06/10/16, Vol. 7 Issue 8

New Odefsey is now available ®

OdefseyB_GeorgiaVoice_10x10.5.indd 1-2

Actual Size (15.4 mm x 7.3 mm)

One small pill contains rilpivirine, emtricitabine, and tenofovir alafenamide (TAF).

Ask your healthcare provider if ODEFSEY is right for you.

To learn more visit ODEFSEY.com

Please see Brief Summary of Patient Information with important warnings on the following pages.

4/7/16 12:43 PM

Brief Summary of Patient Information about ODEFSEY ODEFSEY (oh-DEF-see) (emtricitabine, rilpivirine and tenofovir alafenamide) tablets Important: Ask your healthcare provider or pharmacist about medicines that should not be taken with ODEFSEY. There may be new information about ODEFSEY. This information is only a summary and does not take the place of talking with your healthcare provider about your medical condition or treatment.

What is the most important information I should know about ODEFSEY? ODEFSEY can cause serious side effects, including: • Build-up of lactic acid in your blood (lactic acidosis). Lactic acidosis may happen in some people who take ODEFSEY or similar medicines. Lactic acidosis is a serious medical emergency that can lead to death. Lactic acidosis can be hard to identify early, because the symptoms could seem like symptoms of other health problems.

Call your healthcare provider right away if you get any of the following symptoms which could be signs of lactic acidosis: – feel very weak or tired – have unusual (not normal) muscle pain – have trouble breathing – have stomach pain with nausea or vomiting – feel cold, especially in your arms and legs – feel dizzy or lightheaded – have a fast or irregular heartbeat • Severe liver problems. Severe liver problems may happen in people who take ODEFSEY. In some cases, these liver problems can lead to death. Your liver may become large and you may develop fat in your liver. Call your healthcare provider right away if you get any of the following symptoms of liver problems: – your skin or the white part of your eyes turns yellow (jaundice) – dark “tea-colored” urine – light-colored bowel movements (stools) – loss of appetite – nausea – pain, aching, or tenderness on the right side of your stomach area • You may be more likely to get lactic acidosis or severe liver problems if you are female, very overweight (obese), or have been taking ODEFSEY or a similar medicine for a long time.

• Worsening of Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection. ODEFSEY is not approved to treat HBV. If you have HBV and take ODEFSEY, your HBV may get worse (flare-up) if you stop taking ODEFSEY. A “flare-up” is when your HBV infection suddenly returns in a worse way than before.

– Do not run out of ODEFSEY. Refill your prescription or talk to your healthcare provider before your ODEFSEY is all gone.

– Do not stop taking ODEFSEY without first talking to your healthcare provider.

– If you stop taking ODEFSEY, your healthcare provider will need to check your health often and do blood tests regularly for several months to check your HBV infection. Tell your healthcare provider about any new or unusual symptoms you may have after you stop taking ODEFSEY.

OdefseyB_GeorgiaVoice_10x10.5.indd 3-4

What is ODEFSEY? ODEFSEY is a prescription medicine that is used to treat HIV-1 in people 12 years of age and older: • who have not received HIV-1 medicines in the past and have an amount of HIV-1 in their blood (“viral load”) that is no more than 100,000 copies/mL, or • to replace their current HIV-1 medicines in people who have been on the same HIV-1 medicines for at least 6 months, have a viral load that is less than 50 copies/mL, and have never failed past HIV-1 treatment.

It is not known if ODEFSEY is safe and effective in children under 12 years of age or who weigh less than 77 lb (35 kg).

When used to treat HIV-1 infection, ODEFSEY may help: • Reduce the amount of HIV-1 in your blood. This is called “viral load”.

• Increase the number of CD4+ (T) cells in your blood that help fight off other infections.

Reducing the amount of HIV-1 and increasing the CD4+ (T) cells in your blood may help improve your immune system. This may reduce your risk of death or getting infections that can happen when your immune system is weak (opportunistic infections).

ODEFSEY does not cure HIV-1 infection or AIDS. You must keep taking HIV-1 medicines to control HIV-1 infection and decrease HIV-related illnesses.

Ask your healthcare provider about how to prevent passing HIV-1 to others. Do not share or re-use needles, injection equipment, or personal items that can have blood or body fluids on them. Do not have sex without protection. Always practice safer sex by using a latex or polyurethane condom to lower the chance of sexual contact with semen, vaginal secretions, or blood.

Who should not take ODEFSEY? Do not take ODEFSEY if you also take a medicine that contains: • carbamazepine (Carbatrol®, Epitol®, Equetro®, Tegretol®, Tegretol-XR®, Teril®) • dexamethasone (Ozurdex®, Maxidex®, Decadron®, BaycadronTM) • dexlansoprazole (Dexilant ®) • esomeprazole (Nexium®, Vimovo®) • lansoprazole (Prevacid®) • omeprazole (Prilosec®, Zegerid®) • oxcarbazepine (Trileptal®) • pantoprazole sodium (Protonix®) • phenobarbital (Luminal®) • phenytoin (Dilantin®, Dilantin-125®, Phenytek®) • rabeprazole (Aciphex®) • rifampin (Rifadin®, Rifamate®, Rifater ®, Rimactane®) • rifapentine (Priftin®) • the herb St. John’s wort or a product that contains St. John’s wort

What should I tell my healthcare provider before taking ODEFSEY? Before taking ODEFSEY, tell your healthcare provider if you: • have liver problems including hepatitis B or C virus infection • have kidney and bone problems • have had depression or suicidal thoughts • have any other medical conditions • are pregnant or plan to become pregnant. It is not known if ODEFSEY can harm your unborn baby. Tell your healthcare provider if you become pregnant while taking ODEFSEY.

Pregnancy registry: there is a pregnancy registry for women who take HIV-1 medicines during pregnancy. The purpose of this registry is to collect information about the health of you and your baby. Talk with your healthcare provider about how you can take part in this registry.

• are breastfeeding or plan to breastfeed. Do not breastfeed if you take ODEFSEY. – You should not breastfeed if you have HIV-1 because of the risk of passing HIV-1 to your baby.

– At least one of the medicines in ODEFSEY can pass to your baby in your breast milk.

It is not known if the other medicines in ODEFSEY can pass into your breast milk.

– Talk with your healthcare provider about the best way to feed your baby.

Tell your healthcare provider about all the medicines you take, including prescription and over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements.

Some medicines may interact with ODEFSEY. Keep a list of your medicines and show it to your healthcare provider and pharmacist when you get a new medicine.

• You can ask your healthcare provider or pharmacist for a list of medicines that interact with ODEFSEY. • Do not start a new medicine without telling your healthcare provider. Your healthcare provider can tell you if it is safe to take ODEFSEY with other medicines.

How should I take ODEFSEY? • Take ODEFSEY exactly as your healthcare provider tells you to take it. ODEFSEY is

taken by itself (not with other HIV-1 medicines) to treat HIV-1 infection.

• Take ODEFSEY 1 time each day with a meal.

• Do not change your dose or stop taking ODEFSEY without first talking with your

healthcare provider. Stay under a healthcare provider’s care when taking ODEFSEY.

• Do not miss a dose of ODEFSEY. • If you take too much ODEFSEY, call your healthcare provider or go to the nearest

hospital emergency room right away.

• When your ODEFSEY supply starts to run low, get more from your healthcare provider

or pharmacy. This is very important because the amount of virus in your blood may increase if the medicine is stopped for even a short time. The virus may develop resistance to ODEFSEY and become harder to treat.

What are the possible side effects of ODEFSEY? ODEFSEY may cause serious side effects, including: • See “What is the most important information I should know about ODEFSEY?” • Severe skin rash and allergic reactions. Skin rash is a common side effect of ODEFSEY. Rash can be serious. Call your healthcare provider right away if you get a rash. In some cases, rash and allergic reaction may need to be treated in a hospital.

If you get a rash with any of the following symptoms, stop taking ODEFSEY and call your healthcare provider right away: – fever – skin blisters – mouth sores – redness or swelling of the eyes (conjunctivitis) – swelling of the face, lips, mouth or throat – trouble breathing or swallowing – pain on the right side of the stomach (abdominal) area – dark “tea-colored” urine

• Depression or mood changes. Tell your healthcare provider right away if you have

any of the following symptoms: – feel sad or hopeless – feel anxious or restless – have thoughts of hurting yourself (suicide) or have tried to hurt yourself • Change in liver enzymes. People with a history of hepatitis B or C virus infection or who have certain liver enzyme changes may have an increased risk of developing new or worsening liver problems during treatment with ODEFSEY. Liver problems can also happen during treatment with ODEFSEY in people without a history of liver disease. Your healthcare provider may need to do tests to check your liver enzymes before and during treatment with ODEFSEY. • Changes in body fat can happen in people who take HIV-1 medicine. These changes may include increased amount of fat in the upper back and neck (“buffalo hump”), breast, and around the middle of your body (trunk). Loss of fat from the legs, arms and face may also happen. The exact cause and long-term health effects of these conditions are not known.

• Changes in your immune system (Immune Reconstitution Syndrome) can happen when you start taking HIV-1 medicines. Your immune system may get stronger and begin to fight infections that have been hidden in your body for a long time. Tell your healthcare provider right away if you start having any new symptoms after starting your HIV-1 medicine.

• New or worse kidney problems, including kidney failure. Your healthcare provider should do blood and urine tests to check your kidneys before you start and while you are taking ODEFSEY. Your healthcare provider may tell you to stop taking ODEFSEY if you develop new or worse kidney problems.

• Bone problems can happen in some people who take ODEFSEY. Bone problems may include bone pain, softening or thinning (which may lead to fractures). Your healthcare provider may need to do tests to check your bones.

The most common side effects of rilpivirine, one of the medicines in ODEFSEY, are depression, trouble sleeping (insomnia), and headache.

The most common side effect of emtricitabine and tenofovir alafenamide, two of the medicines in ODEFSEY, is nausea.

Tell your healthcare provider if you have any side effect that bothers you or that does not go away.

• These are not all the possible side effects of ODEFSEY. For more information, ask your healthcare provider or pharmacist.

• Call your doctor for medical advice about side effects. You may report side effects to FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088.

