosexual and bisexual communities.

Hopefully, we will gain a good deal of the lesbian community [as well]. When we were at the Heretic, we were pretty much just mainstream gay males.”

Bulldog Custom Leathers currently operates in two other locations: Oz Campground in Unadilla (50 GA-230) and Iniquities in Birmingham, Alabama (2501 7th Ave. S).

Marjorie Taylor Greene Says She’s Working on Federal “Don’t Say Gay” Bill In the midst of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signing the “Don’t Say Gay” bill into law and Georgia legislators introducing their own “Don’t Say Gay” bill, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) has said she’s working on a similar federal bill.

6 NEWS APRIL 8, 2022

Bulldog Custom Leathers moves to Southern Nights.

“Absolutely 100%,” Greene responded. “I will meet with my team right after this interview and we will work on it, Alex, because I will do anything I can to protect kids.”

“I only want allies,” she continued. “If someone doesn’t like me or my legislation, who cares?”

Greene has a long anti-LGBTQ history.

She got her political start by protesting drag queen story times and has been outspoken against the transgender community, even going so far as to call trans parents child abusers and posting an anti-trans sign outside of her office.

Passports with ‘X’ Gender Marker to Become Available on April 11 Secretary of State Antony Blinken on

IMAGE VIA FACEBOOK

Thursday announced passports with an “X” gender marker will be available on April 11.

Blinken last June announced the State Department will allow passport applicants to “self-select their gender as ‘M’ or ‘F’” Dana Zzyym, an intersex U.S. Navy veteran who identifies as non-binary, in 2015 filed a federal lawsuit against the State Department after it denied their application for a passport with an “X” gender marker. Zzyym last October received the first gender-neutral American passport.

“The Department of State has reached another milestone in our work to better serve all U.S. citizens, regardless of their gender identity,” said Blinken on Thursday in a statement. ”In June, I announced that U.S. passport applicants could self-select their gender and were no longer required to submit any medical documentation, even if their selected gender differed from their other citizenship or identity documents.”

“Starting on April 11, U.S. citizens will be able to select an ‘X’ as their gender marker on their U.S. passport application, and the option will become available for other forms of documentation next year,” he added.

THEGEORGIAVOICE.COM

LOCAL NEWS

Fulton County Distric Attorney’s Office Swears in Historic LGBTQ Advisory Board Katie Burkholder In a historic move, the Fulton County District Attorney’s office has launched its LGBTQ Advisory Committee, the first of its kind in the Southeast.

Deputy District Attorney Will Wooten, who heads the office’s white crimes unit and is part of the LGBTQ community, announced the formation of the committee in June at the FCDA LGBTQ+ Crimes Victim Vigil. The committee has now been officially established, with 28 members sworn in at a ceremony held on March 22.

Wooten is the committee chair, along with Caitlin Bradley. Bradley is the Hate Crimes and LGBTQ+ Victim Advocate for Fulton County, a position funded by a three-year grant awarded by the Department of Justice.

“Her exclusive purpose is to be the victim advocate for any case that has an LGBTQ victim — that includes both hate crimes and non-hate crimes, things like domestic violence between same-sex partners where the issues are just a bit different,” Wooten said.

The committee will work with members of the LGBTQ community to ensure cases that involve LGBTQ people are handled correctly. Wooten told Georgia Voice that the committee’s priority will be to ensure that LGBTQ people living in Fulton County feel like they are being represented and heard and healing the historical discomfort LGBTQ individuals have felt toward law enforcement, especially amid an influx of anti-LGBTQ (and specifically anti-trans) violence.

“There’s been a lot of press about violence against LGBTQ people, specifically trans people and even more specifically trans women of color,” Wooten said. “I just felt like we needed to make sure we’re taking care of LGBTQ people and make sure LGBTQ people feel safe and protected and feel like they

THEGEORGIAVOICE.COM

Members of the Fulton County LGBTQ Advisory Committee (Deputy District Attorney Will Wooten is pictured in center). PHOTO COURTESY OF THE FULTON COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY’S OFFICE can come to us for help. That was the goal of the board in its inception. We want to let queer people in Atlanta know we’re here and that we’re a resource that’s dedicated to helping.”

To bridge the gap, the committee plans to host town hall events to give Fulton County’s LGBTQ community the opportunity to voice its concerns and point out the real issues impacting them.

We decided the most important thing is getting into the community and letting the community tell us what to do,” Wooten said.

“I think a lot of the first year will be about that outreach and letting people come to us and letting them know we’re present and repair that channel of communication.”

The committee will also spearhead LGBTQ sensitivity training and advise DA Fani Willis’s office on LGBTQ-inclusive policy, with a specific focus on the transgender community.

“We’ve got some easy, short-term goals, like

providing LGBTQ sensitivity training to our office and making that available to our law enforcement partners, the Atlanta Police Department, and Fulton County Sheriff’s Office,” Wooten said. “We even want to bring something like that to the judges, to let the judges in Fulton County know when a trans person comes into the courtroom, how they should refer to them, ask them what their pronouns and chosen name are. The bigger goals are to advise the DA on policy. One of the things we’re working on right now is a best practices guide on names and pronouns of trans people, and we want that to include not just victims but defendants as well.

