LGBT Education
Resurrecting Angels in America
Published September 02, 2009 @ 05:02AM PT
There's no cast put in place yet, nor any plans behind how to mount a performance of one of Broadway's epic shows in an intimate, off-Broadway theater, but Angels in America, one of the first plays to deal exclusively with the subject of HIV/AIDS and its onslaught within the gay (especially gay male) population is staged for a comeback in 2010.
The show, written by Tony Kushner, is set in 1985-1986 during the height of the Reagan administration and nearly five years into the HIV/AIDS crisis. Technically, Angels is two shows - “Part 1: Millennium Approaches” and “Part 2: Perestroika”. And it interweaves stories from those dealing with HIV/AIDS - a gay male couple, real right-wing lawyer Roy Cohn - as well as a story involving coming out amidst a heaping helping of religious indoctrination (a closeted Mormon lawyer, and his sedated wife).
The show is expected to open in late Fall or Winter 2010. Interestingly enough, the show comes back to life at a time when HIV/AIDS numbers are back on the rise. Perhaps a tie-in educational/advocacy campaign is in order?
We'll leave with one of the best quotes from Angels, from the protagonist, Prior. It's all about being addicted to life. Take it away:
But still. Still bless me anyway. I want more life. I can't help myself. I do. I've lived through such terrible times and there are people who live through much worse. But you see them living anyway. When they're more spirit than body, more sores than skin, when they're burned and in agony, when flies lay eggs in the corners of the eyes of their children - they live. Death usually has to take life away. I don't know if that's just the animal. I don't know if it's not braver to die, but I recognize the habit; the addiction to being alive. So we live past hope. If I can find hope anywhere, that's it, that's the best I can do. It's so much not enough. It's so inadequate. But still bless me anyway. I want more life.
Wise Latina is the New Queer
Published August 20, 2009 @ 10:11PM PT
During the confirmation hearings for U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, many conservative and right-wing pundits tried to make a big to-do over the fact that Sotomayor said the following statement: "[A] wise Latina woman with the richness of her experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn’t lived that life." Conservatives wanted to paint this statement as racist and offensive. Pop culture instead has embraced the phrase "wise Latina," pushing the term into the lexicon of words, like queer, that have been reclaimed by minority groups as a means of empowerment.
Queer is a term that, for many, was an offensive slur that harkened back to the days of "Mad Men," when it was regularly used as a derogatory term to refer to LGBT folks. Now? For many, it's a cultural concept that means a rejection of labels for one's sexual orientation. Or, as some folks have put it, queer was a term that was reclaimed by the LGBT community as a source of power.
Exit queer, enter Wise Latina. The latter phrase was used by many a conservative politico as a means of trying to discredit Sonia Sotomayor. Sen. John Cornyn, for instance, said that Sotomayor's reference to being a Wise Latina was "antithetical to the whole idea of the rule of law." Rush Limbaugh called Sotomayor a "racist" for using the term Wise Latina. Glenn Beck said that Sotomayor's comment was "one of the most outrageous racist remarks" he's heard.
So how are people reacting to conservatives trying to criminalize the phrase "Wise Latina"? They're embracing the term as a badge of honor, and a proud descriptor. Booyeah.
AP notes that "Wise Latina" has become a pop culture phenomenon. And now it's being marketed on books, cups, T-shirts, and onesies, to name a few items. Charles McIlwain, a media prof at NYU, told AP that people are seeing this phrase as an opportunity to take pride in their roots, and reclaim it as something worth aspiring toward.
"I think one thing many people are doing, Latinas and the Latino community in general, is reframing the phrase and saying: 'Hey, when we talk about the wise Latina, we're not trying to show that somehow we're better than others, but we want to associate being Latino with something that's wise and good," McIlwain told AP.
What a great example of owning a phrase that haters tried to tarnish. Talk radio might want to demonize Wise Latina, along the same lines as words like queer were once demonized. But these are words and terms that can be reclaimed, and can be used to educate and inspire, rather than label or disparage.
Activism, Art, and the HIV/AIDS Crisis
Published August 20, 2009 @ 05:23PM PT
How do you commemorate the fear, anger, hope, challenges, activism, and organizing that occurred at the height of the HIV/AIDS crisis in the U.S. more than twenty years ago? If you're the Carpenter Center for the Visual Arts, you host a whole semester's worth of programming and exhibits looking at the impact that groups like ACT UP had, and the vivid images that captured the country's attention and changed the way that HIV/AIDS was viewed.
Before there was social networking, there was guerilla marketing. And as the Carpenter Center points out, that tactic was deployed quite effectively by ACT UP, as well as artist collectives like Gran Fury, the Silence = Death Project, and Fierce Pussy (to name a few). These groups used the power of art to fight against HIV/AIDS, and specifically to fight against government inaction and stereotypes that made up the early history of the disease in this country. Whether it was explaining that kissing doesn't cause HIV/AIDS, or whether it was telling the Catholic Church that condoms protect against sexually-transmitted diseases, these orgs put their artwork where their politics were, so to speak.
