08/06/21, Vol. 12 Issue 10

IMPORTANT FACTS FOR BIKTARVY®

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

(bik-TAR-vee)

MOST IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT BIKTARVY

POSSIBLE SIDE EFFECTS OF BIKTARVY

BIKTARVY may cause serious side effects, including:  Worsening of hepatitis B (HBV) infection. Your healthcare provider will test you for HBV. If you have both HIV-1 and HBV, your HBV may suddenly get worse if you stop taking BIKTARVY. Do not stop taking BIKTARVY without first talking to your healthcare provider, as they will need to check your health regularly for several months, and may give you HBV medicine.

BIKTARVY may cause serious side effects, including:  Those in the “Most Important Information About BIKTARVY” section.  Changes in your immune system. Your immune system may get stronger and begin to fight infections that may have been hidden in your body. Tell your healthcare provider if you have any new symptoms after you start taking BIKTARVY.  Kidney problems, including kidney failure. Your healthcare provider should do blood and urine tests to check your kidneys. If you develop new or worse kidney problems, they may tell you to stop taking BIKTARVY.  Too much lactic acid in your blood (lactic acidosis), which is a serious but rare medical emergency that can lead to death.

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

Tell your healthcare provider right away if you get these symptoms: skin or the white part of your eyes turns yellow, dark “tea-colored” urine, light-colored stools, loss of appetite for several days or longer, nausea, or stomach-area pain.  The most common side effects of BIKTARVY in clinical studies were diarrhea (6%), nausea (6%), and headache (5%).

These are not all the possible side effects of BIKTARVY. Tell your healthcare provider right away if you have any new symptoms while taking BIKTARVY. You are encouraged to report negative side effects of prescription drugs to the FDA. Visit www.FDA.gov/medwatch or call 1-800-FDA-1088.

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

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

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

BEFORE TAKING BIKTARVY Tell your healthcare provider if you:  Have or have had any kidney or liver problems, including hepatitis infection.  Have any other health problems.  Are pregnant or plan to become pregnant. It is not known if BIKTARVY can harm your unborn baby. Tell your healthcare provider if you become pregnant while taking BIKTARVY.  Are breastfeeding (nursing) or plan to breastfeed. Do not breastfeed. HIV-1 can be passed to the baby in breast milk.

Tell your healthcare provider about all the medicines you take:  Keep a list that includes all prescription and over-the-counter medicines, antacids, laxatives, vitamins, and herbal supplements, and show it to your healthcare provider and pharmacist.  BIKTARVY and other medicines may affect each other.

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

HOW TO TAKE BIKTARVY Take BIKTARVY 1 time each day with or without food.

GET MORE INFORMATION  This is only a brief summary of important information about BIKTARVY. Talk to your healthcare provider or pharmacist to learn more.  Go to BIKTARVY.com or call 1-800-GILEAD-5  If you need help paying for your medicine, visit BIKTARVY.com for program information.

BIKTARVY, the BIKTARVY Logo, GILEAD, the GILEAD Logo, KEEP ASPIRING, and LOVE WHAT’S INSIDE are trademarks of Gilead Sciences, Inc., or its related companies. Version date: February 2021 © 2021 Gilead Sciences, Inc. All rights reserved. BVYC0369 04/21

BVYC0369_BIKTARVY_B_10X10-5_GeorgiaVoice_Dimitri_r1v1jl.indd All Pages

DIMITRI LIVING WITH HIV SINCE 2018 REAL BIKTARVY PATIENT

KEEP ASPIRING.

Because HIV doesn’t change who you are.

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

Ask your healthcare provider if BIKTARVY is right for you.

See Dimitri’s story at BIKTARVY.com.

Featured patient compensated by Gilead.

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

3/31/21 12:27 PM

voice

georgia VOL.12 • ISSUE 10

ABOUT THE COVER: Cover photos by Shutterstock.com

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FINE PRINT

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4 Editorial August 6, 2021

GUEST EDITORIAL

U.S. Senators: It’s Time to Act Against Anti-LGBTQ Discrimination Jeff Graham, Executive Director, Georgia Equality

Polling consistently shows that a wide majority of Americans of both political parties strongly supports protecting LGBTQ people from discrimination. More than eight in 10 Americans support LGBTQ-inclusive nondiscrimination laws, including 62% of Republicans. We cannot let the loudest voices of a fringe minority hold our country back from delivering the promise of liberty, security, and equality for all people, no matter where they live.

Georgia has had the eyes of the nation on it for some time now.

It’s just over five years since people across Georgia braced themselves as lawmakers sent sweeping anti-LGBTQ legislation to the desk of then-Governor Nathan Deal. The LGBTQ community feared for the potential harms that the broad “license to discriminate” bill could bring. Business leaders feared billions of dollars being drained from the state’s economy as major players from Hollywood, the business sector, and even the NFL threatened to pull investments.

But after thousands of calls, meetings, and letters, Gov. Deal, a Republican and devout Evangelical Christian, ultimately did the right thing. He vetoed the bill, saying, “We do not have a belief in my way of looking at religion that says we have to discriminate against anybody.”

At the time Gov. Deal’s veto was heralded as a radical move for a Republican leader.

But the truth is that Republican lawmakers faced with bills targeting LGBTQ people frequently take action against these measures.

We saw it earlier this year in Arkansas as Gov. Asa Hutchinson vetoed a draconian anti-transgender health care bill. Earlier this year, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox teared up while condemning an anti-trans bill, saying, “These kids are just trying to stay alive.” Prominent Republican leaders in South Dakota, Texas, South Carolina, and Arizona have vetoed or moved to block anti-LGBTQ bills. Stalwart Republican senators from Alabama and Iowa have passionately supported open military service for transgender people.

There are plenty of examples of Republicans supporting LGBTQ people, but they’ve often been lost in the headlines stoking the socalled left-versus-right “culture wars.”

Former Gov. Nathan Deal

PHOTOS VIA WIKI

Here in Georgia, Gov. Deal’s action inspired further evolution on LGBTQ issues. In the five legislative sessions since Gov. Deal’s veto, Georgia’s legislature has not passed a single anti-LGBTQ bill. Republicans and Democrats alike have defended LGBTQ Georgians from discriminatory measures. And so many Georgians across the political spectrum — within families, friend groups, and workforces — have had conversations about what dignity for LGBTQ people looks like.

Now it’s time for the members of the United States Senate to build on that consensus by taking the most important and critical step yet for LGBTQ Americans. It’s time for senators on both sides of the aisle to come together and enact legislation such as the Equality Act, which would establish concrete, enduring nondiscrimination protections for all LGBTQ people in areas like housing and public spaces, including restaurants, stores, and hospitals.