Everybody deserves to be respected, and that includes defendants, even people with the most serious crimes. They deserve that basic human respect.”

Committee members include attorneys, legal assistants, investigators, and advocates from the FCDA’s office, as well as several members from outside the office, including Malik Brown, the Director of LGBTQ Affairs for

the City of Atlanta, as well as members from LGBTQ advocacy organizations like Georgia Equality and Family First. At the ceremony on March 22, several of Sheriff Patrick Labat’s deputies were also sworn in under the same oath, signaling their support and dedication to “advocat[ing] for respect, visibility, protection, and equal rights for all LGBTQ+ persons who interact with the criminal justice system.”

The FCDA LGBTQ Advisory Committee consists of Kia Barnes, Derek Baugh, Danielle Burnette, Sherry Cousin, Chandrika Derricho, Dilma DosReis, Chanel Haley, Michele Henry, Joshua Lesser, Annise Mabry, Lauren McAuley, Jeremy Murray, Calvin Pegus, Stephen Putnam, Aaron Rice, Renee Rockwell, Brenda Sharpe, and Naporsha Valentine.

“We just want queer people to know there are queer people in our office,” Wooten said, “and we’re here and we see you and we’re looking out for you.”

To learn more, visit fultoncountyga.gov.

APRIL 8, 2022 NEWS 7

COMMUNITY

Local Moms are Knitting for Homeless LGBTQ Youth Katie Burkholder In 2017, Jill Bridges experienced tragedy when her eldest child, a nonbinary teenager, passed away. To survive her grief, she launched Eco-Friendly Crafts, a craft store offering safe, Earth-friendly alternatives to art supplies. It was through her business that, in 2021, she found a way to honor her child’s legacy by using knitting to care for LGBTQ youth.

While listening to the Craft Industry Alliance podcast, she stumbled upon an episode in which Cecilia Nelson-Hunt discusses diversity and inclusion in the fiber industry and her role with Knit the Rainbow.

Knit the Rainbow is a nonprofit based in New York City that works to provide winter garments to the city’s homeless LGBTQ youth population. There are an estimated 8,000 LGBTQ youth (ages 12 to 24) in New York City and only enough beds for 350 of them. As soon as she heard about the organization, Bridges knew it was a perfect way to honor her child’s legacy.

“My kid was a theater geek, and their dream was to work on tech behind the scenes on Broadway, so I knew it was the perfect match for what I could do to honor my kid,” she told Georgia Voice. “Most of the kids are homeless because their families don’t support them, and it breaks my heart that I can’t be a mom to all of them and take them in.”

So, she did the next best thing. She gathered community volunteers, ranging from young moms to grandmothers, who would meet once a week to knit and crochet gloves, mittens, socks, scarves, hats, ear warmers,

8 COMMUNITY APRIL 8, 2022

The Knit the Rainbow crew stand in front of the garments they created. and sweaters. The group had a goal of knitting 100 garments last year and they surpassed it in just a few months. This year, they’ve expanded their group, and their goal is now 300 garments.

Not only is the group making a tangible difference for LGBTQ young people in NYC, it has also impacted Bridges’ direct community.

“It has created a lot of opportunities for us in the community to be able to talk about this issue, especially to an older generation

COURTESY PHOTO

who don’t understand it like the younger ones do,” she said.

To reach their goal, Bridges’ Knit the Rainbow group needs all hands on deck.

There are a variety of ways people who want to help can — even if they don’t know how to knit.

don’t want to do that but want to physically help, we always need help with winding yarn and adding pompoms, so hands are always welcome. They can also sponsor a skein of yarn by buying one from us. We also accept donations of any kind of yarn, [not just ecofriendly], we’re not picky when it comes to what’s donated.”

“They can donate directly to Knit the Rainbow, it’s a non-profit,” she said.

“Locally, we definitely need help if anybody knows how to crochet and knit. If they don’t know how, we’ll teach them for free. If they

To get involved, email Eco-Friendly Crafts at info@ecofriendlycrafts.com or visit them in-store (2001 Lawrenceville Suwanee Rd., Ste. 104). For more information on Knit the Rainbow, visit knittherainbow.org.

THEGEORGIAVOICE.COM

Alleluia!

Christ is Risen!

We welcome you to worship with us this Easter.

6:00 a.m. 8:00 a.m. 9:00 a.m.

11:15 a.m. 5:30 p.m.

Whoever you are, wherever you are on your journey, welcome home.

allsaintsatlanta.org

THEGEORGIAVOICE.COM

APRIL 8, 2022 ADS 9

COMMUNITY

Emory Professor Dr. Sa’ed Atshan’s Research Delves Into the Queer Palestinian Reality “People are often surprised that there’s an LGBTQ movement in Palestine; it would be nice for people to know that queer people exist in Palestine, just like in any place. This is a movement that is really thinking about how we wage two struggles at once.”

Sukainah Abid-Kons The queer Palestinian community is simultaneously fighting internal and external oppression, championing both for the liberation of their homeland and for the right to exist as they are within their Palestinian communities.

