SEPTEMBER 2022 I ADVOCATEMAG.COMOAK CLIFF
2 oakcliff.advocatemag.com SEPTEMBER 2022 contents OAK CLIFFVOL.ADVOCATE16NO.9 A reptile among the unusual menagerie of an Oak Cliff home. Read more on page 18. Photography by Jessica Turner. PROFILE 10 Roll into Good Foot Skates FEATURES 6 Urban wildlife 18 She bought a zoo 22 Prison-abolitionnonprofit 24 Non-alcoholiccocktails COLUMN 30 Worship sept 22
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SEPTEMBER 2022 oakcliff.advocatemag.com 5 ABOUT THE COVER Silos near the Margaret Hunt Hill PhotographyBridge. by Nikola Olic. FOLLOW US: Talk to us: editor@advocatemag.com Newsletter: advocatemag.com/newsletter DISTRIBUTION PH/214.560.4203 ADVERTISING PH/214.560.4203 ADVERTISING CONSULTANTS Frank McClendon 214.560.4215 / fmcclendon@advocatemag.com Greg Kinney 214.292.0485 / gkinney@advocatemag.com Michele Paulda 214.724.5633 / mpaulda@advocatemag.com Catherine Pate 214.560.4201 / cpate@advocatemag.com Linda Kenney lkenney@advocatemag.com Heather Abbott 214-326-2555 / habbott@advocatemag.com Annette Lentz alentz@advocatemag.com Classified Manager: Prio Berger 214.292.0493 / pberger@advocatemag.com Marketing Director: Sally Wamre 214.686.3593 / swamre@advocatemag.com Development Director: Alessandra Quintero 786.838.5891 / aquintero@advocatemag.com Digital Marketing & Analytics: Autumn Grisby agrisby@advocatemag.com Publisher/Editor-in-Chief:EDITORIAL Jehadu Abshiro jabshiro@advocatemag.com SENIOR EDITORS: Rachel Stone 214.207.8309 / rstone@advocatemag.com Renee Umsted rumsted@advocatemag.com Editor: Alyssa High ahigh@advocatemag.com Editor-at-Large: Christina Hughes Babb chughes@advocatemag.com Digital Editor: Raven Jordan rjordan@advocatemag.com Senior Art Director: Jynnette Neal jneal@advocatemag.com Art Director/Photographer: Jessica Turner jturner@advocatemag.com Interns: Alejandra Puente, Natalie Murphy Contributors: George Mason, Patti Vinson, Carol Toler, Sam Gillespie, Lucy Erspamer, Matthew Ruffner, Eric Folkerth, Betsy ContributingSwetenburgphotographers: Kathy Tran, Emil Lippe, Corrie Aune, Yuvie Styles, Shelby Tauber, Azul Sordo, Johnathan Johnson, Sylvia Elzafon Chief Revenue Officer: Rick Wamre 214.560.4212 / rwamre@advocatemag.com Advocate (c) 2022 is published monthly in print and daily online by Advocate Media - Dallas Inc., a 501(c)3 non-profit corporation based in Dallas and first published in 1991. Contents of this print magazine may not be reproduced. Advertisers and advertising agencies assume liability for the content of all advertisements and sponsorships printed, and therefore assume responsibility for any and all claims against the Advocate. The Publisher reserves the right to accept or reject ay editorial, advertising or sponsorship material in print or online. Opinions set forth in Advocate publications are those of the writers and do not necessarily reflect the Publisher’s viewpoint. More than 180,000 people read Advocate publications in print each month; Advocate online publications receive more than 4 million pageviews monthly. Advertising rates and guidelines are available upon request. Advocate print and online publications are available free of charge throughout our neighborhoods, one print copy per reader. For information about supporting our non-profit mission of providing local news to neighborhood readers, please call 214-5604212 or email rwamre@advocatemag.com. Prepare for power generatorGeneracoutageshomeFREEREQUESTAFREE - 0438 Limited Time O erSpecial Financing Available Subject to Credit Approval Prepare for unexpected power outages with a Generac home standby generatorFREE 7-Year Extended Warranty* A $695 Value! REQUEST A FREE QUOTE! 866-643-0438 Limited Time Offer - Call for Details Special Financing Available Subject to Credit Approval *To qualify, consumers must request a quote, purchase, install and activate the generator with a participating dealer. Call for a full list of terms and conditions. CONTRACT PENDING IN WYNNEWOOD HILLS 2032 MATAGORDA DR DALLAS TX 75232 3781 SQFT, 5/4/2 Your Local REALTORS, Resource, Neighbors and Friends in Oak Cliff. PENDING CONTRACT IN WYNNEWOOD NORTH 431 N MANUS DR DALLAS TX 75224 1684 SQFT, 2/2/2 REAL TO RS TO P 2021 When you expect results contact us at 214.289.2340 for all your Real Estate needs in Oak Cliff and the greater DFW area.