LGBTQ people in too many states — 29 nationwide — remain vulnerable because of a lack of explicit nondiscrimination laws at the state and federal levels.

Because, really, we are so close to passing federal LGBTQ protections — closer than ever before. Nearly 50 years after its first introduction in Congress, the Equality Act has passed with bipartisan support in the House and received its first-ever Senate hearing. Republican senators in the Senate Judiciary Committee voiced empathy for the harms that discrimination has caused LGBTQ people. They also expressed a willingness to find a path to protect us.

And there is more than one bill proposed to address the inequality that LGBTQ people are subjected to. The Senate Judiciary committee opened a door to the long overdue conversation.

Now it’s on us to hold that door open and guide all our senators through. Democratic senators must reach out to their Republican colleagues and address concerns. Republicans must draw on the many recent examples of conservative leaders working to protect LGBTQ people.

We can’t afford another 50 years of federal inaction on this bill. We can’t afford for the two parties to keep butting heads in a bitter stalemate. For the first time in history, we have a real opportunity to secure protections for LGBTQ Americans.

We must seize this opportunity and find a solution that works for everyone. It’s essential that right, left, and center come together, reach consensus, and at last, do the right thing.

TheGeorgiaVoice.com

NEWS BRIEFS Staff reports LGBTQ Atlantan Katie Janness Murdered in Piedmont Park The Federal Bureau of Investigation has joined Atlanta police in the investigation surrounding the murder of Katie Janness (below left), 40, and her dog in Piedmont Park.

Janness, who was a member of Atlanta’s LGBTQ community and a bartender at the LGBTQ-owned Campagnolo, was found stabbed to death in the park on Wednesday (July 28) after walking her dog Bowie, who was also killed. Janness was found by her partner of six years, Emma Clark, after she tracked her with her phone’s GPS. “Today, I lost the love of my life and baby boy,” Clark said in a post shared to a GoFundMe page. “It was tragic. She was the most intelligent, kind, humble, and beautiful person I have ever known. I wanted to spend every second with her. [Bowie] was the sweetest, most loyal companion. My heart is so very broken, my world will never be the same.”

A vigil was held for Janness on Thursday evening at Piedmont Park.

Atlanta police were canvassing Piedmont Park and the surrounding area on Saturday evening “in an effort to locate anyone who may have information” on the murder, according to 11 Alive. The APD hasn’t provided specifics on the FBI’s involvement.

There is currently a $10,000 reward being offered to anyone with information on Janness’ murder. Call APD Homicide at 404-546-4235 or Crime Stoppers at 404-577-TIPS with any information.

Atlanta Black Pride Announces Celebrity Ambassadors for Weekend Celebration Atlanta Black Pride has announced that the cast of “Women in the Life — Atlanta” will be this year’s Celebrity Ambassadors for Atlanta Black Pride weekend on September 2 through September 5.

“Atlanta Black Pride, Inc. supports this initiative with Donna4Film Productions, 6 New Briefs August 6, 2021

Shawn Graham Skelly (l) and Gina Ortiz Jones Tatum Studios, and Women In The Life Atlanta cast because there is hope that this will be the stepping stone that is needed to have the Black LGBTQ+ community get involved in Atlanta Black Pride.” said Amber Moore, COO of Atlanta Black Pride, Inc. This year, Atlanta Black Pride, Inc. is hosting majority of their events at the host hotel, Atlanta Marriott Midtown (35 14th St. NE) and Central Park (400 Merritts Ave. NE).

Vending opportunities are still available.

Senate Confirms Two LGBTQ Appointees to Pentagon Posts Despite behind-the-scenes objections, the U.S. Senate on July 22 confirmed the nominations of two openly LGBTQ appointees to top Pentagon posts. The vote, by voice vote without objection, confirmed transgender Shawn Graham Skelly of Virginia to be an Assistant Secretary of Defense and lesbian Gina Ortiz Jones of Texas to be Under Secretary of the Air Force.

Skelly, 55, a retired U.S. Navy pilot and former deputy chief of staff for the U.S. Pacific Command, served as a special assistant to the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics during the last three years of the Obama administration. She was also part of the Biden transition team and co-founder of an LGBTQ national security group called Out

PHOTOS VIA FACEBOOK

in National Security.

Jones, 40, a former intelligence officer and captain in the U.S. Air Force, served in Afghanistan and as an intelligence officer in the U.S. Africa Command and U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency. She has recently run two campaigns for a U.S. House seat representing San Antonio, losing by close margins.

Annise Parker, president of the LGBTQ Victory Institute, said the confirmation of Skelly and Jones to “key leadership positions” will “transform perceptions of LGBTQ people within the ranks of the U.S. military, but also among the leaders of militaries we work with around the world.”

“While they were confirmed because of their unquestionable qualifications and experience,” said Parker, “they symbolize our continued progress and will further disrupt any lingering notion that LGBTQ people are somehow unfit to serve.”

There were no voiced objections to either Skelly or Jones during their June 16 confirmation hearing before the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee. But ahead of the hearing, at least one Republican senator derided President Biden’s more pro-LGBTQ military as “emasculated” and “pansies.” And several of his Republican colleagues said they were concerned about “far left” agendas.

TheGeorgiaVoice.com

NEWS

Mike Russell Announces Run for Atlanta City Council President Olivia Martin Mike Russell, a former Army officer and openly gay man, announced his run for Atlanta City Council President earlier this summer.

Originally from Oklahoma, Russell moved to Germany as a child after his father joined the Army. Upon graduation from Campbell University in North Carolina, he entered the military as well and retired after reaching the rank of lieutenant colonel and serving in the U.S. and abroad. He now resides in Atlanta with his husband, Jarno Oostingh.

Russell believes his experience as a leader within the military police and as a base operations officer, providing city services on Army installations, sets him apart as a candidate for city council president. He spoke to Georgia Voice about his campaign and experience.

“I’ve run police stations, I’ve worked from the local level to the international level with police forces, I’ve taught soldiers how to be police officers,” he said. “I see that as a very unique skill set in helping the Atlanta City Council to be able to perform their oversight role over the Atlanta Police Department under city services.”

Russell has experience with more aspects of running a city than law enforcement, too.

In some of his later roles in the military, he oversaw other services. As he rose in rank, he gained responsibility for services like fire departments and even, on some bases, hundreds of civilian security guards.

By Russell’s estimation, crime and city-service infrastructure are chief concerns for Atlantans, and he sees himself as the man for the job.