This intersection between the LGBTQ liberation movement in Palestine and the greater collection of Palestinians who are campaigning for their country’s right to act as a sovereign nation is what Emory professor Dr. Sa’ed Atshan has focused his research on in his recent book, “Queer Palestine and the Empire of Critique,” inspired by his own experience as a queer Palestinian man. After receiving his doctorate from Harvard University, Dr. Atshan joined Emory University as an associate professor of anthropology in the fall of 2021. He has spent his career extensively researching and writing about Palestine and the ongoing oppressive systems its citizens experience under Israeli colonialism.

“People are often surprised that there’s an LGBTQ movement in Palestine; it would be nice for people to know that queer people exist in Palestine, just like in any place,” Dr. Atshan told Georgia Voice. “This is a movement that is really thinking about how we wage two struggles at once.”

These two struggles are the settler-colonialist conditions that are imposed by the Israeli government and the homophobia that they experience within their own homes and Palestinian communities. But while this community may not be widely known in the rest of the world, both Palestine and Israel are very cognizant of their presence. Queer identity, Dr. Atshan explained, has been weaponized by the Israeli military in attempts to further spy on Palestinian communities.

10 COMMUNITY APRIL 8, 2022

— Emory Professor Dr. Sa’ed Atshan Emory Professor Dr. Sa’ed Atshan

PHOTO VIA FACEBOOK

Closeted, queer Palestinians will be targeted by the Israeli military, which will threaten to out an individual unless they agree to act as an inside agent for Israeli intelligence forces.

Essentially, these queer Palestinians are faced with the choice of losing their community due to their identity or becoming an actor for a regime that actively harms that same community.

The blackmailing of closeted queer Palestinians is not the only way the Israeli government weaponizes sexuality, Dr. Atshan explained, as his research has found consistent patterns of “pinkwashing” within Israeli advertising. Pinkwashing, Dr. Atshan explained, is a term used by queer Palestinian activists to describe “a kind of propaganda that supporters of the right-wing Israeli state use to draw attention to a purported advanced LGBTQ rights record in Israel.”

This strategy, he says, is used to distract people from the violation of human rights carried out in Palestine by the Israeli state.

“The argument is very simplistic,” Dr. Atshan said. “[it is] that Israel is a gay haven, that Palestinian society is backward and homophobic, and therefore that the Western liberal subject should support the former at the expense of the latter.”

Palestinian activists have been aware of this strategy for years, as evidenced by a 2011 New York Times op-ed, “Israel and Pinkwashing”, by Sarah Schulman.

Pinkwashing is problematic because it erases the complexities of queer experiences in both Israel and Palestine, as the experiences of a community cannot be summarized in one sweeping statement.

These experiences, Dr. Atshan pointed out, are not homogeneous, as religion, socioeconomic class, and home life are all influential on an individual’s queer experience in either society.

While the queer Palestinian community has long been overlooked, much to the

detriment of that community, Dr. Atshan says that newer generations are bringing the conversation to the forefront. One change that occurred during his lifetime is the newfound use of a neutral Arabic term to describe a queer individual (‫سنجلا يلثم‬ — mithli aljins), whereas he grew up only ever hearing derogatory terms. More than that, younger queer Palestinians have been able to debunk the notion that they are all collaborating with Israeli forces and have even been able to forge alliances with nonqueer civil rights activists in Palestine. These collaborations are building communities committed to tolerance and acceptance, creating safe spaces for all Palestinians.

In the words of Dr. Atshan, “these young people are the hope.”

If you are interested in Dr. Sa’ed Atshan’s research, “Queer Palestine and the Empire of Critique” is available for purchase through the Stanford University Press website and on Amazon.

THEGEORGIAVOICE.COM

Help us evaluate a new approach to HIV treatment

with the DYNAMIC (research) study.

If you recently learned that you are living with HIV, joining a clinical research study may be one option for you to consider.

You may qualify for the DYNAMIC study if: • You are at least 18 years old.

• You have been diagnosed with HIV. • You have not started treatment for HIV.

Participation is voluntary. If you join this study, you can change your mind and leave at any time. It is always best to discuss a research study with your doctor first so he or she can help you decide if the study may be right for you.

There are other requirements you will need to meet. The study doctor will review these with you.

Investigational medications and study-related tests and procedures will be provided at no cost.

The DYNAMIC study is testing an investigational medication in combination with an approved HIV medication. By joining a study like DYNAMIC, you can help move HIV research forward.

To learn more, visit dynamichivstudy.com or call:

Infections Disease Specialists of Atlanta Abraham Khalio 404-297-9755

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SHIFTING THE NARRATIVE EMMA O’LOUGHLIN

SHIFTING THE NARRATIVE ON

QUEER PARENTS

PHOTO BY SHUTTERSTOCK.COM / CHARNSITR

Emma O’Loughlin When I was younger, I was not fully able to understand and appreciate the impact that growing up in a queer household had on my life the way I do now. When I share with people that I have two mums, I often get asked questions like, “What was it like growing up with two parents of the same gender?” I usually respond with “it’s the best thing,” because it is. I then go on to explain that having parents of the same gender is no different, because I still grew up with two loving parents. Of course, there is a part of me that does believe that having two mums isn’t really that different from having parents of different genders, but I also can’t ignore that growing up in an all-female household was and is a different experience. I mean, for

12 COLUMNIST APRIL 8, 2022

one, there was never a shortage of tampons in the house.