This Brief Summary summarizes the most important information about ODEFSEY. If you would like more information, talk with your healthcare provider. You can ask your healthcare provider or pharmacist for information about ODEFSEY that is written for health professionals.

For more information, call 1-800-445-3235 or go to www.ODEFSEY.com.

Keep ODEFSEY and all medicines out of reach of children.

Issued: March 2016

ODEFSEY, the ODEFSEY Logo, GILEAD, the GILEAD Logo, and GSI are trademarks of Gilead Sciences, Inc., or its related companies. All other trademarks referenced herein are the property of their respective owners. © 2016 Gilead Sciences, Inc. All rights reserved. ODEC0005 03/16

4/7/16 12:43 PM

GEORGIANEWS

Asian family acceptance tour coming to Atlanta area Goal to lessen barriers for API kids who are LGBT, help inform parents

By PATRICK SAUNDERS psaunders@thegavoice.com Five years ago, Clara Yoon’s child came to her with an announcement: he was transgender and bisexual. The 15-year-old had identified as female up until that point, so it took her by surprise as can often happen. But for Yoon, the adjustment occurred on a separate level because of her heritage: Yoon is Korean.

“There’s still a lot of misinformation out there about being LGBTQ in Asian languages,” said Glenn Magpantay, executive director of the National Queer Asian Pacific Islander Alliance (NQAPIA). “Parents still think that maybe their kids became lesbian because they moved to the U.S. or that they turned gay because they had gay friends who live in the big city, like Atlanta. Being transgender is still being described as a pathology.”

That’s why NQAPIA is presenting a national workshop tour that’s coming to Chamblee on June 18 where Magpantay will moderate a discussion with Yoon and two other parents of LGBT children to help shed light on the topic and remove some of the culture barriers in place for both those in the Asian Pacific Islander (API) community who identify as LGBT and their parents.

The path to PFLAG mom While Yoon and her husband’s love for their son was never in question, she admits, “Like many other parents, that’s not something that you expect your son to be. It took us about one year to get our heads around it and make a decision to support his transition.”

The environment the family was in played a big role. Yoon works for a Fortune 500 company in New York City with an impressive diversity and inclusion policy, her manager was gay and they had gay and lesbian friends and neighbors. But they didn’t know much about the transgender community, which they chalk up to lack of information and negative portrayals of transgender people in the media. So they got busy learning.

Yoon and her husband started going to monthly meetings for parents of LGBT kids

“There’s still a lot of misinformation out there about being LGBTQ in Asian languages. Parents still think that maybe their kids became lesbian because they moved to the U.S. or that they turned gay because they had gay friends who live in the big city, like Atlanta.

Being transgender is still being described as a pathology.”

— Glenn Magpantay, executive director of the National Queer Asian Pacific Islander Alliance at their local LGBT center, then started going to similar monthly meetings put on by their local PFLAG chapter.

“We started meeting other families and realizing we were not alone and that’s how we were able to overcome our fear and our misconceptions and lack of knowledge and come around to support my son,” Yoon tells Georgia Voice.

It’s that mentorship role that Yoon has now taken on herself. She is the founder of the API Project at PFLAG NYC, serves on the board of directors of PFLAG NYC and is a member of the LGBTQ Network Steering Committee at her company.

Michelle Honda-Phillips (pictured here with her transgender daughter Malisa) will be part of the NQAPIA workshop. Honda-Phillips’ father, U.S. Rep. Mike Honda, made headlines with this tweet from last year. (Courtesy photo)

‘Gay Asians often suffer in silence’ Yoon will be joined at the workshop by Michelle Honda-Phillips, a fourth-generation Japanese-American with a transgender nine-year-old daughter (pictured) and Barbara Acuna-Taylor, a Filipino mother of a lesbian daughter. Honda-Phillips’ father, Congressman Mike Honda (D-Calif.), made headlines last year when he tweeted out a picture of him and Malisa, his transgender granddaughter, with the message, “As a proud grandpa of a transgender grandchild, I hope she can feel safe at school without fear of being bullied.”

But Magpantay, Yoon and others realize that that can be an atypical outcome for many API kids in the LGBT community, and it was a no-brainer for them to include Atlanta on the 12-city tour since Georgia has one of the nation’s fastest growing API communities.

“These parents are all straight and they all have LGBT kids and they’re going to share their stories of struggle, of shame, of acceptance and understanding,” Magpantay says.

Details

NQAPIA Asian Family Acceptance Workshop Saturday, June 18 Noon - 2 p.m.

The Center for Pan Asian Community Service 3510 Shallowford Road Chamblee, GA 30341 RSVP: http://org2.salsalabs.com/ o/7100/p/salsa/event/common/ public/?event_KEY=81411 “And for Asian kids who want to come out to their parents who are often immigrants or are limited English proficient, how do I do that? I don’t want to shame my family, I want to respect the ancestors but how do I do that?

“Gay Asians often suffer in silence and our parents have sacrificed greatly for us.

They came to a new country, they worked two to three jobs, but we also want them to celebrate their LGBT kids and we’re providing them an opportunity to do that.”

6 News June 10, 2016 www.thegeorgiavoice.com

Be prepared.

Your lung cancer can spread to your brain.

Rose, age 59, Texas

Smoking caused Rose’s lung cancer. She had to move from the small town she loved to get the treatment she needed, including chemo, radiation and having part of her lung removed.

Recently, her cancer spread to her brain. You can quit.

CALL 1-800-QUIT-NOW.

#CDCTips

GEORGIANEWS

HIPAtlanta makes the big move Agency focuses on common challenges of African-American men

count testing, and STD and hepatitis screening and treatment n Certification and Verification Space with SNAP (food stamps), insurance navigation, Medicaid verification, ADAP (AIDS Drug Assistance Program) and background check and drug testing assistance n Revenue and Impact Coordination Services including grant development, for-profit revenue streams operations and a texting and social media management team

By PATRICK SAUNDERS psaunders@thegavoice.com In April 2011, five African-American men put their minds together to think of how to address the needs of African-American men living with HIV/AIDS. By 2012, they had created the HIV Intervention Project, established to link those living with HIV/AIDS with affordable healthcare and to provide them with workforce development.

But last fall, the city of Atlanta approached Greg Smith, executive director of HIPAtlanta, letting him know that a larger space had opened up in the building the organization occupied. Was he interested?

Indeed he was. By November they had been approved to take over the space, expanding nearly five times over from 275 square feet to 1300 square feet. But with that expansion came an expanded mission and services.

HIV Intervention Project Atlanta was renamed Human Impact Project Atlanta and on June 1, they moved into their new space where they will offer free HIV and STD screenings, linkage to care, a community computer center and support group space for African-American men throughout Atlanta regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity.

Addressing common challenges Greg Smith is on the move, darting from one room to the next one recent Friday at the Dunbar Recreation Center in the Mechanicsville community of Atlanta. It’s a good thing he has the energy he does, because he’ll need it. He’s a few days in to the move to HIPAtlanta’s new offices and there are rooms to complete, signs to be posted, furniture and other items to be set up.

“What I teach now is always trying to find in our community what is our common challenge? And so when I look at African-American men regardless of whether they’re heterosexual or homosexual, our common challenges are HIV, STD, em-

HIPAtlanta executive director Greg Smith received the keys to the organization’s new space on June 1. (Photo by Patrick Saunders)

“What we’re trying to do is find ways to make people want to come in. So when we do outreach, we’re saying, ‘Come on in and use the computer.’ When someone comes in, while they’re here, we can say, ‘Well, have you had your HIV test?’”

— Greg Smith, executive director of Human Impact Project Atlanta ployment and criminal history challenges,” Smith told Georgia Voice.

That’s a lot to tackle for one organization in a city with one of the largest populations of African-American men in the nation.

Currently, the HIV testing is up and running in the new space, and Smith says by July they’ll be up and running full blast of-

fering the following: n Digital Center with free computer access, free fax machine access, STEM workshops, youth coding classes and senior computer literacy. n Social Media Room n Testing & Treatment Services including HIV testing, confirmation, viral and T-cell

‘Outreach plus testing equals linkages’ “What we’re trying to do is find ways to make people want to come in,” Smith says.

“So when we do outreach, we’re saying, ‘Come on in and use the computer.’ When someone comes in, while they’re here, we can say, ‘Well, have you had your HIV test?’

So it creates a win-win. That way they’ll say, ‘I need to go back over there, man. They’ve got this and this and this.’”

It’s all part of the organization’s philosophy: “Outreach plus testing equals linkages.” Smith and HIPAtlanta’s plan is to make enough of those linkages to solve or at least temper those challenges common to African-America men in Atlanta.

They’re being helped along the way by partnerships with Fulton County Department of Health & Wellness and the Georgia Department of Public Health, and they receive funding from AIDS Healthcare Foundation, Gilead, and the communications marketing firm Edelman among others.

The next step is something HIPAtlanta’s staff has been working on for the past two years—building an online platform to move things to the next level.

“If we can build the infrastructure, we can then create jobs where we have people who are peer navigators, we can create jobs for outreach workers, and we can replicate the model across the nation,” Smith says. “That really is the premise of HIP. It’s the social impact model of having the health impact, having the economic impact, and creating jobs while addressing the public health issue. Our gap is now, especially around African-American men, that we want to be part of the whole economic chain.”

8 News June 10, 2016 www.thegeorgiavoice.com

NEWSBRIEFS Georgia ACLU leader resigns over transgender bathroom flap The director of the Georgia chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has stepped down reportedly due to a disagreement over the organization’s support for transgender individuals to use the bathroom that matches their gender identity.

Atlanta Progressive News (APN) was first to report that Maya Dillard Smith left because she believed the organization was supporting transgender rights at the expense of women’s rights. The ACLU and the ACLU of North Carolina (along with Lambda Legal) are plaintiffs in a federal lawsuit challenging North Carolina’s anti-LGBT House Bill 2, which requires transgender people to use the bathroom that matches the gender marker on their birth certificate.

According to APN, Dillard Smith accused the ACLU of being “a special interest organization that promotes not all, but certain progressive rights. In that way, it is a special interest organization not unlike the conservative right, which creates a hierarchy of rights based on who is funding the organization’s lobbying activities.”