“The number one issue on everyone’s mind is crime, and I think second to that, people 8 News August 6, 2021

Mike Russell is running for Atlanta City Council President.

OFFICIAL PHOTO

I’ve talked to are very upset about the poor city services that they receive right now from the City of Atlanta,” he said.

improvement of public schools, asserting the responsibility of parents to be involved in their children’s educations.

In general, Russell’s campaign goals and positions center heavily around the issues of public safety and crime. The ideas set forth on his campaign website include embracing community policing, offering police officers enhanced training, and updating technology such as the 911 system, security cameras, and body cameras.

“Parental involvement and homelife are the foundation upon which our civil society is built, and education is a key part,” he says on his campaign website.

“I truly believe that the first responsibility of government is public safety, and we’ve got to get this fixed right now,” he said, noting conversations with supporters and even local business owners whose primary concern is crime in the city.

Some other important stances of his include those on education, which he sees as “the gateway to success.” On education, Russell advocates both for school choice and

Another central priority of his campaign is race relations, and on that topic, Russell hopes for “the same standard for everybody.”

He seeks unity in the city and sees the path forward as one in which everyone is judged based on two traits: merit and character.

“In order to unite our city, we must treat everyone the same; everyone must be judged by one set of rules and held to the same standards,” Russell says on his site. “There cannot be one standard for Blacks and another for whites or Asians or Hispanics; there must be one for everybody. We have to stop allowing politicians and others to divide us by race (and

“In order to unite our city, we must treat everyone the same; everyone must be judged by one set of rules and held to the same standards. There cannot be one standard for Blacks and another for whites or Asians or Hispanics; there must be one for everybody. We have to stop allowing politicians and others to divide us by race (and gender, sexual orientation, etc.).” gender, sexual orientation, etc.).”

Green space and preserving Atlanta’s tree canopy are also important to Russell.

“I want us to preserve what is unique about our city, including our canopy, which I am working really hard to preserve right now,” he said. “I am against the new changes in the zoning laws, because these zoning laws will be a great detriment to our green spaces and tree canopy.”

He hopes for an Atlanta that is a “better city, not just a bigger city.”

Whoever wins the race for council president will preside at city council meetings and serve as the tiebreaking vote, and the position is elected citywide. The election will occur this fall on November 2, and you can learn more about Russell’s campaign in the meantime at mikerussellatlanta.com.

TheGeorgiaVoice.com

NEWS LET’S STOP HIV TOGETHER

Josh Dowd Recovers from Brain Injury After Attack, Investigation Continues Katie Burkholder On July 11, Josh Dowd — an openly gay Asian man — was found bleeding from his head and barely breathing on train tracks in Buckhead.

He was rushed to Grady Hospital with severe brain damage. Almost one month later, Dowd’s partner of three and a half years, Colin Kelly, provided Georgia Voice with an update on Dowd’s condition and the investigation.

According to Kelly, Dowd has been making good progress with his recovery.

Josh Dowd

COURTESY PHOTO

“He’s still technically in a coma, but his eyes are opening, and they respond to voices and commands,” Kelly told Georgia Voice. “He can be listening to his favorite song, and his eyes are completely stable. But the minute someone he loves speaks to him they start to move around.”

individual. Most of the people Dowd was with that night at the Heretic have given statements that have been verified. Kelly said it’s “definitely a possibility” that Dowd was targeted for either being gay or Asian, but they need to know more about who did it before determining the motive.

Kelly said that Dowd has begun receiving physical therapy with nurses sitting him upright for a few minutes at a time.

“I know from his appearance that he was dressed more flamboyantly, and most [people] would connect the dots [that he was gay] there,” he said. “I don’t know if that would drive hostility, but I think we need to know a bit more about who did it first.”

“It’s getting his body accustomed to some of the things we all take for granted,” he said.

“Obviously, the most devastating [outcome] would be if he were deemed brain dead.

But with these daily activities and increased acknowledgement of commands, it’s a really good sign that his brain is doing everything it needs to heal and rewire itself.”

Dowd should be moved to the Shepherd Center, which specializes in brain injury rehabilitation, soon. Until then, Kelly said he and Dowd’s mother will be by his side “every single day.”

There is a GoFundMe to raise money for Dowd — at the time of writing, $127,405 has been raised of the $300,000 goal. The GoFundMe raises critical funds to cover his medical bills, provides financial peace of mind for Dowd’s family, and generates awareness. However, the number one way to support Dowd, Kelly said, is completely free.

“The sergeant reached out to me and said they’ve got some very promising leads,” Kelly said. “He couldn’t give me an awful lot of details, but he did say it was progressing.”

“Prayers are super critical, and I’m not the world’s most religious person,” he said.

“I was at Grady, and I was in total freefall.

I could not find any hope or peace, and it made it really hard to be there with Josh and be supportive. I was praying that I would find that peace and strength, then out of nowhere, with the snap of a finger, I felt instantly better and ready to go. Prayers are really making a difference, in my opinion.”

Kelly said that police have two potential options for suspects: either someone who knew him or a stranger, potentially a homeless

Kelly soberly closed the interview with this piece of advice: “Don’t take anyone you love for granted.”

The investigation surrounding the attack has been making progress, as well.

TheGeorgiaVoice.com

HIV prevention our way.

PrEP is a daily pill that can help prevent HIV. FIND A PrEP PROVIDER NEAR YOU

August 6, 2021 News 9

NEWS

Global LGBTQ Travel Convention Comes to Atlanta This Fall Katie Burkholder The International LGBTQ Travel Association (IGLTA) Convention comes to Atlanta next month, offering LGBTQ members of the travel industry worldwide opportunities for networking and education.

From September 8 through 11 at the Hotel Midtown (188 14th St), LGBTQ travel and tourism professionals will come together to network, share best practices for making travel safe and welcoming to the LGBTQ community, and take part in several incredible educational sessions and panels — like LGBT 101, Women in Business, and Beyond 2021: Trends for LGBTQ Travel.

“This year’s convention will have a strong emphasis on diversity, equity, and inclusion,” John Tanzella, the president and CEO of IGLTA, told Georgia Voice. “We often say

10 News August 6, 2021

that you can find LGBTQ conventions with flashier staging, but you won’t find one with more heart ... The convention is a place where those entering the market can learn from global thought leaders in a friendly environment.

And for those working in destinations that lack infrastructure or supportive laws for LGBTQ people, the convention is an opportunity to connect with like-minded people in a safe space and find inspiration to create change in their communities.”