I was quite young when I began to realize it wasn’t the societal norm to have two gay parents. I remember running up and down the aisles of the grocery store as a toddler, yelling for one of my mums, but calling her “dad”. I would always feel strange whenever teachers handed out permission slips for field trips, telling the class that “mom and dad” would have to look over and sign if we wanted to participate.

As my world got bigger and I ventured out beyond my family’s close, accepting circle of friends, I began to curate the information I shared about my family. While attending a conservative charter school in middle school, I would deem people “worthy” of having a crush on if, when I told them I had two mums, they were “cool with it.” Growing

up in the early 2000s, the world was much more on the binary than it is now, and the idea that dads were supposed to be the ones who taught you how to play sports and to fish and go camping was put into my head at a young age and reinforced by books, kids’ TV shows, and the fishing trips my friends’ dads would take us on. There were definitely times when I felt left out of the experience of “having a dad.” It’s not a feeling I really experience anymore, but it was still present in my formative years.

The truth is, I feel extremely lucky to have been raised in a queer household. There are misconceptions and stereotypes about queer parents raising queer kids. Unfortunately, this narrative is used as an argument against queer parents adopting or fostering children. While recognizing the stereotypes are based in ignorance, they haunted me for most of my teenage years. I was hesitant

to face my truth and come out due to my perceived responsibility not to reinforce the stereotypes. In reality, my parents always allowed space for me to accept myself.

My parents were very open and patient when it came to questions about sexuality. As a young queer person, I feel grateful to have grown up in a household that accepted me for who I am and could understand part of my coming out experience. I grew up knowing only a handful of kids who had queer parents. It’s not an experience that most people in my generation have, so whenever I meet other people around my age who have queer parents, I feel a special bond over this unique and beautiful experience.

My parents opened my world to different kinds of people and experiences and taught me to accept myself and others. Diversity is present in all forms and a family doesn’t have to fit into the traditional nuclear family structure to provide a child a loving home.

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A&E FEATURE

Alyssa

EDWARDS

BRINGS HER ONE-QUEEN TOUR TO ATLANTA MAY 25 Katie Burkholder Quotes have been edited for clarity.

Dancing queen, Texas diva, and “RuPaul’s Drag Race” legend Alyssa Edwards is tongue popping her way across America with the Life, Love, and Lashes Tour, a simultaneously spectacular and intimate deep dive into the icon herself.

Slated as a “love letter from Alyssa,” Life, Love, and Lashes chronicles her road to fame, from the intimate anecdotes of a young gay boy to the big dreams of a budding superstar — and it promises to be sickening.

“Where do I start? It’s one night, one queen, and I think it’s a full-on spectacle that one will never forget,” Edwards told Georgia Voice. “It’s truly all things Alyssa Edwards. Everything everyone is probably thinking this show is about, it is. It’s going to be performance, full throttle, high-caliber quality. Expect a night of tongue pops, dancing, and storytelling.”

The show has been in the works since before the COVID-19 pandemic and is born from her sold-out, critically acclaimed Memoirs of a Queen, a show she performed at the Vaudeville Theatre in London’s historic West End last year. After that performance, she knew she had to transform it into something much bigger.

“Right when COVID-19 started to lift, I had the opportunity to travel to the West End where I did the memoirs, and that’s where all

14 A&E FEATURE APRIL 8, 2022

“Right when COVID-19 started to lift, I had the opportunity to travel to the West End where I did the memoirs, and that’s where all of this took off. I was like, ‘I have to do this in America. I would not do myself justice if I did not travel this tour.’” of this took off,” she said. “I was like, ‘I have to do this in America. I would not do myself justice if I did not travel this tour.’”

When Edwards is onstage, embodying what she calls a combination of “Elvis Presley and Liberace,” you can expect the glitz, glamour, and drama she’s known for along with a softer side. This show is Edwards’ passion project, something she sees as “an opportunity to share more of me that I haven’t yet shown — if that’s even possible!”

“It’s the journey, the story of becoming Alyssa Edwards, from Justin Johnson, a little gay boy in Mesquite, Texas, to ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race,’” she said. “There are so many beautiful things I’ve touched and been a part of, and it’s all led up to the live show. It’s super fun, it’s super campy. There’s also some very vulnerable moments.”

Alyssa Edwards PHOTO VIA FACEBOOK Giving Georgia Voice a sneak peek into the show, Edwards said she will be de-dragging on stage to give the audience a more intimate look into the character she has created, a side of her fans have never before seen.

“It’s about the birth of Alyssa. I talk about me as a young kid and being introduced to puberty and knowing I didn’t fit in but thinking that maybe there’s a world where I fit in,” she said. “I have this character that’s always been living inside of me that I finally let out, and Act I ends with me at my vanity, and I am remembering all of this as I de-drag on stage.

That’s very interesting for me, because I always keep the magic to myself ... It’s beautiful, I do this contemporary lyrical dance, and the scene ends with me just in my dance belt. And then we open up Act II with, ‘She’s gay!’”

Life, Love, and Lashes launches May 10 in Edwards’ home state of Texas before making its way to Atlanta’s Center Stage Theater on

May 25. As a Southern girl, Edwards is excited to bring her show to the place she loves.

“I always tell everyone that I am who I am because I was raised in the South,” Edwards said. “Pageantry is a huge part of Southern culture and drag culture. I got into drag from watching these incredible pageant queens.