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WITHROLLINGPUNCHES
“You hear a lot of people saying skat ing is coming back. For us who’ve been skating, we’re thinking, ‘no, you are coming back. We’ve been here,’” he says. “For us, it’s just what we’ve al ways done.”
The owner of Good Foot Skates, a bona fide skating celebrity, made a fresh start in Dallas In an a world where the most photogenic activities such as base jumping from hot air balloons or nibbling pink macarons proliferate the culture, roller skating, with its just-so blend of beauty, nostalgia and peril, is Forin.
Mo Sanders — a Seattle trans plant and roller-skate celebrity who quietly opened a shop in Oak Cliff during a pandemic — it was never out.
Story by CHRISTINA HUGHES BABB
At 51, Sanders has dedicated his life to skating, risen to celebrity status and faced a fall from favor among many of hisAboutpeers.three years ago he picked him self up and moved to Dallas to open Good Foot Skates. In its cozy suite across from the Bishop Arts Theatre Center, Good Foot’s minimalistic merchandising, disco-era fonts and sunny hues indi cate its owner’s awareness that his preferred sport’s current popularity is largely related to aesthetics and
In opening the only full-ser vice roller-skate shop in Dallas, Sanders has helped to recon nect the community with a beloved hobby whose ties to Black culture are undeniable, writes Amara Amaryah, a blog ger at the web magazine Travel Noire “The art of roller skating serves as a reminder of radi cal Black joy,” Amaryah writes.
PUNCHESROLLINGTHE work Email
Sanders learned from his fa ther, Greg “Cowboy” Sanders, a horse-riding and roping bucka roo from Muskogee, Oklahoma, who was known for cruising Tacoma, Washington streets (where he raised Sanders) on eight wheels in his Stetson and Wranglers. Cowboy introduced his son to the roller rink, and young Mo was hooked. “It was social in the begin ning. It was where you would go and see your friends,” he says. your resume humanresources@advocatemag.comto
SEPTEMBER 2022 oakcliff.advocatemag.com 7 Instagram. TikTok, combined with COVID-19 — which made sidewalks and trails some of the safest spaces for exercise and play — contributed to roll er skating’s recent resurgence, he says.
ROLLER SKATING ROOTS
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Big grayscale prints of Black roller skaters in the 1970s decorate the walls and hint at Sanders’ deeply rooted rela tionship with the pastime.
“I honestly don’t know when — maybe it was in my teenage years — I knew it was something I wanted to do all the time, that I liked doing this a lot.”
Q uadzilla’s acrobatic moves, mind-blowing footwork and stunts such as jumping 14 people won over fans. Documentarians and filmmakers took notice. In the 2007 Disney musical Enchanted , during an epic number filmed in Central Park, Sanders and a group of guys breakdancing on wheels momentarily steal the spotlight from stars Amy Adams and Patrick Dempsey.Heappears in at least three documentaries ( Derby Baby, This Is How We Roll and Wheels Will Land ).
A fixture in the derby world, Sanders became a sought-after coach. Many come to the sport with athleticism but not skating specific experience, he“Theysays. know how to go fast and hit people,” he says. So he shared his knowledge, ran skills camps all over the world, devel oped his own line of skates and played for the U.S. roller derby team in the first two men’s World Cups. But as Sanders was preparing to play his third World Cup tournament,
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FAME AND CONTROVERSY Sanders rode the blading wave of the 1990s — “X Games, speed skating, stunts and a TV show called RollerJam in which Sanders appeared regularly. He took up derby, “just a way to spend more time skating,” he says, and earned his own nickname, Quadzilla.