The weekend kicks off with the buyer/seller marketplace from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on September 8 before the opening reception at the Georgia Aquarium on September 9. In conjunction with the convention, the weekend’s agenda includes Voyage 2021, a fundraising event benefiting the IGLTA Foundation, at the Delta Flight Museum on September 10.

“This year’s event at the Delta Flight Museum

promises to be the most spectacular yet, with entertainment, open bar and hors d’oeuvres all set against a backdrop of exhibits that showcase the past, present and future of aviation,” Tanzella said.

100 percent of proceeds from ticket sales will benefit the foundation, which empowers LGBTQ-welcoming travel businesses globally through leadership, research, and education. Initiatives include a fellowship program funding attendance for LGBTQ small business owners, young professionals, and students to attend the convention, a transgender advisory council, and a project developing LGBTQ tourism in India.

This global convention serves as an opportunity to highlight an important sector of travelers, according to Tanzella.

“We’ve seen in various surveys through the

years, from IGLTA and others, that LGBTQ [people] are loyal and very resilient travelers, often leading the charge when travel resumes after a crisis, like 9/11, the 2008 financial crash, and now COVID-19,” he said. “73 percent of the respondents in our 2021 LGBTQ+ Post Covid Travel Survey said they planned to take their next major vacation before the end of 2021. It’s also worth noting that according to the U.S. Department of State, about 42 percent of U.S. citizens have passports, but 85 percent of our U.S. LGBTQ+ respondents are passport holders. We get out there!”

Registration for the convention is now open. To register and find the full agenda, visit igltaconvention.org. Buy tickets to Voyage 2021 at igltaconvention.org/ convention/rsvp/voyage and view the full results of the 2021 LGBTQ+ Post Covid Travel Survey at iglta.org/research.

TheGeorgiaVoice.com

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August 6, 2021 Ads 11

FALL ARTS

Fabulous Fall Festivals Katie Burkholder

Candler Park Fall Fest

Fall festivals are returning to Atlanta — from live music to artist markets, it’s time to get back out there and share community over the arts. No matter where in the city you are, there’s an event for you.

Atlanta’s favorite in-town festival is back!

Head over to Candler Park (Candler Park Drive and McLendon Avenue) to enjoy excellent music, tasty treats, kid-friendly fun, art, and community — all for free!

ELEVATE Atlanta Art Festival

For more information, visit FallFest.CandlerPark.org.

October 2–3, 2021

September 5–October 31, 2021

This year’s ELEVATE Atlanta Art Festival, hosted annually by the Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs, will activate communities throughout Atlanta with art and cultural events. This all-encompassing festival includes partnerships with art galleries, museums, theaters, performance venues, restaurants, bars, shops, colleges, parks, and libraries.

Fall Festival on Ponce October 9–10, 2021

The Atlanta Foundation for Public Spaces is hosting this incredible free festival in the historic Olmsted Linear Park (1451 Ponce De Leon Ave NE). In addition to an abundance of unique local art, attendees will enjoy a children’s area, local gourmet food and beverages, and live acoustic performances.

The festival kicks off Labor Day Weekend (September 5–6) with the return of the Atlanta Jazz Festival at Piedmont Park, then continues every weekend through October with music, art, dance, and film events across Atlanta’s diverse array of neighborhoods.

For more information, visit FestivalOnPonce.com.

One Musicfest

October 9–10, 2021

For news and updates about ELEVATE 2021, visit ElevateAtlArt.com.

Candler Park Music Festival

Stevie Nicks comes to Shaky Knees in October.

PHOTO VIA FACEBOOK

September 10–11, 2021

This incredible festival, held at Centennial Olympic Park (235 Andrew Young International Blvd NW), is perfect for fans of rap and hip-hop. Headliners include H.E.R., Lil Wayne, The Isley Brothers, Burna Boy, Ari Lennox, and Ty Dolla $ign. Tickets start at $169 for the weekend.

Performers for this two-day festival, presented

by Rival Entertainment, include Galactic featuring Anjelika Jelly Joseph, Ripe, The Infamous Stringdusters, Spafford, The Vegabonds, Voodoo Visionary, The Dirty Guv’nahs, Marco Benevento, Hedonistas, Webster, Airwolf, and Moneyshot. Singleday tickets and weekend tickets are available for purchase starting at $30 and $40, respectively. Shows start at 4pm on September 10 and noon on September 11.

in Piedmont Park with headliners including Maroon 5, Miley Cyrus, the Jonas Brothers, and Megan Thee Stallion. This year’s lineup includes some amazing LGBTQ performers, including Ashnikko and Girl in Red. Tickets start at $135 for the weekend.

Other festival performers include Americana legends, Old 97’s; Grammy winners Blind Boys of Alabama; The Cactus Blossoms; and Michelle Malone. Tickets are $60 for general admission, $150 for VIP, and $250 for premium VIP.

For the full lineup and tickets, visit MusicMidtown.com.

To buy tickets, visit CandlerParkMusicFestival.com.

It was recently announced that Indigo Girls would be headlining this year’s Amplify Decatur Music Festival, presented by Lenz and produced in partnership with Eddie’s Attic in the Decatur Square on October 2 from 4 to 11pm.

If you’re looking for some free entertainment, Amplify Decatur will also feature a free outdoor concert on Friday, October 1.

An artist lineup and more information are expected to be released soon. For both events, Amplify is working with the City of Decatur to develop a plan that will ensure public health and safety.

With more than 60 bands playing this three-day festival, Shaky Knees is the perfect festival choice for lovers of rock ‘n’ roll.

Headliners Stevie Nicks, Run the Jewels, and The Strokes will each rock the stage at Central Park (400 Merritts Ave NE).

One-day and three-day tickets are available starting at $99 and $219, respectively.

For more information and to purchase tickets, visit AmplifyDecatur.org.

For the full line-up and tickets, visit ShakyKneesFestival.com.

Music Midtown

September 18–19, 2021

Atlanta’s most popular music festival is back 12 Fall Arts August 6, 2021

Amplify Decatur Music Festival October 1–2, 2021

For the full lineup and tickets, visit OneMusicFest.com.

Shaky Knees

October 22–24, 2021

TheGeorgiaVoice.com

Find Your Way Home!

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August 6, 2021 The Pink Page 13

FALL ARTS

Fall Arts Abound in the ATL Katie Burkholder

maze of accessible, sensory environments by Bryony Roberts Studio. Masks are required.

High Museum of Art 1280 Peachtree Street NE High.org

This fall, Atlantans have plenty of opportunities to enjoy the arts. From LGBTQ films, TV, and comedy to the world-famous Hamilton and Pablo Picasso, fall 2021 brings with it a slew of opportunities to connect with the art lover in all of us.