Anytime I get an opportunity to travel [to the South], amongst my folk, it’s like a homecoming experience for me. We speak the same language when it comes to drag, artistry, and performance.”

“I remember coming [to Georgia] when I was Miss Gay USA in 2006, and I was received with arms wide open,” she continued. “So, I’m looking forward to being there — and I’m hoping I run into NeNe Leakes somewhere, so if y’all see her, send my ‘howdy’!”

Tickets to Life, Love, and Lashes start at $55 and can be purchased at dragfans.com.

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BEST BETS THE BEST LGBTQ EVENTS HAPPENING IN APRIL Jim Farmer

A complete schedule can be found at http:// atlantabearpride.com/

FRIDAY, APRIL 8

Created in 1996 and held on the second Friday in April — April 8 this year — Day of Silence is a campaign that seeks to shed light on what many LGBTQ youth experience daily.

Initially intended to focus on this problem within the school system, it has since expanded into workplaces, university campuses, and sporting events. Atlanta Pride is participating with its staff going silent, https://www.atlantapride.org/ events/?id=1942597

SATURDAY, APRIL 23

The LGBTQ+ Book Club is a group for LGBTQ+ folks and allies to read queer-themed books and books by queer authors. This month’s book is “The Black Tides of Heaven” by Neon Yang. Join by Zoom at: https://us02web. zoom.us/meeting/register/tZYpdemtqDstGtfDk_ 6d2D8QHmONfOdQrdHE, 10 – 11:30am.

It’s been three long years, but the Atlanta Bucks Rugby Football Club announces the return of the Purple Dress Run. In celebration and recognition of this occasion, this year’s theme will be “We Need a Revival.” Let the purple frock you don be your Sunday’s best, or at least the best at getting the pastor’s attention. Included with the purchase of a $40 ticket is a drink or two at each location, along with a couple of stops along the way featuring caffeinated communion and something to feed the body at the end of the crawl. The day will start at The Hideaway and wrap up at 12:30pm. Midtown Moon

SUNDAY, APRIL 10

The Atlanta Gay Men’s Chorus’ Rubyversary show will include some of the favorite songs the AGMC has performed over the last 40 years. In addition to past favorites, the concert will be premiering several new pieces, including one by legendary Broadway composer Stephen Schwartz. The event features a performance by Broadway superstar Jessica Vosk and WSB TV’s Jorge Estevez as the Master of Ceremonies. 3 and 7:30pm, City Springs Byers Theatre

Brendan Maclean, Australia’s “king of pop in the making” (Guardian UK) and queer icon, is headlining an all LGBTQ+ lineup of entertainment. Buy tickets at nonsenseatl.com.

7pm, The Basement.

TUESDAY, APRIL 12

Join PALS Atlanta for Drag Queen Bingo – Braves Night. Hostesses Bubba D. Licious and Erica Lee and special guest performers will be feeling festive as they call bingo and celebrate the world champion baseball team.

7:30 – 9:30pm, Lips Atlanta. Tickets are only available online and can be purchased at https://www.palsatlanta.org/events/p-a-l-sdrag-queen-bingo-2022-04-12/

FRIDAY, APRIL 15

At the G8YTIES 80’s Dance Party, DJ Mike Pope is back spinning all your favorite ’80s dance hits including “Girls Just Want to Have Fun,” “Like a Prayer,” “I Wanna Dance with Somebody” and more. Come ready to dance! $10 cover all night long. 10pm – 3am, Heretic Atlanta

SATURDAY, APRIL 16

Former child star, outspoken activist, and TV Land Award winner Alison Arngrim continues to tour the world with her critically acclaimed “Confessions of a Prairie Bitch.” Best known as acid-tongued, pre-Midol meanie Nellie Oleson from “Little House on the Prairie”, Alison Arngrim presents an uproarious evening of storytelling, stand-up, and multi-media about life as everyone’s favorite toxic pre-teen brat, complete with petticoats and ringlets. 8pm, Out Front Theatre Company

16 BEST BETS CALENDAR APRIL 8, 2022

EVENT SPOTLIGHT

TUESDAY, APRIL 26

MONDAY, APRIL 11

WABE presents an evening with David Sedaris, author of the previous bestsellers “Calypso,” “Naked,” “Me Talk Pretty One Day,” “Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim,” and regular National Public Radio contributor. For one night only, Sedaris will be offering a selection of all-new readings, following the release of his newest book, “A Carnival of Snackery,” as well as a Q&A session and book signing. 7:30pm, Fox Theatre Photo via Facebook

SUNDAY, APRIL 17

The PFLAG support group for parents and families of LGBTQ children meets in person today from 2:30 – 4pm, Spiritual Living Center It’s Easter Sunday and Brigitte Bidet, along with Frankie, will be throwing a tea dance, complete with fun and games. The Hideaway goes outside for Sunday Funday, so get your bonnets ready for the biggest Easter Bonnet contest in Midtown. Hunt Easter eggs filled with over $500 in prizes. DJ Rob Reum will be spinning the mixes outside and then going inside for a Sunday Night KiKi. 3pm, The Hideaway

MONDAY, APRIL 18

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. 6:30 – 8pm, Charis Books and More

TUESDAY, APRIL 19 – SATURDAY, APRIL 23

Celebrating its 50th Anniversary, a new mesmerizing production of the iconic musical phenomenon “Jesus Christ Superstar” comes to the Fox Theatre. 7:30pm.