"ACT UP’s demonstrations in the late 1980s and early 1990s reflected the group’s outrage against a governing establishment that ignored HIV/AIDS as a national health crisis; that failed to secure funding for medical research, treatment, and education; that profited from inflated costs for therapeutic drugs; and that perpetuated homophobic misrepresentations of HIV and AIDS," writes the Carpenter Center.
The exhibit itself? Well, it'll feature classic ACT UP advertising campaign posters, as well as a suite of over 100 video interviews with surviving members of ACT UP New York. Those interviews form the crux of an oral history project that captures a diverse movement birthed during the darkest days of HIV/AIDS. These are the organizers and activists who "transformed entrenched cultural ideas about homosexuality, sexuality, illness, health care, civil rights, art, media, and the rights of patients," and made the world a little - scratch that, a lot - better for everyone fighting against the disease.
In other words, the exhibit at the Carpenter Center will pull together some of the best social artwork of the last thirty years: the artwork and ad campaigns that helped end misinformation about HIV/AIDS, that brought about new strategies of political organizing, and that helped give voice to those living with HIV/AIDS. Better yet, it should help draw the connections between the organizing and activism at the height of the 1980s, and how lessons learned during that movement can be applicable now.
From the ABA to the NEA, Professional Organizations Support Marriage Equality
Published August 10, 2009 @ 06:49PM PT
The American Bar Association (ABA) and the National Education Association (NEA) were racing to the punch to show which professional organization would take a bolder step for LGBT rights. The victor? Well, who cares. Both organizations took important steps last week to side on behalf of LGBT rights and marriage equality.
First the ABA. which last week passed an organizational wide resolution calling for a full repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). The resolution, according to Edge Publications, seeks the end of the provision in DOMA that excludes married same-sex couples from access to federal benefits, such as Social Security, that are available to married heterosexuals. In other words, the ABA took DOMA to task for depriving gay and lesbian couples more than 1,100 federal benefits that heterosexual couples receive from the federal government.
The NEA, on the other hand, not only lambasted DOMA, but called for the passage of employment non-discrimination legislation, domestic partnership legislation, and immigrant equality legislation. Trifecta. Here's the scoop from On Top Magazine.
...the NEA voiced its support for repeal of DOMA, passage of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), a bill currently before Congress that would ban employment discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity, the Domestic Partnership Benefits and Obligations Act, a bill that would extend health-care and retirement benefits to the gay and lesbian spouses of federal employees, and the Uniting American Families Act (UAFA), a bill that would allow gay and lesbian Americans to sponsor an immigrant partner for citizenship.
The NEA also said it would “support its affiliates seeking to enact state legislation that guarantees to same-sex couples the right to enter into a legally recognized relationship,” then added that “each state decide for itself whether 'marriage,' 'civil union,' 'domestic partnership,' or some other term is most appropriate.”
Another item said the association opposes gay marriage bans.
It's great that one organization dedicated to upholding and preserving the law finds that bills like the Defense of Marriage Act are dangerous and foster inequality, and it's great that one organization dedicated to excellence in teaching and public schools thinks that marriage equality and non-discrimination policies are crucial for our country.
Now if we can just get the American Medication Association (AMA) to say something, we'll have an alphabet soup contingent of marriage equality supporters.
Daniel Radcliffe Says No To LGBT Suicide
Published August 10, 2009 @ 06:30AM PT
When it comes to celebrity support for LGBT rights, Daniel Radcliffe is giving everyone a run for their money. Two weeks ago Radcliffe gave an interview to the UK's Attitude magazine, where he talked about how much he loathed homophobia, and the people that foster it. Now he's giving a major donation to one of our favorite organizations, The Trevor Project, to combat suicide among LGBT youth. Talk about putting your money where your mouth is.
The Trevor Project announced today that Radcliffe would be joining its circle of major donors, to help support the organizations work among LGBT youth. Trevor works on a number of different issues, from combating violence against LGBT youth to fostering education programs that spotlight issues facing LGBT youth. They are perhaps most famous for their Trevor Helpline, a 24-hour suicide hotline for LGBT youth. That Help Line provides an invaluable service for LGBT populations, and the organization has said that call volume to the suicide hotline is up more than 300 percent since last year. Wow.
Maybe that's one reason why Radcliffe wants to support the organization so badly. There's perhaps never been a more critical time to deal with the issue of LGBT suicide, especially among young people. Here's what Radcliffe said in announcing the donation:
It's extremely distressing to consider that in 2009 suicide is a top three killer of young people, and it's truly devastating to learn that LGBTQ youth are up to four times more likely to attempt suicide than their heterosexual peers. I deeply hope my support can raise the organization's visibility so even more despondent youth become aware of The Trevor Helpline's highly trained counselors and Trevor’s many other resources. It's vitally important that young people understand they are not alone and, perhaps even more important, that their young lives have real value.
LGBT lives have real value. What a message for the most famous 20-year-old in the world to proclaim loudly. For more information on The Trevor Project, check them out here.