Dillard Smith argues that transgender rights have “intersectionality with other competing rights, particularly the implications for women’s rights.”

“I have shared my personal experience of having taken my elementary school age daughters into a women’s restroom when shortly after three transgender young adults over six feet with deep voices entered,” she writes.

“My children were visibly frightened, concerned about their safety and left asking lots of questions for which I, like many parents, was ill-prepared to answer,” she said.

“Despite additional learning I still have to do, I believe there are solutions that can provide accommodations for transgender people and balance the need to ensure women and girls are safe from those who might have malicious intent,” she said.

Georgia congressman quotes Bible verse before key vote: gays ‘worthy of death’ A conservative Georgia congressman from the Augusta area launched a GOP policy meeting on May 26 by quoting a Bible passage that condemned homosexuality and said gays are “worthy of death.”

The incident took place before the House www.thegeorgiavoice.com

Rep. Rick Allen (R-Augusta) caused a firestorm of controversy after reading anti-gay scriptures during a recent Republican policy meeting. (Official photo)

chamber voted to reject a spending bill that included an amendment barring discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

Georgia Rep. Rick W. Allen led the opening prayer by reading from Romans 1:1832, and Revelations 22:18-19, according to a report from CQ Roll Call. His comments were reportedly directed at fellow Republicans who backed the anti-discrimination proposal.

Allen, a freshman who won the GOP primary on May 24 and faces Democrat Patricia McCracken in November, has remained quiet on the matter so far and his Twitter feed shows only comments on Obamacare and Memorial Day since the incident. The Human Rights Campaign issued a statement calling the Georgia congressman’s comments “vile and dangerous” and Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) told The Hill, “House Republicans’ thirst to discriminate against the LGBT community is so strong that they are willing to vote down their own appropriations bill in order to prevent progress over bigotry.”

Atlanta Braves to host final LGBT Night at Turner Field This is the final season the Atlanta Braves will play at Turner Field before moving to SunTrust Park in Cobb County, which means the final LGBT Night at the not-so-old ballpark. And this year, the team is stepping it up even more for the big game against the Chicago Cubs on Friday, June 10.

Team officials have moved the pregame patio party from last year’s spot at the Top of the Chop to the Right Field Patio in anticipation of more folks being in attendance this year. Plus they’ve added a live performance from the Atlanta Gay Men’s Chorus and are throwing in a fancy Pride-inspired commemorative Braves hat.

“We look forward to welcoming the LGBT community back to Turner Field this June for the sixth annual LGBT Night and know the night will once again be a huge success,” said Adam Zimmerman, vice president of marketing for the Atlanta Braves. $5.00 from every ticket package purchased will go to LGBT homeless youth shelter Lost-n-Found Youth, and Friday Night Fireworks will follow after the game.

June 10, 2016 News 9

“Hey HIV —— understand this —— we’re living together but I give the orders.”

Ashley - Atlanta, GA Living with HIV since 2006.

Being in the military prepared me for a lot of things, but not my HIV diagnosis. I found it difficult to take medication every day.

Fortunately, with the help of my doctor at the VA, taking my medicine is just another part of my morning routine, brush my teeth, wash my face, and take my meds. By sticking to my medication, doctor visits and support groups, I stay healthy and happy. As a support group leader, now I’m helping others to get into their own routine.

HIV

TREATMENT

WORKS

Get in care. Stay in care. Live well. cdc.gov/HIVTreatmentWorks

Outspoken PO Box 77401 • Atlanta, GA 30357 P: 404-815-6941; F: 404-963-6365

Editorial

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Art Director: Rob Boeger rboeger@thegavoice.com

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12 Outspoken June 10, 2016

“I definitely know how hard it was on my journey to be able to accept myself, and how other people’s voices and stories helped me. So I absolutely want to be a voice for other people. I know there are more and more Christians that realize how important this is, and I hope I can join with them in seeing this change.”

— Christian rock singer Trey Pearson on coming out and reconciling his faith and sexuality in an interview with 614 Columbus. (5/31 Facebook image)

“I’m not going to war with anyone based on their beliefs.

I tell people, especially LGBT, do not waste your time trying to get these people to see anything outside black and white.

There are no colors for them.”

— Internet celebrity and trans activist TS Madison in an interview with Party Foul Radio with Pollo & Pearl (5/18 Instagram )

“It’s tyranny by the minority. Why do I have to suffer because you can’t decide what you wanna be that day? OK, then go in the bushes.

I don't know what to tell you, but I'm not gonna put my child's life at risk because you want to change a law. So that you can be comfortable with your beliefs—which means I have to change my beliefs and my rights? No.” — Actress Stacey Dash on bathroom use by transgender people in an interview with Entertainment Tonight (6/1 Screencap Image)

www.thegeorgiavoice.com

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ith m)

IN THE MIDDLE

By Kim Riggins

Creepoftheweek

Something worth celebrating Glenn Beck wants to ruin your Kim Riggins lives in Smyrna with her two incredibly spoiled dogs and an unhealthy obsession with Star Wars.

“I mean, I guess I can understand the need for a straight Pride celebration.

After all the years of discrimination and outright violence straight people have endured at the hands of…well, someone, I’m sure. The fact that you can’t even kiss your partner in public without people completely ignoring you is ridiculous.”

Do you want to know my favorite question to hear from upstanding conservatives who are worried about the fate of our nation and the decaying fabric of our society? It’s this: “Why don’t we get a straight Pride parade?”

What would a straight Pride parade even look like? Keeping in mind the sort of person who would demand a straight Pride parade and attend one, just try to imagine the 2016 straight Pride parade sponsored by Hooters: Where marriage is traditional, but we’re okay with lesbians.

I mean, I guess I can understand the need for a straight Pride celebration. After all the years of discrimination and outright violence straight people have endured at the hands of… well, someone, I’m sure. The fact that you can’t even kiss your partner in public without people completely ignoring you is ridiculous. I can’t figure out why we haven’t had one, to be honest. Surely, it isn’t that difficult to find enough companies and donors to sponsor such an event. I wonder why they haven’t jumped on that particular opportunity.

Still, I think it goes too far sometimes. I don’t know about you, but I am getting tired of hearing about every celebrity who comes out as straight. And why do they have to put a straight couple in every movie now? #GiveElsaABoyfriend? Come on.

I really hate how heterosexuality has become such a political platform, and not just a political platform, a religious one, as well.

Straight people never asked to have their lives put on display so that politicians and preachers could put on a show. You can’t really complain about what your audience sees when www.thegeorgiavoice.com

you’re the one controlling the spotlight. Just let them marry whom they want, sort of like they’ve been doing since forever.

We have come a long way, though. We no longer live in days where you can be discharged from the military for being straight, your service to your country no longer ignored because of who you love. Police raids on covert straight bars are nonexistent now and heterosexuality is no longer considered a mental illness. I call that progress and it was a long road to get from where we were to where we are, but it was, by no means, an easy one. While we still have a ways to go accepting straight people as “normal”, we’ve come a long way.

That’s why I am all for a straight Pride parade. It is important to remember where we all come from. We should be happy that we live in a day and age where we can celebrate and express ourselves without fear of being tossed in jail, or kicked out of our homes, or assaulted or killed. All this because straight people decided to stand up for themselves and demand the same rights as every other citizen in this country. They said, “No more.

Enough is enough!”

When you were spit on, when you were beaten, imprisoned, fired from your job, discharged from the military, had your life plastered in newspapers, when you were told who you were allowed to marry, when you saw your friends murdered, when you feared for your life you stood up and said, “It does not matter what you do to me! I am straight and I am proud!”

On June 28th, 1969 the gay community said, “Enough is enough.” That is why we have a gay Pride parade.

Hersheypark experience

By D’ANNE WITKOWSKI On May 20, Hersheypark announced that employees and visitors are welcome to use whatever restroom corresponds to their gender identity.

“The Park has and will always strive to accommodate all guests and employees— including members of the LGBT community—to ensure those visiting or working at Hersheypark are Glenn Beck comfortable and feel secure,” the statements reads in part.

“Guests and employees may continue to use the restrooms with which they gender-identify, or are welcome to use the many family restrooms available across the destination.”

In response to Hersheypark’s statement, Glenn Beck went nuts. Or nuttier, I guess.

“This is not normal,” Beck said on May 23. “The velocity of the way this is being jammed down everybody’s throat is not normal. This isn’t an outcry from the people.

This is .3 percent of the population.”

While nobody really knows what percentage of the population is transgender, Beck seems to be saying that if a group is small enough then “the people” have no obligation to treat them with basic human decency or allow them basic rights like taking a leak at Hersheypark.

I’d also like to point out that Beck and people who think like him are the only ones trying to jam anything down anybody’s throat. The North Carolina law dictating where people can and can’t pee helped spark “the bathroom fight” by addressing a nonexistent problem. And Beck’s right. That’s not normal. Places like Hersheypark and Target are merely reacting to this insanity. They didn’t start this fight, but props to them for being unwilling to sit on the sidelines while douchebags with Jesus complexes try to bully an already vulnerable group of people.

June 10, 2016 Outspoken 13

CATCHING UP WITH …

Mary Anne Adams ZAMI NOBLA founding director talks about Mississippi roots, black lesbian seniors

By PATRICK SAUNDERS psaunders@thegavoice.com Mary Anne Adams moved to Atlanta on her birthday nearly 30 years ago and has been gifting the city with her work in several areas ever since. She’s the founding director of ZAMI NOBLA (National Association of Black Lesbians on Aging) and is a social worker and public health researcher at Georgia State University, where she has done extensive work in LGBT health, HIV/AIDS, breast cancer, childhood mental health and more.

Adams, who is engaged to marry her partner Angela Davis next year, sat down with Georgia Voice to talk about growing up around civil rights activists in Mississippi, the neighbor who inspired her passion for aging issues, forming ZAMI NOBLA and more.

Where were you born and raised?

I was born in Mississippi—Oxford to be exact. North Mississippi where William Faulkner was born and bred and where the infamous University of Mississippi, better known as Ole Miss, is located.

What was it like growing up there?

You know, it was pretty interesting.

Around the age of 12, I was introduced to a group of civil rights activists. There was an influx of lawyers and social workers and activists who migrated to a lot of cities in Mississippi at that time to do some capacity building, to do some resource development and particularly to focus on the youth. They rented a house very close to my school— they named it The Black House—and they taught black literature classes, black history, black playwriting.