FRIDAY, APRIL 22 – SUNDAY, APRIL 24

Hairy men of all kinds – and their followers – will be out in force for Atlanta Bear Pride.

Events will take place at Woofs Atlanta, The Heretic, Future Atlanta, and Wish Lounge.

To coincide with International Lesbian Visibility Day, Atlanta Pride and Out On Film are presenting a virtual screening of the award-winning documentary “Invisible: Gay Women in Southern Music” with a screening at 7pm and a live Q&A after with the director T.J. Parsell and subjects from the film moderated by Melissa Carter, https://watch.eventive.org/2021ooff/ play/623d145cb3b0e8003dc389dd

FRIDAY, APRIL 29

Get your chuckle on at Femme Friday with Kia Comedy. 6pm, My Sister’s Room

SATURDAY, APRIL 30

Atlanta Women’s Chorus’ Finding Home concert captures the many concepts of what home is to individuals. There are many songs that speak of and to the concept of home, whether that is the place you grew up, where you live now, the people that mean the most to you, your hometown, your chosen family, heavenly home, or your country. 2 and 7pm, Grace United Methodist Church

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A&E SPOTLIGHT

‘THEMME FATALE’ EXHIBIT

EXPLORES COMEDY AND SEXUALITY Brammhi Balarajan Nonbinary artist Annie Vorobetz will launch their first exhibit, “Themme Fatale,” a pop-up digital art show exploring comedy, gender and sexuality, at Dynamic El Dorado on April 15.

Armed with a mouse, Vorobetz’s first works were cultivated on Photoshop. Driven toward developing new hobbies during the pandemic, they started creating digital art on their iPad, from lore of mystical enchantresses to portraits of lovable local comedians. From there, “Themme Fatale” was born.

“Themme Fatale” will premiere on April 16 at Dynamic El Dorado, which regularly hosts improv shows, comedy festivals, and more.

Vorobetz coined the exhibit name, “Themme Fatale” as a play on words on the term “femme fatale,” often used to describe an alluring female character who ensnares and

“It’s been very important to me to first of all, educate myself as much as I can about the LGBT+ community. And also ... that I’m comfortable with that side of me. Make sure it’s represented in everything I do.”

— Nonbinary artist Annie Vorobetz destroys men. Historically, “femme fatale” characters have been seductresses exploring their sexuality. Such figures range from Morgan le Fay in the Arthurian myths to Alex Vause of “Orange is the New Black.”

Vorobetz’s art directly draws from this femme fatale spinoff. Half of the exhibit features

Nonbinary artist Annie Vorobetz

COURTESY IMAGES

portraits of comedians or films they found impactful. Other artworks incorporate imagery of women, focusing on the female form.

Vorobetz told Georgia Voice that the work has some unrealistic, fantastic elements like horns or blue-green skin. While the imagery of the bodies is mystical, the intimacy of the work is innately human, simply capturing “women loving women.” Vorobetz said the art features “creatures that don’t exist, but it’s still clearly two women … loving each other.”

Their background in art transcends mediums — from a stint in film school to a passion for sculpting to learning to play the ukulele.

One of Vorobetz’s first forays into art was attending film school, where they made a lot of video art. While they loved film, Vorobetz noted that attending school for art can kill your passion. Still, they were always growing, always drawing and their love of art transcended the draining aspects of school.

Notably, Vorobetz has always been drawn to comedy, and their longstanding appreciation was a focal source of inspiration for their work. They credited Tig Notaro as a favorite: “queerness was just like a natural part of her performance,” Vorobetz said of Notaro.

Tig Notaro portrait by Annie Vorobetz THEGEORGIAVOICE.COM

Vorobetz discovered their love of comedy with a previous partner. They became

enthralled with comedy in all forms, whether it was through performing, reading or watching. Whether they turned to comedy as an outlet after a particularly long day or as a way to connect people, comedy for Vorobetz was always about making people laugh. They dabble in improv as well, appreciating its “feministic” feeling and its ability to serve as a space to embrace weirdness. Being the “funny kid” growing up, Vorobetz has always loved being in a room full of people laughing.

Still, their art is indisputably personal.

“Art is first and foremost for me,” Vorobetz said.

Vorobetz came out as queer in their 30s, which they considered to be later in life.

Since then, their queerness has become a central part of their art.

“It’s been very important to me to first of all, educate myself as much as I can about the LGBT+ community,” Vorobetz said.

“And also ... that I’m comfortable with that side of me. Make sure it’s represented in everything I do.”

“Themme Fatale” will premiere on April 16 and end on May 31 at Dynamic El Dorado (572 Edgewood Ave SE #116).

APRIL 8, 2022 A&E SPOTLIGHT 17

A&E SPOTLIGHT

BUCK JONES’ ‘THE LAST GOOD REPUBLICAN’

EXAMINES THE FLUIDITY OF SEXUALITY AND POLITICS IN THE AMERICA OF THE PAST Fletcher Varnson In the America of today, the rift between party lines has grown astronomically: Democrats and Republicans are judged by how strictly they adhere to their respective party’s ideology, which leaves scarce middle ground over which the two can intersect and unite. But author and regular Georgia Voice columnist Buck Jones reminds us in his debut novel, “The Last Good Republican,” that the state of American politics was not always like this.