FILM AND TELEVISION Everyone’s Talking About Jamie Out on September 17 on Amazon Prime

COMEDY AND THEATER Laugh Out Loud

This British stage musical-turned-film tells the story — inspired by real events — of Jamie New, a gay teenager who gets pushback from his peers for wanting to go to prom in drag.

August 13, 2021

Enjoy a night of queer comedy with some of Atlanta’s funniest LGBTQ comedians.

Starting at 8pm, Ian Aber, Matthew English, Julie Marateck, Lily Campbell, Karen Felix, and Julie Osborne will take the stage — and hilarity will ensue.

Tickets are $20. Due to Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms’ new mask mandate, masks will be required for this event.

Out Front Theatre Company 999 Brady Avenue NW OutFrontTheatre.com Hamilton

August 22–September 26, 2021

The musical sensation written by Lin-Manuel Miranda comes to the Fox Theatre this fall.

Enjoy the award-winning story of America’s founding father, Alexander Hamilton, told through a score that blends hip-hop, jazz, R&B, and traditional Broadway.

Fox Theatre 660 Peachtree Street NE FoxTheatre.org

“Sex Education” Season 3 Out on September 17 on Netflix

Pablo Picasso, Reclining Nude, Boisgeloup (1932) The New Black Fest’s Hands Up

and broken — but the show must go on.

“Eternals”

This timely performance is a must-see this fall.

Seven playwrights — Nathan James, Nathan Yungerberg, Idris Goodwin, Nambi E. Kelley, Nsangou Njikam, Eric Holmes, and Dennis Allen II — have written seven monologues for this performance, each depicting the harsh realities of Black America from a variety of genders, sexual orientations, skin tones, and socioeconomic backgrounds.

Alliance Theatre 1280 Peachtree Street NE AllianceTheatre.org

Visit on Saturday night to enjoy performances from local burlesque dancers Ada Manzhart and Clara Toris.

“Eternals,” directed by Chloe Zhao, is set to feature the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s first gay couple and first gay kiss. The story features cosmic-powered superhero Phastos and his husband (played by Brian Tyree Henry and Haaz Sleiman, respectively).

October 8-31, 2021

September 8–October 3, 2021

VISUAL AND PERFORMANCE ART The Show Must Go On

This haunting new folk-country musical, set in ’30s Appalachia, follows the story of an ambitious young woman and a pastor committed to preserving the status quo as cracks begin to form in the town’s façade.

Inspired by local lore, this show will leave audiences on the edge of their seats.

Alliance Theatre 1280 Peachtree Street NE AllianceTheatre.org

This solo show by mixed media visual artist Kate Luther is an installation and performance exploring the daily act of performance and persona. This unique exhibition allows visitors to see the mechanisms up close — at first glance, a theatrical production appears as this glamorous form of reality. However, the production is full of flaws as characters forget lines, costumes are worn, props are chipped

Darlin’ Cory

14 Fall Arts August 6, 2021

IMAGE COURTESY OF HIGH MUSEUM

The uber LGBTQ-friendly British series returns to Netflix this fall. This season brings on a new nonbinary student, Cal, played by gender nonconforming songwriter and recording artist Dua Saleh.

August 13–16, 2021

The show will be held from 1 to 4pm on Friday, Sunday, and Monday, with donationbased ticketing on those days, and from 6 to 9pm on Saturday with $8 tickets.

The Bakery Atlanta 1526 E. Forrest Avenue TheBakeryAtlanta.com Calder-Picasso Exhibition

Now through September 19, 2021

The works from twentieth-century art icons Alexander Calder and Pablo Picasso come to the High in late summer. The exhibition includes more than 100 paintings, sculptures, and works on paper spanning the artists’ careers.

While there, explore the two other temporary exhibits: Electrifying Design, featuring 80 rare lighting examples from the past 100 years; and Outside the Lines, an immersive

In theaters November 5

“Flee”

In theaters November 5

This animated documentary tells the story of Amin, a gay man who immigrated to Denmark from Afghanistan as a minor on his own. As he’s about to get married to his boyfriend, a secret from his past is revealed and threatens to upend his life.

“Prideland”

Streaming on YouTube now

Hosted by out actor Dyllon Burnside, this six-episode series — which won a Daytime Emmy this year — explores LGBTQ life in the U.S. The series spans topics like polyamory, LGBTQ health care, and samesex adoption and follows subjects like an openly gay pastor and Burnside himself.

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FALL ARTS

Songs of the Summer Tracks to check out this season from our favorite queer musicians Sydney Norman Music is so integral to the summer experience that Spotify updates personalized “Summer Rewind” playlists for their users every summer season with the songs they bopped to the most in previous years. Therefore, keeping your finger on the pulse of the songs of summer means keeping a pulse on what’s hot in popular culture right now.

The music gay icons release not only heavily shapes LGBTQ culture, but also the rest of the social landscape as well. Here’s what’s new from some of our favorite queer musicians.

Just after celebrating his “Montero (Call Me by Your Name)” music video reaching one million dislikes (mostly by people made uncomfortable by its gay or Satanic iconography), Lil Nas X released “Industry Baby” with Jack Harlow. The music video shows him shining his Grammy awards and straightening his platinum plaques to let the haters know that no matter what they think of him, his sexuality, or his music, he’s still thriving. The video goes on to show him escaping from a prison cell while decked out in a hot pink prison uniform. He also released an “uncensored” version of the video that seemingly freezes on a running shower head, effectively trolling all of the seven million viewers that clicked on the “X”-rated video.

Kim Petras recently teased her newest song via an Instagram livestream of her Lollapalooza set. Her website invites you to “pre-save” her new single, “The Future Starts Now,” in order to unlock an eightsecond clip of the tune. Once you hit the TheGeorgiaVoice.com

Big Freedia

A scene from Lil Nas X’s video for “Industry Baby” pre-save button, her signature sound (“OuiAh!”) plays. The clip teases listeners with an upbeat dance tune featuring Petras singing, “Don’t give up the future starts now!” Her much-awaited new album is rumored by fans to be heavily influenced by French electro music, and some have speculated that she’s completely ditching all sad songs and ballads this go-round.

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their music video for “It’s the — For Me.” This isn’t the first time the “RuPaul’s Drag Race” alum has teamed up with the Atlanta local for a musical project. The two teamed up alongside Alyssa Edwards for Gemini’s “I Can’t” in June 2020 for a pandemic-friendly music video.

Inspired by the phrase popularized on TikTok, “It’s the — For me” will make you want to get up and strut your stuff whether you’re on the runway or in the cereal aisle.