It was a very heady time for me. All the kids were allowed to interact with the civil rights activists that were coming in. We were sitting at their knee when they were strategizing. I was privy to all of this and I think it

“All the kids were allowed to interact with the civil rights activists that were coming in. We were sitting at their knee when they were strategizing. I was privy to all of this and I think it really started my passion and my interest for community organizing and activism.”

—Mary Anne Adams on growing up around African-American civil rights activists in Mississippi really started my passion and my interest for community organizing and activism.

And jumping forward, how did you make your way to Atlanta?

Well, I came to Atlanta chasing a woman.

A common story.

[Laughs] Very common. My parents died when I was in my mid-20s and I became the legal guardian of my three brothers and sisters who were 9, 11 and 13 at the time and I was about 25. When they graduated from high school and went off to college, I decided to leave Mississippi. And I started seeing this woman so I ended up here in Atlanta. I moved here on my birthday, September 25, 1988, and I’ve been here ever since.

And how did ZAMI NOBLA come together?

As you know, ZAMI was an organization here in Atlanta for a number of years and even

Mary Anne Adams grew up around African-American civil rights activists in Mississippi who inspired her to get into community organizing and activism. (Photo by Patrick Saunders)

though a lot of people think I founded ZAMI, I did not. I founded the Audre Lorde Scholarship Fund but Iris Rafi founded ZAMI. When I moved here I became involved with the organization and she and I kind of took it to a different level and sustained it.

At the time it was very dangerous for a lot of women to be out, so the organization was not as visible or political as we thought it could be. So working with her we took it to another level. Then she dropped out and I continued on.

One day I realized that we were aging in place, and I’ve always had a passion for aging issues since I was nine years old. My best friend was Miss Savannah who lived across the street from me who told me stories all summer long. I was her shadow and she taught me how to bake. I was a shy, introverted kid, a bookworm, couldn’t play ball, couldn’t play jacks, couldn’t play jump rope [laughs].

And how old was she at that time?

She was 60-plus. Her children had gone off to college and had their own families and she was considered the crotchety old woman across the street but she took a liking to me and I took a liking to her. She was a refuge for me, there’s no doubt about that. And I think because of my relationship with her, because of her kindness to me, because of

the patience and the time she took to help this shy introvert develop, I’ve always had an interest in that.

So I looked around and didn’t see any viable entities in Atlanta working on aging issues in the LGBT community, particularly with black lesbians. So, aging myself, I had a dog in this fight. So we were done with ZAMI and we said we’re going to morph into ZAMI NOBLA. We were very intentional about making sure this was a national organization based here in the South because there’s so much work being done in the South, so much working being done in [Atlanta] that is never acknowledged. There’s still this stereotype that because we live in the South we’re not as smart or we don’t know how to develop capacity, and none of that is true.

So it sounds like everything’s busy and life is good for you right now?

Life is really good. I think that my passion and what’s driving me right now is to really grow ZAMI NOBLA and try to combat the isolation on top of the oppression and marginalization that so many elders are experiencing, and try to develop some tools in which to do that. That’s really my primary focus evenings and weekends, and I hope to morph that into being able to do that work full time.

14 Community June 10, 2016 www.thegeorgiavoice.com

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Walker, Bridges, Driffin establish new ASO Atlanta HIV/AIDS activists Larry L. Walker, Dwain L. Bridges and Daniel D. Driffin are co-founders of THRIVE SS, Inc. (Transforming HIV Resentment into Victories Everlasting Support Services)—a new nonprofit organization dedicated to serving individuals living with HIV, specifically gay and bisexual men of color.

The co-founders bring more than thirty years of direct services provided to a wide range of black men at risk for HIV/AIDS, living with HIV/AIDS and other health disparities from across the nation.

“With increased access and demand for PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis) and other biomedical interventions, we have to ensure that treatment as prevention remains in this conversation especially for black and brown gay and same-gender-loving men here in Atlanta and the South,” said the co-founders in a statement.

THRIVE SS, Inc. is in the business of doing nonprofit work differently through the Undetectables Model, a tiered support model that combines online support (www.thrivess. com), traditional in-person support, and friend/social “Judy support” to address issues around HIV infection for MSM of color.

DNC appoints Bishop O.C. Allen III as Chair of LGBT Advisory Board Bishop O.C. Allen III, Senior Pastor of The Vision Church of Atlanta and Presiding Bishop of the United Progressive Pentecostal Church Fellowship is adding a new title to his name. Allen has been appointed by the Democratic National Committee to serve as regional chair of the DNC-LGBT Advisory Board. He makes history as the first member of clergy to hold this title.

Allen says he is “honored to be the Southeast Regional Chair of the DNC-LGBT Advisory Board.” Inundated with congratulatory messages online following the announcement, Allen encouraged his social media followers to “continue to stand for love, equality and justice.”

The Advisory Board is designed to ensure full representation of the LGBT community within the Democratic Party while also working to thwart conservative attempts to dismantle collective gains of advocacy and equality.

In joint consultation, the DNC-LGBT

IT!

Larry L. Walker (left), Dwain L. Bridges (center) and Daniel D. Driffin (right) are the co- founders of the new nonprofit Thrive SS, Inc. (Courtesy photo)

Engagement Director and the leadership of the LGBT Advisory Board will develop engagement strategies that best showcase the party’s support and inclusion of the LGBT community.

Delta celebrates LGBT Pride Month with new transgender policy, special fares Delta Air Lines is celebrating LGBT Pride month as the official sponsor of nine Pride festivals across the U.S. and Canada along with the implementation of a supportive new policy for transgender employees.

Delta’s President Glen Hauenstein announced the new policy on June 7 during the Delta Dean speaker series, “Being Transgender,” according to a source in attendance.

Details on the new policy were not available at press time.

Delta is also the official airline of Atlanta Pride. Its 2016 partnerships include the Cadillac Barbie IN Pride Parade and Circle City IN Pride Festival in Indianapolis, IN, LA Pride, the Nashville Pride Equality Walk, Motor City Pride in Detroit, NYC Heritage of Pride, Seattle PrideFest, Seattle Pride, Twin Cities Pride in Minneapolis, Utah Pride Festival in Salt Lake City and the 519’s Green Space Festival at Toronto Pride.

As part of this year’s celebration, Delta is offering a special First Class and Delta Comfort+ fare sale on flights from many domestic airports to festival destinations in the U.S. and Canada. www.thegeorgiavoice.com

Celebrating Stonewall

Georgia Gay Liberation Front had short-lived but unforgettable impact Ansley Mall movie raid sparked group’s founding, first Atlanta Pride march

By PATRICK SAUNDERS psaunders@thegavoice.com It was August 5, 1969, barely a month after New York City’s Stonewall Riots kicked off the modern LGBT rights movement in America.

LGBT people across the country were simmering, Atlanta included—everyone was at the ready to ignite their city’s movement.

And—not for the last time—it was the Atlanta Police Department that lit the fuse.

That evening at what used to be the Ansley Mall Mini Cinema, the APD raided a screening of Andy Warhol’s “Lonesome Cowboys,” which featured gay sex scenes among other things. When the lights went up, officers started snapping pictures of the 70 or so patrons in the crowd, who then cleared the theater according to a Village Voice article about the incident. They seized the print and put the manager/projectionist under arrest on charges of violating Georgia’s obscenity law.

Activists led by a man named Bill Smith then founded the Georgia Gay Liberation Front in protest to the “Lonesome Cowboys” incident later that month. And it’s that group that we have to thank for later organizing the first Atlanta Pride march.

Makings of a march Gay Liberation Fronts formed around the country after the Stonewall Riots, so the template existed for a GLF to come together in Georgia, remembers Dave Hayward, who moved to Atlanta in late 1971 and became part of the GGLF’s core collective. He says Smith was intent on representing the entire state with the group, which rarely happened with other GLFs at the time “Thus Bill was a prime example of straddling

“The SGH ushered us off the premises for leafleting about Pride and for protesting their multiple carding policies for women and minorities.

The Cove under manager Frank Powell was particularly violent and bodily hurled GGLFers into the parking lot for leafleting about Pride.”

—Former GGLF member Dave Hayward remembers the 1972 Atlanta Pride march, the second to take place the radical world and the more conventional traditional political world,” Hayward says.

The group didn’t feel they had enough support to mount a Pride march the following year, but they did hand out literature about the GGLF at that year’s Piedmont Park Arts Festival. But in 1971, it happened.

Around 125 people marched from Peachtree Street to Piedmont Park for the city’s first Pride. And since the city refused to grant a permit, the group had to march on the sidewalks and stop at every traffic light along the way. Berl Boykin, another pivotal figure in the founding of the GGLF, is believed to be the only person still alive who was both a part of the march and still living in Atlanta, but he was not available for an interview.

First mainstream media coverage Judy Lambert, whose husband was bisexual, joined Smith as co-chair of the GGLF for the 1972 Pride march, which Hayward says was infamous for its lack of support from the gay bars at the time, the Cove and Sweet Gum Head in particular.

“The SGH ushered us off the premises for leafleting about Pride and for protesting their multiple carding policies for women

Georgia Gay Liberation Front founder Bill Smith in an undated photo. (Photo by AJC via Georgia State University)

and minorities,” he remembers. “The Cove under manager Frank Powell was particularly violent and bodily hurled GGLFers into the parking lot for leafleting about Pride.”

That year also brought the first known mainstream media coverage of Atlanta Pride, with Smith front and center on TV reports that night yelling, “What do we want?!” “Gay rights!” “When do we want them?” “NOW!” But several months after that 1972 march, an internal altercation would signal the approaching end of the GGLF. The end of the line While Lambert and lesbian feminist and activist Vicki Gabriner were the chief female leaders of the GGLF, it was otherwise a very male-dominated organization. It was that fact that led to the formation in 1972 of the Atlanta Lesbian Feminist Alliance.

And it also led to a confrontation that year between Smith and another member named Severin (also known as Paul Dolan), who Hayward considers the first transgender leader of the GGLF. Severin later formed a shortlived splinter group called FLAME (Feminist League Against the Macho Empire).