In fact, prior to the close of the 1960s, Jones finds that the party system worked in a reversed, more fluid way than it does today.

“The Republican Party of the past was actually one dominated by liberals,” he told Georgia Voice. “It was the party of Nelson Rockefeller, it was the party of Dwight Eisenhower, it was the party of Wendell Willkie. Those individuals were in many ways further to the left than their contemporaries in the Democratic Party, and the Democratic Party at that time was dominated for many years by the Southern Democrats, who were Reconstructive racists and arch-segregationists.”

“The Last Good Republican” focuses on this time of party and ideological fluidity through the mythic character of Carter Ridge. An idealistic Republican politician in 1960s South Carolina, Carter and his wife seek to bring in a new, progressive age to the Southern state by ending segregation and enacting Carter’s visionary political program, The Good Life. Much in the vein of FDR’s New Deal and JFK’s New Frontier, The Good Life seeks to bring universal health care, public control of utilities, and fully funded public schools — in Jones’ words, The Good Life is “Bernie Sanders writ 1960s.”

Carter’s vision for South Carolina may stray from what might be expected of a Southern

18 A&E SPOTLIGHT APRIL 8, 2022

capture all a person is.

Above: Buck Jones; Right: “The Last Good Republican” COURTESY PHOTOS Republican, and Jones wants his readers to recognize this. “The Last Good Republican” seeks to push the notions of what it means to be both a politician and a leader — to be a representative of a party and a representative of a people — and how America went from a place where Republicans would promote universal health care to one where doing so could destroy a conservative’s career.

What pushes these boundaries even further than Carter’s Good Life program is his identity as a gay man. During his campaign for governorship, Carter falls in love with one of his staffers, a cadet named Gabriel.

After Carter wins, this newfound love grates against not only Carter’s future ambitions to create change on the national scale, but also his marriage to his brilliant wife Margot.

“When I was writing the novel, I wanted it to be a vehicle to push people’s thinking about the realm of what is possible,” Jones said. “Because the realm of possible is what we make of it. If we want to live in a society that is dominated by crazy ideologues on one side and a kind of herd of kittens on the other — that’s a choice that’s been made and reinforced with each successive election cycle. So, I wanted to push the boundaries of what people’s understandings are about how we got to where we are today.”

For Jones, Carter’s sexual identity works in tandem with his role as a liberal Republican in the novel. Just as directions of political parties begin to shift near the end of the 1960s, Carter’s desire to exit the closet and embrace his sexuality grows stronger as he becomes a more prominent figure in the public eye. This sense of fluidity and directionlessness in terms of both political and sexual identity feels both foreign in a time of strict party lines and familiar when these rigid parties and categories fail to

Moreover, Carter’s motivation to create a Good Life stems out of his sexuality. As a closeted gay man, Carter hopes to create the Good Life for others, but doing so forces him away from Gabriel. As Jones said, “It’s anything but a good life. On the inside, he is desperately lonely both socially and sexually … For every step he takes up that political ladder, he feels he’s taking a step down from his own self-fulfillment, from his own good life, having someone to love him who he could love in return. That dichotomy of wanting to give people what you can’t have is what drives the story of the novel.”

Indeed, “The Last Good Republican” functions by exploring dichotomies between political parties, the public self and private self, and the mind and heart. But Jones also subverts and deconstructs these dichotomies, bringing opposite ends of a spectrum together and allowing a refreshing sense of connection across political and sexual lines that is much needed in these divisive times.

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new dates

MAY 14 – JUNE 12, 2022

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ROBERT O’HARA MARTIN DAMIEN WILKINS

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APRIL 8, 2022 ADS 19

ACTING OUT JIM FARMER

‘The Andy Warhol Diaries’ Looks at Icon’s Personal Life, ‘How to Survive a Pandemic’ Examines the Race for a COVID-19 Vaccine Jim Farmer Based on the 1989 memoir of the same name edited by Pat Hackett, Netflix’s excellent new series, “The Andy Warhol Diaries” looks at the life of the titular artist with a personal emphasis.

Director Andrew Rossi, who is bisexual, has been a fan of Warhol’s work since he was a child. One of his goals with the project was to understand the humanity behind the icon.

“He is a figure that occupies that culture in a way that gives permission to people to be themselves,” Rossi told Georgia Voice. “[Warhol’s studio] The Factory was a place in New York in the ’60s that was radical, and that legacy of creating a safe space for people existed also in the ’80s when I was a young person figuring myself out. Andy was one of the few public figures that seemed not necessarily out but in a queer space. There was a queerness that was a companion to the intense artwork and visual language that he created that I was drawn to.”

The series is filled with remarkable archival footage of Warhol and those close to him.

It took some time for the director to get

approval from the Warhol estate to make the series. While he waited, he was able to reread the diaries and formulate an approach to the 800 words of text, focusing on the many of the people in his life, including romantic partners Jed Johnson, an interior designer, and Jon Gould, a film executive. The series also spotlights Warhol’s friendship with artist Jean-Michel Basquiat and the effect the 1968 shooting by Valerie Solanas had on his life.