Multi-platinum pop superstar Jessie J is no stranger to releasing summer hits. One of her biggest hits, “Price Tag,” infiltrated the air waves in the summer of 2011. In the lead-up to her much-anticipated 5th studio album, she has teamed up with Berlin-based producers Twocolors and gay icon Billy Porter to release a remix of “I Want Love.” The song builds under Jessie J’s powerhouse voice until it bursts into a dance beat as she proclaims that she “wants love.” Porter’s voice proves there’s truly nothing he can’t do as he keeps up with Jessie J, crooning over the infectious beat that simply makes you want to get up and dance.

Atlanta-based pop/EDM artist Norwood is virtually teaming up with London-based producer Tiago Antunes to bring us the relatable tune “Maskerade” this summer.

The duo linked via FaceTime to create a piece of work anyone trying to date during a pandemic can relate to. Norwood’s rich voice describes how “distancing socially makes [him] emotionally numb.” He describes the frustrations of online dating and trying to find “the one” but only finding heartache.

If you’re one swipe away from giving up on love, this jam might just be for you.

Rigel Gemini and Gia Gunn serve looks in

Big Freedia teamed up with Tank and the

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Bangas and Soaky Siren in order to release “Betty Bussit” late this June. The track begins with a remixed sample of Betty Boop and quickly launches into an upbeat tempo that begs to be danced to. Big Freedia is also featured among a long list of highly accomplished artists for the new “Space Jam: A New Legacy” soundtrack. In an interview with Rolling Stone, “Space Jam: A New Legacy” director Malcolm D. Lee stated that he views the original “Space Jam” soundtrack as a “cultural turning point” as “it came at a time when soundtracks for movies were just exploding, particularly when it came to African-American music — hip-hop and R&B … we [have] a high bar to reach.” Big Freedia helped them hit that bar with track 13, appropriately titled “Goin’ Looney.” The track features Freedia’s signature sound as well on theme lyrics like “shoot your shot” and “we on the clock.”

Another Atlanta native to watch is the upand-coming GodisMikey. Pre-COVID, he teamed up with Zé Taylor to open for Rico Nasty’s The Sugar Trap Tour on her Atlanta stop. He recently hopped on the remix of “Goofy Bitch” with President Ward to deliver a danceable rap tune, and he also dropped “Heat (Sneak Dissin’)” in early April, which sounds as if it would fit right along with any chart-topping rap song released this year.

The track asks, “If you real, then why you sneak dissin’?”

August 6, 2021 Fall Arts 15

MARÍA HELENA DOLAN REELING IN THE YEARS

The 18th Century Nonbinary, Genderless Prophet: 1752–1819 María Helena Dolan

“The change was so fully transformative that they declared a change of (non)gender, and a new name to accompany the change: Public Universal Friend. They would not answer to their birth name, nor female pronouns. Nor would they wear any item of female clothing. And they proclaimed that messages and miracles came through them from Jesus Christ.”

You wouldn’t think that Colonial America could present to history a “prophetess” (term used during their life), reborn from a frivolous and “gay” woman into a messianic leader who showed tens of thousands the Word of God. In the colonial state of Rhode Island, Jemima Wilkinson appeared in 1752 as the seventh child born into an ordinary Quaker farming family. When Jemima was 12, her mother died giving birth to the twelfth child.

Jemima grew into an attractive, vibrant woman, preferring dancing, clothes, and the company of horses to the charms of meeting a man and having children.

When she was 23 or so, her sister Patience gave birth to an “illegitimate” child. As was customary, the entire family was shunned, and they were disinvited from their Friends (Quaker) meeting.

Not long after, Jemima suffered a four-day brutal bout with typhoid fever. The former Jemima Wilkinson, according to eyewitness accounts, “rose from the dead, like our Lord.” She had been a handsome woman, with startlingly black eyes and black hair long and flowing — and now, when they rode astride a horse, they were garbed in preacher-style robes, extremely daring and unconventional for someone regarded as female in that age.

The change was so fully transformative that they declared a change of (non)gender, and a new name to accompany the change: Public Universal Friend. They would not answer to 16 Columnist August 6, 2021

Jemima Wilkinson

IMAGE COURTESY OF YATES COUNTY HISTORY CENTER

their birth name, nor female pronouns. Nor would they wear any item of female clothing.

And they proclaimed that messages and miracles came through them from Jesus Christ.

More importantly, others saw and felt the miraculous transformation of the former Jemima. Ezra Stiles, president of Yale and influential public intellectual, recounted “she died and is no more Jemima Wilkinson. But upon her restoration, which was sudden, the person of Jesus Christ came forth and now appears in her body with all the miraculous powers of the Messiah.”

It’s important to understand that this time period became known as the end of the first “Great Awakening” that took hold in the colonies (and then States). Among the shifts in consciousness was the idea that one’s immortal soul was at stake, and people fervently followed individual preachers, including itinerant preachers who rode from

towns to townships to outdoor places people met to worship.

The Friend cut quite the figure, riding in with their long hair flowing, wearing preacher coverings, riding boots and men’s breeches, exhorting with a forceful and appealing voice and countenance.

And they would exhort and provide the firm but persuasive word of God on Free Will and the possibility of Universal Salvation, on how to live and create miracles from the laying on of hands. Preaching throughout southern New England, they espoused the equality of all races: white, Black, Native, which meant manumission of slaves and upholding treaties and the equality of the sexes.

Also, knowing the difficulties women have with childbirth and its repercussions, it is unsurprising that they advocated (voluntary) celibacy.

The Public Universal Friend had their followers, known as Universal Friends, purchase land in western New York state and build a township, New Jerusalem (later, Jerusalem), where everyone owned the land together. The Friend’s example did not sit well with many influential men: a woman who dressed as a man, who promoted radical ideas such as abolition and equality of the sexes, equality with the formerly enslaved (who would need work and lodgings and a church), and women not having to marry or listen to a man as head of the household.

Yet Universal Friends knew: “There is neither male nor female in Christ” (Galatians 3:28).

Many women, single and not, inhabited the township. When the local Sheriff and his assistant rode to the main house to arrest Public Universal Friend for the crime of Blasphemy (quite serious at the time), the 40 women in the house and environs pulled the men off their horses, tore their clothes off them, and sent them on their way.

The Public Universal Friend died at age 67.

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JIM FARMER ACTING OUT

New Documentary Explores Iconic Alvin Ailey, Out Actor Harvey Guillen Highlights “Werewolves Within” Jim Farmer As a choreographer, dancer, director, and founder of the 1958 theater company named after him, Alvin Ailey was an instrumental figure in showcasing the African American experience through dance.