“Whereas Severin was charismatic, and a performer at Pride marches and rallies and benefits singing his own songs in his own voice as a man with a mustache in an evening gown—’cosmic drag’ he called it—Severin did not have the organizational skills of

Bill,” Hayward recalls.

The GGLF was able to put on one more Pride march in 1973 but due to dissension in the ranks and a fallout in participation, the group disbanded.

The players and the legacy Other leaders of the GGLF included Charlie St. John, the first gay appointee to the Atlanta Community Relations Commission; Dr. Ara Dostourian, who founded one of the first LGBT student groups at West Georgia College; Shelby Cullum, an older member of GGLF who was from one of Atlanta’s oldest families; and Steve Abbott, who worked with Boykin on LGBT issues when both were at Emory University in the 1960s. St. John, Cullum and Abbott have since passed away while Dostourian is believed to now live in Rhode Island.

We were unable to confirm the current whereabouts of Judy and Phil Lambert or Vicki Gabriner.

Smith, who Hayward calls “our own gay Georgia George Washington,” went on to found Atlanta’s first LGBT newspaper The Barb. He also succeeded St. John on the Atlanta Community Relations Commission. He died of an accidental drug overdose in 1980.

Hayward, who still lives in Atlanta, is founder of Atlanta LGBT history organization Touching Up Our Roots and he has been named a grand marshal for this year’s Atlanta Pride parade.

18 Stonewall June 10, 2016 www.thegeorgiavoice.com

Celebrating Stonewall

Your guide to Atlanta’s Stonewall happenings

By DARIAN AARON daaron@thegavoice.com The month of June is shaping up to be a busy and exciting one. We’ve compiled a list of Stonewall events that you’ll definitely want to add to your itinerary. Boredom should be the least of your worries this month.

‘Upstairs Inferno’ screening June 8 7 p.m.

Phillip Rush Center Annex 1530 Dekalb Ave., NE Suite A Atlanta, GA 30307 Out on Film and Atlanta Pride presents this haunting documentary on the largest gay mass murder in U.S. history. “Upstairs Inferno” examines the circumstances leading up to the deadly fire at Up Stairs Lounge, a gay bar in New Orleans in 1973. Space is limited, early arrival suggested.

LGBT Night at Turner Field June 10 6 p.m.

Turner Field 755 Hank Aaron Drive, SE Atlanta, GA 30315 The Atlanta Braves hosts LGBT night for the final time at Turner Field. A pregame party, live performance by the Atlanta Gay Men’s Chorus, commemorative Atlanta Braves hat and fireworks following the game are on deck, plus, a $5 donation to Lost-N-Found Youth.

For more information or to purchase tickets, visit www.Braves.com/LGBT East Point Possums Show June 11 7 p.m. - 11 p.m.

Commons Downtown East Point 2727 East Point St. East Point, GA 30344 Free admission www.eastpointpossums.com www.thegeorgiavoice.com

It’s billed as the Southeast’s largest drag extravaganza with over 20 acts, food, drinks and fun for all! This year’s show also benefits Lost-N-Found Youth.

API Parents Who Love Their LGBT Kids June 18 Noon - 3 p.m.

The Center for Pan Asian Community Service 3510 Shallowford Road Chamblee, GA 30341 Asian, South Asian and Southeast Asian parents are invited to share their experiences parenting LGBTQ children. LGBT people who are navigating coming out to loved ones are also welcome.

Refreshments and snacks will be provided.

Evening for Equality 2016 June 18 7:30 p.m.

InterContinental Buckhead Atlanta 3315 Peachtree Road, NE Atlanta, GA 30326 General Admission: $100 Host Committee (Individual): $200 Host Committee (Couple): $350 www.atlantapride.org/events/ evening-equality-2016/ Georgia Equality presents the 12th annual Evening for Equality 2016. Over 400 people are expected to be present for a dinner reception and the Equality Awards celebrating the successes of the past year and key local LGBT leaders.

Touching Up Your Pride Roots Trolley Tour June 19 2 p.m. - 4 p.m.

The Center for Civil and Human Rights 100 Ivan Allen Jr. Blvd., NW Atlanta, GA 30313 $15 Register: www.eventbrite.com/e/

A fundraiser for Atlanta Pride, LIPS Atlanta will host a special Stonewall Month Dine Out for Pride and birthday celebration for volunteer Peter Nunn. (Courtesy photo)

touching-up-your-roots-pride-tour-tickets25652277653 Learn about local LGBT history on this trolley tour with LGBT friends and allies.

Local LGBT historian Dave Hayward and drag diva Diamond Lil are scheduled to narrate this two-hour tour.

LIPS Atlanta—Dine Out for Pride June 19 6:30 p.m. - 10 p.m.

LIPS Atlanta 3011 Buford Highway, NE Atlanta, GA 30329 For reservations call: 404-315-7711 A fundraiser for Atlanta Pride, LIPS Atlanta will host a special Stonewall Month Dine Out for Pride and birthday celebration for volunteer Peter Nunn.

20 percent of all sales will benefit Atlanta Pride.

AIDS Memorial Quilt Viewing June 23-28 See website for times Kashi Atlanta Urban Ashram 1681 McLendon Ave. Atlanta, GA 30307 www.kashiatlanta.org Atlanta Pride Committee and Kashi

Atlanta will be displaying the AIDS Memorial Quilt along with a discussion and restorative yoga class hosted by additional sponsors.

Southern Fried Queer Pride June 23-26 Downtown Atlanta: Various locations Donations encouraged www.southernfriedqueerpride.com This queer and trans Pride festival celebrates the diversity and intersectionality in Southern queers void of corporate and capitalist additives.

‘Edie and Thea: A Very Long Engagement’ June 29 7 p.m.

Midtown Arts Cinema Landmark Theater 931 Monroe Drive, NE Atlanta, GA 30308 Registration: www.aarp.cvent.com/ edieandthea Lesbian couple Edie Windsor and the late Thea Spyer are at the center of a special screening on their love and political legacy. Pre-registration opens at 6:30 p.m. on the day of the event and does not guarantee seating.

June 10, 2016 Stonewall 19

Celebrating Stonewall

Southern Fried Queer Pride: Takin’ it back to our roots Historically queer portions served at annual festival

By DARIAN AARON daaron@thegavoice.com Southern Fried Queer Pride—the name alone is the first indication that this isn’t your ordinary Pride celebration. You won’t find a contingent of buff bodies on display atop of floats strutting down Peachtree Street or corporate sponsors stationed at booths in Piedmont Park—nope, it’s simply not that kind of party. And while the former certainly has its place in our movement’s history, Southern Fried Queer Pride (SFQP) draws on the radical and liberating history of the beginnings of Pride, the Stonewall Rebellion and the work of important historical figures such as Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera.

Now in its third year, it wouldn’t be farfetched to say the four-day queer festival is the antithesis of what many have come to expect from modern day Pride celebrations. At SFQP, queer, trans and people of color identities are stirred into a glorious stew of unapologetic affirmation, resistance and liberation.

It’s what SFQP organizer TAYLOR ALXNDR, 23, says is at the core of the organization’s mission.

“Overall, SFQP really carries on that spirit of radical queer liberation. A lot of times when you go to any Pride, not just here in Georgia, there’s definitely a representation for certain pockets of the community,” said ALXNDR, who uses they, them, their or she pronouns.

“A lot of us come to the city and really want to find spaces where we’re surrounded by people who have common thoughts like us, look like us, think like us and sometimes that isn’t fully manifested in the community-at-large,” they said.

ALXNDR tells Georgia Voice that SFQP was “born out of a lack of space, communication and representation,” which www.thegeorgiavoice.com

Organizers for Southern Fried Queer Pride are gearing up for the annual festival June 23-26.

(Courtesy photos)

“Overall, SFQP really carries on that spirit of radical queer liberation.

A lot of times when you go to any Pride, not just here in Georgia, there’s definitely a representation for certain pockets of the community.”

—TAYLOR ALXNDR further highlights the disconnect between a community that touts diversity and inclusiveness and the real lived experiences of people who find themselves a minority within a minority.

“To be quite honest, I don’t feel safe, acknowledged or appreciated or even understood in most spaces,” they said. “Queer spaces specifically have done much more work in being inclusive of people of color.

I think more mainstream ‘HRC’ gay spaces still have a lot of work to do.“ Queer: an all-encompassing term Being inclusive while recognizing and celebrating the uniqueness of every individual is one of SFQP’s goals, even with the word “queer” in its name —a term that is

both embraced and loathed by many within the community. ALXNDR acknowledges the mixed feelings brought on by the term even within SFQP. “We as a group use queer because we feel it encompasses more gender identities and sexualities than just using gay or using LGBTQIQA,” they said. “Sometimes when we try to create acronyms or generalize words like gay or LGBT a lot of people get lost.

We totally respect people who are not comfortable with that word. There’s even people who organize with us who don’t personally identify as queer.”

Nikki Jackson, 22, is one such SFQP organizer. Jackson, a visual artist and Georgia Tech student identifies as trans masculine and also prefers they or she pronouns.

“I am trans masculine and I’m also white,” she says. Jackson tells Georgia Voice that she wanted to get involved with SFQP because she views it as a “queer centered, trans centered take on Pride.”

“I feel like it really tries to take back the Stonewall definition of Pride,” she said.

Jackson also noted that she uses “SFQP to navigate areas where I can support and where I need to back down,” acknowledging a long history of the suppression of voices, resources and visibility of queer sub-groups, specifically of color, by more dominant voices within the community.

“There’s usually a certain set of politics that comes with using [the term] ‘gay’ or an acronym, and that’s also something that’s really important to us as an organization,” added ALXNDR. “It’s so hard to find a space

Details

Southern Fried Queer Pride June 23-26 In & Around Downtown Atlanta Donations encouraged www.southernfriedqueerpride.com that doesn’t alienate or fetishize you as a person of color.”

Art as activism The arts is a major focus of this year’s SFQP festival and of events held throughout the year; from a special performance by Baltimore queer rap artist Abdu Ali to Sweet Tea: A Queer Variety Show.

“For many people the arts are their main source of income. A lot of people don’t realize that we’re still discriminated against in jobs,” said ALXNDR. “If you look historically, people who were activists like Sylvia Rivera and Marsha P. Johnson didn’t have day-to-day jobs, they had to perform to provide for themselves.”