Rossi thought it was odd that a man who was so influential was unknown to us, but he says it was the product of Warhol’s effort to somewhat hide himself.

“In the series [an interviewee] says that Andy’s heart was so fragile that it’s almost wrapped in gauze,” he said. “He grew up in Pittsburgh, the son of immigrants, and thought his skin had blemishes, his nose was too bulbous. He became bald very early on and thought he was physically not attractive. That combined with his presence in the world as a gay man that could not modulate enough to pass made him an outsider. He created an armor to transcend the pain he felt.”

Out director David France has made some remarkable documentaries over the years, including the LGBTQ-themed “The Death and Life of Marsha P. Johnson” and “Welcome

“The Andy Warhol Diaries”

PUBLICITY PHOTOS

to Chechnya.” His film, “How to Survive a Plague” — an Oscar nominee for Best Documentary — looked at the AIDS crisis.

Now, his follow-up, HBO Max’s “How to Survive a Pandemic,” examines COVID-19 and the race to find a vaccination. France himself was in Berlin at a film festival in 2020 when the murmurs began about COVID. His team was able to leave, but at another festival they realized the severity of the situation. Back in New York during the lockdown, he and his crew became fixated on a vaccine situation.

“We started what was research for the documentary but at first was really selfpreservation,” France said, his team on the lookout for the latest news. “That’s when we realized how invisible vaccine research is.”

“How to Survive a Pandemic”

20 COLUMNIST APRIL 8, 2022

“Pandemic” is critical of the Trump administration and the mistakes made along the way. The film also points out the difficulties with the eventual vaccine rollouts and the unanticipated news that many would refuse vaccinations. Other issues include manufacturers focused on profiteering while thousands were losing their lives around the world and the vaccines being slow to reach poor countries.

Many of the same people who had to deal with the HIV/AIDS crisis had to deal with COVID decades later.

“I think folks in my generation who experienced the worst years of the American AIDS pandemic — 1981–1996 — embraced the condom code when it was suggested that there would be ways to avoid transmission of HIV,” France said. “We are the generation that put love of community ahead of selfinterest and love of self in remarkable ways. We were among the first to embrace what they now call the non-pharmaceutical interventions — mask wearing, glove wearing, eye shield wearing. We knew how to modify our own compartment in a way that would help bring community spread down. I noticed from my circle of friends and acquaintances that some model behavior was practiced. I applauded that.”

MORE INFO “The Andy Warhol Diaries” is now streaming on Netflix “How to Survive a Pandemic” is now streaming on HBO Max.

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APRIL 8, 2022 ADS 21

THAT’S WHAT SHE SAID MELISSA CARTER

PHOTO BY SHUTTERSTOCK.COM / IRYNA ZHEZHER

MIDDLE AGE HANGOVER Melissa Carter I remember back in the day when I could spend the evening at Revolution or The Otherside and bounce back for Sunday brunch at My Sister’s Room. It didn’t matter what I drank, somehow my body could absorb some Tylenol and bread before bed and sleep it off. Now in middle age, strategic choices have to be made in order for me to function enough to get home safely.

That’s because I usually don’t get truly intoxicated unless I’m on a trip. The worst in recent memory was my 30th high school reunion before the pandemic. I went to high school in Tennessee, about a four-hour car ride from Atlanta. The event ended with a bash at a local hangout, live band and open bar included. I was lucid as I headed out the door back to my hotel; then someone told me that I forgot to say goodbye to one more person.

I said goodbye to that one friend, only to be coerced by more to continue the evening at another location. I agreed, but that one more bar turned into going to someone’s home bar afterward. That, in turn, resulted in my waking up in a strange bed without my original clothes on. I nervously checked and fortunately, I’d woken up alone.

I learned the owner of the house had offered a change of clothes that was more comfortable to sleep in.

Hugging those who remained scattered

22 COLUMNIST APRIL 8, 2022

and passed out around this place, I took my leave back to the hotel to check out.

That old self that could easily jump up and begin a new day was long buried, and the nauseated train wreck was now barely getting herself around town. When I called a friend in Atlanta for moral support, she directed me to the nearest store to get Coke and Pedialyte. Sipping that all the way home, asking God not to laugh too loudly at me, I got back to my own bed to nurse the remaining hangover away.

Thanks to that experience, when a friend’s 50th birthday was planned for this month back in Tennessee, I had some decisions to make. I arrived the day before the crowds and the bars due to my kidney transplant and COVID-19 and hung out with the birthday girl and a couple people at the hotel. Another main difference: I stuck with good old-fashioned beer. As everyone else drowned in a mixture of various cocktails, I stood firmly with only Mr. Yuengling, knowing I was doing myself a favor the next day. And it proved the correct move, since I was up and pepped to head home without a headache or a prayer.

It’s easy to complain about changes in your body as you get older, but I instead take the “classic car” approach. New models now look the same to me, with bland shapes and colors. But when a classic rolls by, I admire the unique body and ignore the burning oil from the tailpipe. This 1970 model might be rusting in some parts, but she’s still got some miles left in her … especially if you put the right fuel in her tank.

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APRIL 8, 2022 ADS 23