The new film, “Ailey” — documenting the icon’s life — is now in theaters.

Director Jamila Wignot feels lucky that the film found her. She was approached

by Insignia Films, whose executives were familiar with her work and asked her to direct the documentary. “I was like — What?” she recalled. “It was amazing. I said yes immediately, and we set off our own journey.”

The first time she saw a performance by the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, she was in college. The Black student group on campus had some free tickets and she didn’t know anything about the company at all. “I had a life-changing experience in the sense that I was introduced to dance and this company that I am still a fan of today,” Wignot said. “It was a powerful, visceral moment of this extraordinary beauty and technical prowess and joy on stage.”

“Ailey” uses much of the central figure’s own audio — and the original cut was three hours.

“My editor and I laughed that maybe we’d just make a podcast of all this,” Wignot said. “It was very hard to let go off things that we loved in his voice. He made over 70 choreographic works in his lifetime and [we knew] from the beginning that there’s no way to do justice to his full rep, not to mention all the other dances that are staged there.”

The film makes effective use of archival footage. Wignot and the “Ailey” team knew that the company had an extraordinary quantity of archives at the Library of Congress, but they had to find dance works that the company had done over the years 18 Columnist August 6, 2021

“Ailey” “Werewolves Within”

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and other material elsewhere.

What surprised the director most was Ailey’s elusiveness, even to the collaborators he was closest to. “He had a deep need of a private space, some separation between the grind of being a public figure and needing that privacy at the same time,” she said. “That is the duality. He is this extraordinarily generous figure who seems to beam a spotlight on people to allow them to flower and bloom, that they are eternally grateful for, but he did not receive the same reciprocity.”

Ailey was out to his friends and colleagues but couldn’t be publicly gay. “I think it was hugely challenging,” Wignot speculated. “What we have to remember is that he was a creature of his own time. He was out to everyone in the company, he just never had a single person he dedicated himself to. Of course, in 1958, can he be a gay person and receive funding, can he go on State Department tours as they

are purging gay people from their ranks?

That is a generation of people who found their way to a community who didn’t have a problem with his sexuality, but he cannot exist in a world that is going to embrace him in his entirety. There is a real challenge of having to lead a double life in a way and yet not even being able to imagine a different kind of world. I think if he showed up today, he would find there are so many things that have not changed but there is possibility that didn’t exist for him in the same way.”

As a snowstorm rages outside, a mysterious creature begins terrorizing a community in Josh Ruben’s “Werewolves Within.” In the horror comedy film, out actor Harvey Guillen (“What We Do in the Shadows”) plays one of the townspeople, Joaquim Wolfson, who is married to Devon (Cheyenne Jackson).

The actor had a blast making the movie with a strong ensemble of performers. Guillen

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describes Joaquim as a new member of the community with Devon. “They are a couple of New York self-made millionaires,” Guillen said. “They wanted a simple life, so they left the city behind and brought some style and quirk with them. They have opened a yoga shop in town.”

Guillen had never met Jackson before the filming and told director Ruben that it would be interesting to show a new way at looking at a couple. “Cheyenne and I are different sizes and height, and I thought it would be nice to show that queer love can look like everything, not the traditional Adonis, six-pack type,” he said. “The idea here is we can see people here that we live next door to.”

MORE INFO “Ailey” opens in Atlanta August 6 “Werewolves Within” in now available on VOD

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August 6, 2021 Ads 19

CLIFF BOSTOCK OLD GAY MAN

On Flamingos and Aging Cliff Bostock Before dementia, there are flamingos and nosiness.

Long before clinical dementia overtakes the brain, aging has mental effects that change us. There’s the inevitable effect of watching the past repeat itself both personally and culturally. There’s also the effect by which anything eccentric about you in earlier life becomes intensified. When two such effects come into alignment, you’re in trouble.

For example, there are pink flamingos and the disposition of the author of this column (AKA the nosy bitch). I’ll illustrate. True story, I’m afraid.

I was driving through Morningside and passed a house landscaped with crepe myrtles, beds of flowers, and a lawn of pure green that had never been perturbed by a weed. However, the lawn was also home to a pair of plastic pink flamingos on silvercolored legs. I had been noticing the campy bird’s return everywhere and, as someone who once owned over 200 images of it, I’d been wondering why.

I parked in front of the house and knocked on the door. A teenager opened it and frowned.

“Hello,” I said, “Are your parents here?”

“My mom’s in the kitchen. Can I tell her what you want?”

“It’s nothing important. I just want to ask her a few questions about the flamingos.”

PHOTO BY PEXELS.COM / JILL BAROW

the place and I wondered what possessed you to give these two a home.”

“Oh,” she said, stepping forward and looking over my shoulder. “Are you with someone?

Is there someone I should call?” Rodney steps outside and crosses his arms.

I explained that I have a history of collecting flamingo images that goes back to the mid’70s when they were a goofy cultural icon of Floridian fantasy. Around 1982 I sold my collection — mainly souvenir statuettes dating back to the ’50s — to a store that was opening with the name Pink Flamingos.

I tell her that people kept giving me flamingos.

In fact, I had recently boxed up a bunch, planning to get rid of them. Then, I started noticing them in Dollar Stores, on websites that sell collectibles, and in people’s yards.

“The flamingos?” the boy repeated. I nod.

He looked a bit weirded out, but that’s okay.

Soon, his mother was at the door with a dish towel in her hands. “Hello,” she said.

“Rodney says you are selling flamingos. I’m not really interested …”

I laughed. “No, no. I’m seeing them all over 20 Columnist August 6, 2021

“So, again,” I said, “I’m just curious to know what about them attracted you? Does it have something to do with the infamous movie, Pink Flamingos?

The impossible occurred. “Excuse me?” she said. “It sounds familiar, but I just bought them because I thought they were a hoot. I

mean, I know they’re retro …”

“Yeah,” I said. “Even in 1979 when I was collecting them, they were retro but campy.

In fact, that year I wrote the Christmas cover story for the AJC’s Sunday Magazine about the beauty of bad taste, and it was illustrated with my kitsch collection, including an abalone-shell lamp featuring a palm tree, a flamingo, and Jesus on the cross. I said it turned Christianity’s pivotal tragedy into an accident in the Everglades.”

wasn’t long after I wrote that story that I met this hot guy who lived in a mobile home — just like Divine in Pink Flamingos. One day, I came across a vintage toy trailer home park and a pair of tiny flamingos. I set it all up on my bed. He asks me, ‘What’s this about?’