Queer Threads is another example of how SFQP remains true to the spirit of Stonewall and the activists that inspire these queer organizers. The pop-up thrift shop is an ongoing event that provides clothing at cheap prices and gives back to the community that funds SFQP programming, which relies on donations instead of corporate sponsorship.

According to ALXNDR, SFQP remains open to “anyone who wants to have a hand in the process,” but not at the expense of a “watering down” of a sense of community.

June 10, 2016 Stonewall 25

Celebrating Stonewall

STONEWALL MONTH

BY THE NUMBERS

1971

The first Atlanta Pride march was held.

The Georgia Gay Liberation Front organized the march, which was held from Peachtree Street to Piedmont Park.

600

A conservative estimate of the number of Pride marches that now take place annually worldwide.

12

Number of Stonewall Month events occurring in Atlanta throughout the month of June

$23,000

Amount raised for Lost-n-Found Youth at last year’s East Point Possums show. This year’s show takes place June 11, 2016

4

June 28, 1969

The date of the Stonewall riots at the Stonewall Inn in New York City.

June 28, 1970

The date of the first Pride marches, which took place in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco.

Number of people being honored at this year’s Evening For Equality, presented by Georgia Equality and taking place June 18, 2016 at InterContinental Buckhead Atlanta. They include state Sen. Harold Jones (D-Augusta), Maggie Garrett of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, Brian Tolleson of BARK BARK Media and John Haupert, CEO of Grady Health System.

October 8-9, 2016

The dates for the 46th Annual Atlanta Pride Festival.

26 Stonewall June 10, 2016 www.thegeorgiavoice.com

www.thegeorgiavoice.com

June 10, 2016 Ads 27

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Jane Lynch headlines the national tour of ‘See Jane Sing’ through July 22.

M N TA I

JANE LYNCH: BEYOND THE TRACKSUIT Actress talks growing up funny, ditching her tour bus and life after ‘Glee’

By CHRIS AZZOPARDI You better believe Jane Lynch can sing, and even if you don’t, “I think by the time you buy the ticket and come to the show, you hope I can sing! You’ve got your fingers crossed,” the “Glee” alum says of her touring act “See Jane Sing.”

Lynch is best known as iconic cheer coach Sue Sylvester, who tormented McKinley High for six seasons of Fox’s musical-dramedy behemoth “Glee.” But on the show, the 55-year-old Emmy winner was better known for her tyrannical outbursts and hair taunts (poor Mr. Schuester) than she was for breaking into song.

Now, Lynch is making up for lost time as she headlines “See Jane Sing,” the entertainer’s touring cabaret that merges comedy with music.

CONTINUES ON PAGE 29 28 A&E June 10, 2016

www.thegeorgiavoice.com

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 28 What was your introduction to cabaret?

Well, let’s see, I’ve been in theater for a long time. I go see people perform, whether it’s at a hole in the wall or it’s a chick with a guitar. I usually don’t like big rock concerts – I don’t seek those out – so the combination of doing a comedy show with music has always been something I loved.

Ahh, it would’ve showed me that I wasn’t alone, and oh, just to know that you’re not alone. I really thought I had a mental disease that I was never gonna be able to get over, that I was cursed with it, that it was my fault.

Catholic guilt?

Yes, yeah! And I don’t know where I got this, because my parents weren’t Catholic in that way. We went to church but they weren’t like, “This is bad; this is good.” They

just weren’t that way.

I get it. They weren’t devout.

Exactly. So, I don’t know where I got that it was so horrible, maybe just by the fact that it was whispered about, if it was spoken about at all. And I didn’t see one person in my trajectory of life that had it! (Laughs) I was completely alone in it, so for me to have a “Glee,” and I’m sure I speak perhaps for you and a lot of other gay people growing up

in the ’70s and the ’80s, a “Glee” would’ve been so wonderful – oh, how great that would’ve been.

Has there ever been a role you regretted not taking?

I can’t even think of one. I’m so in the moment, man. I don’t think about that stuff.

I can’t even remember turning something down and I can’t even remember – I don’t remember most things. (Laughs)

So your introduction to cabaret was not Liza’s “Cabaret?”

Oh, that – well, that’s a whole different thing. That was almost like a live sex show in Nazi Germany! It’s funny, I think we call (this show) a cabaret and it’s kind of stuck with the show because we did it at 54 Below (in New York). It’s where one person stands there with their band and people come to eat and listen, so when I say cabaret, it’s a live performance comedy concert. (Laughs) Were you a funny kid?

Yeah, I was a funny kid and that was one thing I always knew I had. You know how you’re insecure as a kid? I was like, “Well, I know I’m funny.”

So you used that to your advantage?

Yeah, I guess so. You know, sometimes I felt like I was just trying to survive, as I think a lot of kids feel, having the big gay secret and all that stuff. I feel like when you’re a kid – for a lot of kids anyway – it’s about trying to survive and stay under the radar of humiliation so people don’t sniff you out.

Assuming you’re taking a bus on tour, what kind of music do you listen to on the road?

Oh no, we’re not on a bus, man. Dude, we are flying. We do this first class – that’s why I’m not making any money on this tour!

We fly. I said, “I’m not gonna do it if I have to sit in a bus,” so we fly and we all fly together, although Kate and I do fly first class and I make a joke about it in the show – another reason why I’m not making any money on this tour. But we all fly together and we hang out. We all eat together, laugh together, so I’m not listening to music or anything.

I’m not a listener to music – I don’t listen to it very much. But Kate does, and Kate and I have very much the same taste.

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Looking back on “Glee:” If a show like “Glee” had been on when you were a young gay person, how might your life have been different? www.thegeorgiavoice.com

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5/24/16 3:10 PM

June 10, 2016 A&E 29

VOICES OF NOTE PRESENTS

ACTING OUT

By JIM FARMER

Gay themes onstage at Atlanta Fringe Festival, Actor’s Express Since 2011, the Atlanta Fringe Festival has brought adventurous fare that may not otherwise get produced to the area. One of the highlights of this year’s just-opened event is Will Nolan’s comedic “Deeper into Lady Land! (or The Gospel According to Kelly Clarkson).” Georgia Voice spoke recently to the gay playwright about his creation.

You were born in Atlanta, correct?

I lived here until I went to college in North Carolina and then I moved to New York.

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This program is supported in part by the Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs, and the Georgia Council for the Arts through the appropriations of the Georgia General Assembly.

GCA also receives support from its partner agency—the National Endowment for the Arts. Funding for this program is also provided by the Fulton County Board of Commissioners.

30 A&E June 10, 2016

How long have you been performing?

I did sketch comedy with a friend of mine from Atlanta. We were called Naked Dog Walking. We performed for six years and Leola, the star of that, was born. Then I moved to New Jersey with my husband and we adopted our son who is now nine. When I was turning 40, I had not done anything creative in a while and I wanted to jump back in. It was time for a one-woman show.

I did (the character) as part of the first Fringe Festival. This is the sequel.

Was there any inspiration for Leola?

I came out later in life, 23 or 24, but I had a great uncle, a retired priest who came out much later. I was fascinated by that idea and somehow the combination of that idea mixed with all the great Southern women in my life, mainly my mom, made this character. The crux of Leola is that she is 72, came out of the closet at 60 and still lives with her husband, her best friend. They live in Waycross and shop at the Piggly Wiggly. It took her so long to be who she is that she wants to encourage everyone to (do likewise) now. Be yourself, and proud of who you are.

‘Significant Other’ Closing out its run soon is Actor’s Express’ gay themed “Significant Other,” written by Joshua Harmon, whose “Bad Jews” was a commercial hit there. This one explores Jordan, a 29-year-old gay man in New York whose best female friends are marrying off,

Gay actor Will Nolan stars in ‘Deeper into Lady Land’ through June 12 at the Atlanta Fringe Festival. (Courtesy photo)

one by one. We caught up with Harmon to find out the play’s origin.

How did this come about?

I started working on the play five years ago at a writers’ workshop. We were given an assignment to write nine short scenes that could be performed in any order. I wrote these scenes about Jordan and his therapist talking about this guy from work he wanted to go on a date with. I got excited and decided to keep writing. From there it blew up into a long, epic 176-page draft. That’s not how long it is now. After a few years of reading and workshops it was ready to go out into the world.

Tell us about Jordan.

He is a gay Jew in New York with a lot of close girlfriends. The idea was to take what we often see as the gay sidekick character and take the camera and put him at the center of the lens, and tell it from his point of view.

Details ‘Deeper into Lady Land!

(or The Gospel According to Kelly Clarkson)’ Through June 12 Atlanta Fringe Festival Little Five Points www.atlantafringe.org ‘Significant Other’ Through June 19 Actor’s Express 887 W. Marietta St., Atlanta, GA 30318 www.actorsexpress.com Is this autobiographical?

I am somebody who wrote this while I was in my 20s in New York, going to a lot of weddings, but the play made its own demands that became known as I worked on it.

It’s ultimately a work of fiction, as it has to be to stand on its own. www.thegeorgiavoice.com

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EATING MY WORDS

By CLIFF BOSTOCK

Crawfish Shack Seafood: A ‘fried-tastic’ mess Normally, I don’t bother to review really disappointing restaurants, but Crawfish Shack Seafood (4337 Buford Hwy, 404-329-1610, crawfishshackseafood.com) is a place I have raved about like few others since it opened in 2008. Anthony Bourdain and the New York Times loved it too. But, in three visits with friends in the last year or so, we have watched it decline to something that by last week made us feel like characters in a cartoon.

The downward slide is unusual only in its extent. In my 30 years of writing about restaurants, I’ve always maintained that any review should be considered a report of a moment in time. A change of owners, chefs, and service staff can quickly reverse a restaurant’s quality. But, trust me, I’ve rarely seen anything like this.

First is the ambiance. This is what we principally noticed on our second visit. The restaurant has become grimy. Don’t drape your ceilings with nets and never clean them.

Ditto for the concrete floor, the walls and even the counter where you order. It’s all about grease and constant frying.