Dismantling Homophobia with Some Big Gay Ice Cream
Published August 08, 2009 @ 07:14AM PT
Big gay ice cream is peaking at the right time given the August heat. For those traveling to (or living in) NYC this summer, there's another item to add to your 'must-see' list. It's a Big Gay Ice Cream Truck, and it seems to be gaining in popularity with each passing summer day.
What is the Big Gay Ice Cream truck? It's an ice cream truck service started by Doug Quint, who is part professional bassoonist and now part ice cream truck guy. Quint is gay, and he drives around an ice cream truck with a giant rainbow soft-serve cone plastered on it. Sounds kind of funny, right? Well, it's gone from a quirky little adventure, to a seemingly NYC culinary experience. In the past two weeks alone there have been stories on NPR, Gothamist, Heeb, and Metro Weekly to name a few. And Quint's ice cream truck now has more than 2,300 followers on Twitter (and counting), looking for a daily dish of dessert.
But how can ice cream dismantle homophobia? Well, for that, check out Quint's own words, courtesy of Heeb. Yes, ice cream is not political. But it seems like in a small way, Big Gay Ice Cream is having an impact on people's hearts and minds:
The Big Gay Ice Cream truck has become more than a summer gig for Doug [Quint], who recently blogged about the kids—most seem to be tourists—who are amazed about the GAY truck.
"Usually the kid is between seven and 12, I’d say. You can tell that they only think of the word ‘gay’ as an insult. The parents brush it off. I can see that some of them do so naturally, and others take a brief moment while they decide how to react. They shrug, or tell their child, ‘Yep, it’s the Big Gay Ice Cream Truck.’ Sometimes they even come over for a cone.
I wonder if my silly banner, and the child/parent reactions to it, might be a good thing. Maybe one or two of the kids that pass by my truck will now think twice before using ‘gay’ as an insult. If that keeps one kid from hearing it the way I (and lots of you) did—as a personal attack— I’m proud."
Who knew ice cream could be so powerful? So if you're in NYC, or heading there soon, check out the Big Gay Ice Cream truck on twitter.
21 Same-Sex Couples Walk Into a Marriage Equality Campaign...
Published August 07, 2009 @ 06:11AM PT
Earlier this year, the Washington, D.C. City Council voted to allow the District to recognize the marriages of same-sex couples who tie the knot in places like Maine, Massachusetts, Iowa, Vermont, Connecticut, and New Hampshire, where marriage equality is on the books. This Fall, there will likely be an effort to enact marriage equality in Washington, D.C., and as part of that campaign, 21 same-sex couples are leading the way, using the power of storytelling to convey just how important the right to marriage is for gay and lesbian couples.
The storytelling campaign is part of an effort by D.C. for Marriage, who recently called for same-sex couples to come forward and tell their story. These stories, so goes the thinking, are the most powerful weapon same-sex marriage advocates have in showing how personal the marriage equality struggle is for gay and lesbian couples deprived the rights of civil marriage. Here's what Michael Crawford, President of D.C. for Marriage, told the Washington Blade:
The real focus is on enabling couples to share stories about why marriage is so important to gay and lesbian families. We know that the more people get to know us the more supportive they are of LGBT equality. The best way to do that is to have conversations with people about why marriage is so important.
It all comes back to conversations. That's exactly the point that Stop8.org made this past year when the California Supreme Court ruled in favor of Prop 8 - that the only way to win marriage equality back in California would be to have conversations with our friends and neighbors, and show them in a very personal sense why marriage equality matters. Looks like that's the same thinking in Washington, D.C., too.
Four of the couples participating in the storytelling campaign spoke to the Blade. Here's one of their tales, but do consider heading on over to the Blade's site to read the other three. It's really a treat to read such honest, personal stories from people who will be directly affected by whether marriage equality does - or doesn't - become reality in D.C.
Sharon McGowan & Emily Hecht
Emily Hecht and Sharon McGowan, who are engaged, are now planning their wedding, which will be held in Boston on June 5, 2010.
Hecht said that while she and McGowan would probably have married regardless of whether D.C. recognized their marriage, “Marriage recognition is going to play a part in where we choose to live after getting married, in the long term.”
“Our choices will center around where we will be recognized as married,” she said. “D.C. is where we are currently, and New York is a long-term goal.”
Hecht and McGowan are lawyers and in the process of having documents drawn up to ensure that they don’t run into any problems having their union recognized in other states.
“We’re exploring all the other legal documents we’ll need to draft, since we recognize there will be other states that won’t recognize our marriage,” McGowan said.
Hecht said that the word “marriage” is important, though, and she plans to talk about that during the campaign.
“When Sharon and I talked about [how] we were going to register as domestic partners in the District, I thought to myself, ‘How am I going to explain that to my family? What does it mean?’” she said.
“When we decided we were going to marry in Boston — though we got engaged before the law passed, thinking it would happen — it was a much easier conversation to have. I called my mom, said that we got engaged and were getting married. That word meant something to her. She knew what it was.”
Yup, it's these types of stories that are going to make the difference.