I told him something like, ‘Well, I’m giving you this, so no matter how high you climb in life, you won’t forget that your roots are in a trailer park.’ He got furious and asked me if I thought he should be ashamed of his mobile home. Then he called me an asshole and left. I never saw him again.”

I laughed. She didn’t.

“That same year, I lived in a beautiful apartment building on Saint Charles. One of my neighbors was Mickey Day, a hilarious drag queen, who was larger than Divine, the drag queen in Pink Flamingos. Mickey decorated the courtyard with flamingos like these. The neighbors objected and kept hurling them on the roof. That’s one thing about these. Some people have no sense of humor and really hate them.”

Rodney was now squatting in the grass, appearing interested. “At the same time,” I said, fully wound up, “other people think this shit is fine art and take it seriously. It

Rodney and his mother looked weary. “So,” Rodney asked, “these birds are gay, right?”

“Oh, hell yeah,” I said. He laughed. She smiled. They thanked me for the “history lesson” and went inside. I got in my car and made a call when someone knocked on the window. It was Rodney with flamingos in his arms: “Mom says you can have these. She doesn’t want them anymore.”

“I don’t want them. I’ve been done since 1982,” I replied. Then he said it: “Dude, you’re old!” I replied: “Your mama’s a flamingo freak. Goodbye.”

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August 6, 2021 Restaurant Guide 21

MELISSA CARTER THAT’S WHAT SHE SAID

Mental Health and Simone Biles Melissa Carter I once volunteered for Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. They have a broadcast media center in the lobby of Egleston, a gift from Atlanta native celebrity Ryan Seacrest, and my job was to train to be on air and serve the young patients who can hear the station in their rooms. During my tenure there, members of the Atlanta Falcons visited the studio and were interviewed by the then on-air host. I recall an answer from a team member about the best advice he’d received: “Always stay coachable.”

He addressed the tendency of older and professional players to fall into the trap of white-knuckling outdated beliefs. I’m afraid I had to learn that lesson during the current Olympic Games when Simone Biles withdrew from Team USA’s gymnastics finals.

I admit I was pissed, my initial reaction a mixture of concerns. First, I wasn’t comfortable with the idea of abandoning your team no matter how lackluster your performance in the moment. That’s when you dig deep and find the character to figure it out. Secondly, I winced at the realization only women, including Biles and Naomi Osaka, were taking the opportunity to withdraw from competition for mental health reasons. Here we are as women, finally obtaining respect for high-level competition, giving fodder to critics who believe women are too weak to handle tough situations.

Being the daughter of two mentally and physically tough parents, one of whom served this country in Korea and was a star athlete in his own right, my instinct was to cry bullshit. I fumed to friends over the situation, expressing how we need to figure out a way to help our kids understand 22 Columnist August 6, 2021

Simone Biles

PHOTO VIA FACEBOOK

the difference between mental illness and fighting their way through self-doubt.

I discussed with Katie Jo what philosophy we should teach our son if this is the new culture of athletics. Fortunately for me, I was surrounded by calmer minds who suggested I wait and see what really was going on.

That’s when I thought of that Falcons player and his advice. Was I correct in my anger, or had I become old enough to be set in my ways and unwilling to see things differently?

I watched the coverage later that night and saw Biles make the decision and then stand by her teammates, helping carry items and giving advice. She could have easily exited the arena and avoided mocking stares from competitors, but instead she stayed and took responsibility for her decision. I saw Michael Phelps give heartfelt support and understanding for her, and as a member of the media I began to wonder if we are heavily responsible for the pressure placed upon elite athletes. It’s true the acronym “GOAT” is thrown around now more than ever.

So, I calmed and allowed the benefit of the doubt to cool my engines. It doesn’t erase my aforementioned concerns, yet I do agree that mental health should be as important and easily addressed as a traditional physical issue.

I agree that her overall accomplishments should not be erased by the most recent performance she gives. And I believe the only way we can stay a community and remove factions is to allow at least part of your mind to remain open to allow new ideas to take hold and bloom.

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RYAN LEE SOMETIMES ‘Y’

When We Were ‘The Unvaccinated’ Ryan Lee Ronald Reagan loved the gays. Ronald Reagan always loved the gays.

This is, of course, not true.

However, given the Orwellian reversals of political discourse, it feels like only a matter of time until conservatives bury The Gipper and liberals realize he was our hero all along.

Republicans are calling police officers cowards and insurrectionists patriots. Inner city (itself an adjective which now means the opposite of what it once denoted) Democrats are suggesting more law enforcement, more prosecutors, more incarceration will return us to the time when cities had no crime. It’s tempting to trace this ideological dyslexia to the wet market of most modern ills — Trumpism — but unclear whether these re-alignments are temporal or this century’s version of the parties swapping racial attitudes in the 1900s.

If our nation’s reversal of political opinions were charted, it might neatly overlay a map of the spread, containment, and resurgence of COVID-19 in the U.S. No matter which side of the spectrum they speak from, whenever I hear someone talking about the pandemic and our societal response to it, I wonder: what if we believed what we used to?

It would be hilarious watching Republican leaders defend patient privacy and oppose the exclusion of high-risk folks from the public square, if only I wasn’t still furious about their philosophical ancestors wanting to tattoo the foreheads of gay men and keep affected children out of classrooms during the HIV/AIDS crisis. It might be amusing to substitute “syphilis” for “coronavirus” whenever a conservative pundit rationalizes promiscuous behavior during an outbreak, until you remember all who have died (and are dying) while partisans defecate until they have the highest mound and all the power.

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PHOTO BY ISTOCK.COM

The gag is how familiar conservative talking points sound to me, how I, too, once believed the sick should not have their behavior used against them when determining if they “deserved” their plight. Dignity, access and outreach used to be among the liberal priorities when dealing with the affected, before a plague came along that allows us to call people stupid, reckless vectors of infection.

The differences between HIV/AIDS and COVID-19 — how they are spread, the risks they pose — are innumerable, and so I have no expectation for folks’ reaction to be identical. Still, many people have flipped their views on public health policy without any reflection or nuance, nor humility guided by how they would like to be treated when they are among the suspect class.

My 25-year-old roommate was raised in a conspiratorial household and retains a cavalier aversion to vaccines. He recently conceded he may get the shots once enough time passes to verify their safety, and both my empathy and advice channeled lessons I’ve deferred to throughout this current plague.

“HIV used to be a guaranteed death sentence, and then some pills suddenly came along in 1995 that promised to rescue people,” I said. “There were folks who had legitimate reasons to distrust the medical establishment and pharmaceutical companies, and who probably said they were going to wait to make sure these new drugs were safe, and those people are dead.”

August 6, 2021 Columnist 23