Second and foremost is the service. Now, it frequently happens that you can’t get precisely what you want. The owners of this restaurant have been fanatical about serving inseason, high-quality fish and shellfish. The shortage was worse than usual the second visit. But the third was outrageous.

I had decided on a plate of fried crawfish.

“We don’t sell a plate of fried crawfish, only boiled.” Whatever. The online menu says otherwise. Anyway, I wasn’t in the mood to tear heads off the tiny creatures, even though the Cajunspiced boil here has always been spectacular.

Then she said I could have the fried crawfish if I ordered the $28 “fried-tastic platter” or a po’ boy. So I said I’ll have the po’ boy. “We’re out of bread.” Then I decided I’d have the soft shell crab plate. “We don’t have any of those either.”

Just give me the damn fried shrimp.

It gets weirder. My friend Brian ordered that super-size “fried-tastic platter.” When it came to the table, it was presented as two thrown-together baskets instead of a platter.

A study in brown at Crawfish Shack Seafood, the undeservedly coveted crawfish in the foreground with fried shrimp hiding behind a larger mound of crinkle cuts. (Photo by Cliff Bostock)

There was indeed a huge mound of the allowed fried crawfish. It was supposed to have a soft-shell crab, so he had to substitute an additional piece of fish. About a third of the way into the meal, a server came to the table and deposited a soft-shell crab on the table.

“We found one,” he said. It seriously looked like someone had stepped on it.

Brian dug in and instantly reeled. “It’s rancid!” he yelled. I took a forkful and literally spit it out. I seriously do not remember ever tasting anything so bad. Beware of “found” crabs.

The third disappointment: Even the food that was palatable was only moderately tasty.

I was surprised how thick the batter on much of it was. Those coveted crawfish were like nuggets of deep fried flour, period. The big deal here has always been that the owner is Vietnamese-American. Asian cultures are famous for knowing how to fry seafood without overwhelming the taste with overly thick batter. On the other hand, Southern fish-camp aficionados might prefer it this way.

Perhaps this was all a fluke, but the restaurant – all community tables – was nearly empty. It has always been packed in the past.

Maybe it will improve. Please visit and let me know. I’m not taking on that task.

Cliff Bostock is a longtime dining critic and psychotherapist turned life coach. www.cliffbostock.com.

32 Columnists June 10, 2016 www.thegeorgiavoice.com

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Our Guide to the Best LGBT Events in Atlanta for June 10-23

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SATURDAY, JUNE 11

The East Point Possums Show, the Southeast’s largest drag extravaganza, features 20 acts, food, drinks and fun. The event, beginning at 7 p.m., is Atlanta Pride’s largest annual fundraiser. www.facebook.com/events/1062677447138397 (Courtesy photo/Jason Vaughn)

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EVENT SPOTLIGHT FRIDAY, JUNE 10

Always willing to explore the cutting edge of design, Museum of Design Atlanta (MODA) offers a special evening with Ti Chang, whose company, Crave, creates luxurious adult toys for women, some of which double as beautiful pieces of jewelry. Let’s Talk About Sex: An Evening with Ti Chang will take place from 7 to 9 p.m., www.museumofdesign.org (Courtesy photo)

34 Best Bets June 10, 2016

The Atlanta Braves will once again host LGBT Night at Turner Field beginning tonight at 6 p.m. Fans will be offered an exclusive ticket package for the contest between the Atlanta Braves and the Chicago Cubs. A pregame patio party will take place in the Right Field Patio and feature a live performance by the Atlanta Gay Men’s Chorus. The specially priced ticket package includes a voucher for a commemorative Atlanta Braves hat and a $5 donation to Lost-N-Found Youth. For more information or to purchase tickets to LGBT Night, visit www.Braves.com/LGBT. Horizon Theatre returns its acclaimed musical “The Toxic Avenger,” written by out Joe DiPietro, to Piedmont Park for free performances through June 12, with a 7:30 curtain tonight, www.horizontheatre. com/plays/the-toxic-avenger-piedmont-park DJ Kevin Durard presents Summer Friday T at 8 p.m. at the Heretic

Atlanta, www.hereticatlanta.com

SATURDAY, JUNE 11

Michael Carbonaro of “The Carbonaro Effect” and “Another Gay Movie” brings his magic show to the Cobb Energy Centre, 7:30 p.m., www.cobbenergycentre.com

SUNDAY, JUNE 12 – MONDAY, JUNE 13

The 5th Atlanta One Minute Play Festival takes place tonight and Monday at 8 p.m., with Topher Payne and many other playwrights participating, www.actorsexpress.com

SUNDAY, JUNE 12

DJ Robert Ansley spins for the night owl crowd, 3 a.m., Xion Atlanta, www.facebook.com/events/580854315417012/ The Pride Kickball Pool Party celebrates the start of Summer Pride Kickball! Free entrance includes a free cocktail, music, giveaways and more, 1 – 6 p.m.,

W Downtown, 16th Floor Pool Deck, www.watlantadowntown.com Out Front Theatre Company, Atlanta’s foremost theater that exists to tell stories of the LGBTQIA experience and community, hosts an evening titled “A Tony Award Takeoff” at 10th & Piedmont starting at 6:30 p.m., www.10thP.com

MONDAY, JUNE 13

The second annual Queer Ride is tonight.

The tour will check out both historical and contemporary queer spots in the city, from Amsterdam Café, to Cockpit, to Mother.

6:30 p.m., beginning at the gate at 12th and Piedmont. www.facebook.com/ events/1723161811257684

TUESDAY, JUNE 14

J’s Lounge is the home for Rainbow Tuesdays, with Dymond Onasis and Nicole Paige Brooks leading the fun and DJ Destin providing house music, 1995 Windy Hill Road #1, Smyrna, GA 30080

www.thegeorgiavoice.com

TELL US ABOUT YOUR LGBT EVENT

Submit your LGBT event for inclusion in our online and print calendars by emailing event info to editor@thegavoice.com WEDNESDAY, JUNE 15

Blake’s go-go boys spice up Voyeur Wednesdays at Blake’s. 10 p.m., www.blakesontheparkatlanta.com

THURSDAY, JUNE 16

SAGE Atlanta hosts a social hour at 10 a.m., followed by a program/meeting at 11 a.m., Phillip Rush Center Annex, www.rushcenteratl.org The Pretty Girl Hideout Thursdays is tonight, hosted by Mook Dahost, Soul Bar at Pal’s Lounge, 254 Auburn Ave., Atlanta, GA 30303, www.traxxgirls.com

FRIDAY, JUNE 17 – MONDAY, JUNE 20

The fifth annual Peach Party Atlanta weekend starts tonight and lasts through Monday, with events at Heretic Atlanta, Xion, Jungle, the Tabernacle and TEN Atlanta, www.peachpartyatl.com

FRIDAY, JUNE 17

Actor’s Express continues the gaythemed romantic comedy “Significant Other,” written by “Bad Jews” writer Joshua Harmon, at 8 p.m. tonight, running through June 19, www.actorsexpress.com Bring out your best construction worker look as the Atlanta Eagle hosts the Bar Code – Construction event, with VJ Eric.

10 p.m. – 3 a.m., www.atlantaeagle.com

SATURDAY, JUNE 18

Georgia Equality hosts the 12th annual Evening for Equality tonight, with a Host/Sponsor Reception at 6 p.m. and the event at 7 p.m., including a number of awards, InterContinental Buckhead Hotel, equalityfederation.salsalabs. com/o/35006/p/salsa/web/common/ public/content?content_item_KEY=9391 The White Party is an annual cocktail party to celebrate diversity and inclusivity. All proceeds from this annual celebration benefit CHRIS Kids, which serves LGBTQ and all youth of Atlanta who suffer from trauma and neglect. The night will feature food, drinks, a silent auction, dancing and live performances with DJ Yvonne Monet. 7 – 11 p.m., Mason Fine Art, 415 Plasters Ave NE,

www.thegeorgiavoice.com

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 15

Serenbe Playhouse presents John Steinbeck’s “Of Mice and Men,” tonight at 8 p.m., through June 26, www.serenbeplayhouse. com (Courtesy Photo) Atlanta, Georgia 30324 Atlanta Freedom Bands will close its 23rd season with “Groundbreakers!” an exciting, innovative music performance by today’s most talented composers. The program includes some of the best in 21st century wind band music. Vandy Beth Glenn will be the tour guide through this great music, 8 p.m., Druid Hills Presbyterian Church, 1026 Ponce de Leon Ave. NE, Atlanta 30306 DJ Tommy spins fun tunes at 9 p.m. at BJ Roosters, 2043 Cheshire Bridge Road, Atlanta, GA 30324

SUNDAY, JUNE 19

Join the LGBT Institute, Touching Up Our Roots and Atlanta Pride today at the Center for Civil and Human Rights to board the trolley with LGBT friends and allies to explore our LGBT history. This two-hour tour, narrated by local LGBT historian Dave Hayward and drag diva Diamond Lil, will begin at 2 p.m. and offer a glimpse into the past while enjoying an afternoon of fun. Register at: www.eventbrite.com/e/touching-up-yourroots-pride-tour-tickets-25652277653 The PFLAG support group for parents

and families of LGBTQ youth/individuals meets today at 2:30 p.m. at the Spiritual Living Center of Atlanta, 1730 Northeast Expressway NE Atlanta, GA 30329 Lips Atlanta will host an extra special Stonewall Month Dine Out for Pride this year, as well as a celebration of volunteer Peter Nunn, 6:30 – 10 p.m., www.lipsatl.com DJ Tron spins at Bulldogs, 893 Peachtree Street, Atlanta, GA, 30308

MONDAY, JUNE 20

Trans and Friends is a youth focused group for trans people, people questioning their own gender, and aspiring allies.

Charis provides a facilitated space to discuss gender, relevant resources and activism around social issues. Whether silently or aloud, please come ready to consider your own gender in a transient world. 7 – 8:30 p.m., www.charisbooksandmore.com Play Texas Hold’Em tonight for cash prizes at 8:30 p.m. at Friends on Ponce, www.friendsonponce-atl.com/

TUESDAY, JUNE 21

Join the annual Judson Women’s Leadership Conference, created to help

young women achieve greatness in their lives through thought leadership, positive mentorship, and education enabling, today from 7 a.m. – 5 p.m. at the Georgia World Congress Center, www.eventbrite.com/e/2016-judson-womens-leadership-conference-registration-19941324037 Art It Out Therapy Center is now offering an Expressive Art Therapy Group for LGBTQ Teens on Tuesdays. Through art, the group will explore self-identity, coping with stress, intimate and parental relationships, and coming out. 7 p.m., 255 Village Parkway (in Paper Mill Village), Suite 580, Marietta, GA 30067

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 22

WNBA season is in full gear. The Atlanta Dream, off to a fast 2016 start, hosts the New York Liberty at a rare noon game tonight, Philips Arena, www.philipsarena.com Charis Books welcomes Zakiya J. Lord, the regional development and engagement officer for the Astraea Lesbian Foundation for Justice, to help lead community members in a discussion about experiences organizing and fundraising for

CONTINUES ON PAGE 36 June 10, 2016 Best Bets 35

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 35 feminist, LGBTQ, racial justice, and other causes in Atlanta. 7:30 – 9 p.m., www.charisbooksandmore.com

Atlanta Pride Committee and Kashi Atlanta offer a viewing of the AIDS Memorial Quilt tonight through June 28, Kashi Atlanta Urban Ashram, 1681 Mclendon Ave., Atlanta, GA 30307

Angelica D’Paige and Malibu host The A.M. Show at 10:30 p.m., Burkhart’s, www.burkharts.com

UPCOMING FRIDAY JUNE 24 –

THURSDAY, JUNE 23

Stories of the complex relationships between fathers and sons returns to the stage in three performances of “The Story of U.S.” by the Atlanta Gay Men’s Chorus, with an 8 p.m. show tonight and a 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. show Saturday, Druid Hills Presbyterian Church, 1026 Ponce De Leon Ave., Atlanta, GA 30306

Every Thursday night is game and trivia night at My Sister’s Room, with doors opening at 6 p.m., www.mysistersroom.com Join Charis Books in welcoming Tabias Olajuawon Wilson, author of “Godless Circumcisions,” a witty and forceful study of race, sex and politics in contemporary culture. Personal and poetic, these essays, poems and biographical trysts disrobe issues central to the black, queer and working class existences. Wilson speaks fluently — fluctuating between academic authority, queer griot and matterof-fact honesty — to issues of racial-sexual terror; masculine anxiety; how black men learn the erotic, sex and vulnerability; the stereotypes of black and blaqueer people in the United States. 7:30 – 9 p.m., www.charisbooksandmore.com

SATURDAY, JUNE 25

FRIDAY, JUNE 24 SUNDAY, JUNE 26

Southern Fried Queer Pride (SFQP) is a queer and trans Pride festival in Atlanta celebrating the robust and vivid Southern queer communities that exist amidst the Bible Belt and the Deep South. SFQP aims to provide a weekend of full-flavored community and intersectionality, without all the corporate and capitalist additives that taint modern-day Pride festivals across the nation, southernfriedqueerpride.com

TUESDAY, JUNE 21

Andrew Lloyd Webber’s new production of “The Wizard of Oz” is an enchanting adaptation of the all-time classic, totally reconceived for the stage by the award-winning creative team that recently delighted London and Toronto audiences with the revival of “The Sound of Music.” The musical opens tonight at the Fox Theatre at 7:30 p.m. and runs through June 26, www.foxtheatre.org (Courtesy photo)

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Molly Coyne and Matt Alea in the Alliance Theatre’s 2016/17 production of Pancakes, Pancakes! Photo by Greg Mooney.

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36 Best Bets June 10, 2016

www.thegeorgiavoice.com

THAT’S WHAT SHE SAID

By MELISSA CARTER

Stonewall-sized expectations If you’re gay you’ve certainly heard of the Stonewall riots, but have you actually ever been to the bar where it took place? I have and it was nothing like what I expected.

I wasn’t born when those demonstrations took place at the Greenwich Village bar. Once I realized I was gay as a pre-teen, I secretly researched history regarding our people and the Stonewall riots were some of the first pinnacle moments in modern gay history I found.

The fact that it took place in New York seemed so big to this small town Southern girl. I envisioned a huge building with massive crowds, and some statue in place to commemorate the sacrifice those patrons gave to make sure that raids of gay bars were no longer a standard practice by police.

That’s not what I found. While visiting New York for the first time years ago, I wanted to make sure I had a drink at the Stonewall Inn—it would be sacrilegious as a lesbian to come to the Big Apple and not do so. I may have actually passed the place before I realized I had arrived there.

A small, smoky lounge atmosphere was what I stepped into, with very few people inside. No statue outside, no huge gatherings, just a dive for those who wanted a quick drink and casual conversation with the solo bartender.

I must say I was honestly disappointed.

Not that there was anything wrong with the place; the poor bar was never going to live up to the palatial preconception I had developed in my mind. Maybe I thought there would be a big rainbow carpet to welcome weary gay travelers. Maybe I thought there would be a ticket window for guided tours of the historic site. Nothing. It was just a small bar that weaved non-descriptly into the fabric of the neighborhood.

I had my drink, despite the headache I developed from the nicotine-infused fabric I was surrounded by, but soon left without www.thegeorgiavoice.com

“Maybe I thought there would be a big rainbow carpet to welcome weary gay travelers.

Maybe I thought there would be a ticket window for guided tours of the historic site.

Nothing. It was just a small bar that weaved non-descriptly into the fabric of the neighborhood.” a souvenir. My media-drowned mind would have set up a t-shirt shop next to the bar, with donations benefiting ACT UP. Maybe they had all that somewhere else and I just missed it.

I walked away realizing that I misunderstood history this whole time. I always paid attention to the outcome of events but rarely absorbed the fact that a small spark is really the start of a massive blaze. Like with Stonewall, all of our lives benefited from that small space. Not only did we begin to be taken seriously as a community, but every Pride event or march you have participated in was inspired by those riots. The key is recognizing that you’re as equally important as an individual as you are part of the collective.

Now I realize that making a true difference doesn’t require being a viral sensation with throngs of people chanting your name.

It simply requires you to remain authentic to your true self when it seems the world around you would rather you be someone else.

Melissa Carter is one of the Morning Show hosts on B98.5. In addition, she is a writer for the Huffington Post. She is recognized as one of the first out radio personalities in Atlanta and one of the few in the country. Follow her on Twitter@MelissaCarter June 10, 2016 Columnists 37

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38 Columnists June 10, 2016

SOMETIMES ‘Y’

By RYAN LEE

Cooking up butch queen shenanigans I occasionally pick up weekend shifts at a restaurant where I once worked full-time, and I love the quirky flow of kitchen conversations: 8-hour discussions composed of 15-second exchanges while clearing plates or passing food, primarily with participants but open to anyone in earshot, with therefore hilariously fluid contexts. This past Saturday we played an extended game of “What Kind of Gay Would I Be?” “I already know I would be a bear,” one of the servers, Allen, said while stacking cups in the kitchen. “I have a gay roommate, and he’s told me I’m a bear.”

“I don’t think you’re big enough to be a bear,” I replied. “More like an otter.”

“An otter?!” he said as he drifted back toward the dining room, dumbfounded.

A little while later, Allen passed through the kitchen again, nodded in the direction of the gay manager, and asked, “What type of gay is Darryl?”

“Darryl’s a twink, emeritus,” I said, eliciting a grin from the adorable middle-aged manager.

On a later pass through, Allen asked about one of his fellow heterosexual coworkers: “What type of gay would Clay be?”

“Oh, Clay’s a diesel booty power bottom,” I said as I noticed Clay obliviously approaching the kitchen. “Ain’t that right, boo?”

“Of course,” Clay said matter-of-factly, knowing he was likely walking into a mischievous punchline.

“So what type of gay are you?” Allen asked.

“I’m a butch queen,” I said. “And that’s a legit, sanctioned category, not like these ones I’ve been making up.”

Over the years that I’ve worked at the restaurant, I’ve tried to put my own homoerotic spin on the inappropriate lusting that is common in kitchen culture, or construction culture, or barbershop culture, or any culture in which two or more men gather and inevitably discuss their sexual quests and coups.

“On your back” and “behind you,” are industry phrases that are said hundreds of

“I know my oversharing and unwanted advances have caused discomfort among some of my male co-workers, which disturbs my feminist sensibilities. But overall, most have appreciated the satire in my homo-mannishness, and many have generously shared how our friendship has expanded their perspective on LGBT people.” times a day in a kitchen.

“Ohhh, just how I like it,” I’ll reply if I want to tease. If I’m in alpha male mode, I’ll go with the more misogynistic, “Well gone ahead and slide in then!”

I know my oversharing and unwanted advances have caused discomfort among some of my male co-workers, which disturbs my feminist sensibilities. But overall, most have appreciated the satire in my homo-mannishness, and many have generously shared how our friendship has expanded their perspective on LGBT people.

I thought I had a precise gauge of the boundaries of homoerotic humor, and while I spend much of the time kicking those borders, there are some places I won’t go. I shuddered a few months ago when two of my straight male co-workers were talking in the distance, and I overheard one of them make a joke about the other’s infant son growing up to be gay.

“And if he does, that will be OK,” the new father said.

Even though I was not part of the conversation and not even looking in their direction, I knew my co-worker was talking to me. When we passed each other a few minutes later, I gave a pat of gratitude on his back and said, “Appreciate that, daddy.”

“All day, boo.”

Ryan Lee is an Atlanta writer. www.thegeorgiavoice.com

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Purchase or lease any new ((Previously reviously untitled) subaru ubaru and receive a comPlimentary com limentary factory scheduled maintenance Plan see subaru subaru added added security security maintenance maintenance Plan for intervals, coverages and for 2 years or 24,000 miles (whichever comes first.) see customer must take delivery before 12-31-2016 and reside within the Promotional romotional area. at at ParticiPating P Partici articiP Pating ating dealers only. limitations. customer rogram details and eligibility. see dealer for Program

1950 orion dr decatur ga

404-248-1888

www.STIVERSATLANTASUBARU.com ALL PRICES PLUS TAX, TAG AND INCLUDE $499 DOC FEE WITH APPROVED CREDIT. NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR MIS-PRINTS. PRICES GOOD UNTIL JUNE 24TH 2016

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