SEPTEMBER 2022 oakcliff.advocatemag.com 9 a member of a women’s team, emboldened by the #metoo movement, wrote a blog post, since deleted, accusing Sanders of inappropriate conduct. It cost him everything, he says. He resigned from the team and lost a pending contract with the skate brand Chaya. The incident in question happened 16 years ago in New Zealand, Sanders says. The woman said that while the team was soaking in a hot tub post CLASSIFIED, BUT FAR FROM SECRET. Read our classifieds section for valuable services near you. @HewittSaucedo 2001 2022 BEST EQUAL OPPORTUNITYHOUSING Call now to put our passion to work for you! 214-752-7070 | HewittSaucedo.com SUSTAINABLE STYLE 2/2 1,566 SF/BP 2-Car Carport Starting at $569,000 Haciendas single-story, new construction homes in West Dallas are created to connect to nature, bridging the gap between the indoors and outdoors. From the open living spaces and low-maintenance native landscaping to the contemporary appliances and 12-foot-high vaulted ceilings, Haciendas are the gateway to living beautifully and balanced. DallasHaciendas.com
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Sanders has become a trusted member of Dallas’ roller derby com munity, says Tasha Willingham, chief marketing officer at DFW league Dal las Derby Devils, lending credibility to a character once called into question. Willingham has been in roller derby
NEW BEGINNINGS “And that was it. I was out of the spotlight for probably two years,” he says. “Then, about three years ago, I moved down here.” When his buddy first pitched the idea of helping him open a store in Dallas, he says, “I was like, ‘hell no.’” But further prodding and financial encouragement finally convinced him. Now Good Foot is a low-key gem that attracts customers from all reaches of the roller universe.
practice, Sanders grabbed her leg, near her thigh, three times, even after she told him to stop.
“That’s what the story was,” he says. “So I literally lost my entire livelihood. I was completely shut out.”
Mo Sanders reinvented himself with a skate shop in Dallas, and he’s known as an expert on skate equipment among the roller communityderbyhere.
In a public apology at the time (he says he also personally apologized to the woman), Sanders said it is pos sible he touched the woman. But he said in 2018 that he is “sure he did not continually grope or force himself on“Iher.know what verbal and nonverbal cues are, and I know what consent is and I would never knowingly touch someone in a sexual way without consent.”Theaccusation divided the derby community, Sanders says. The accuser, also a respected member, had many supporters. Some wrote Sanders off. Others, including several of his teammates (who Sharpied his number 23 on their legs for the highprofile World Cup match, drawing their own criticism), defended him. At the time of publication, the woman who accused Sanders of misconduct had not responded to an interview request. Not wanting to make things worse for his friends or himself, Sanders says, he withdrew from the sport he had loved for so long.
“You’ve got professional skaters, pro athletes, moms, dads, kids, peo ple who used to skate all the time and just want to pick it back up 30 years later,” Sanders says. “You got new skaters, roller derby, roller disco, skate park and street skaters — all ofIt’sthem.”notbase jumping, but having the correct gear and preparation, which Good Foot provides, can prevent in juries, so a full-service shop is a good place to start for beginners, he says.
SEPTEMBER 2022 oakcliff.advocatemag.com 11 Call today and receive a FREE SHOWER PACKAGE PLUS $1600 OFF With purchase of a new Safe Step Walk-In Tub. Not applicable with any previous walk-in tub purchase. Offer available while supplies last. No cash value. Must present offer at time of purchase. CSLB 1082165 NSCB 0082999 0083445 1-855-517-1892 SPECIALOFFER since 2009 and has known Sanders a long time. “We played in the same tour naments, and while, back then, I did not know him like I now know him, I personally have never seen him in a different light than the highly respected person we know today,” she says. “Mo has been around longer than I have. He’s been somebody that many people have always looked up to.”She says the league takes par ticipants’ safety seriously. Mem bers take SafeSport training, designed to prevent abuses in organized sports, and undergo background checks.
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Sanders volunteers with the league and coaches kids and new members. And he is the most knowledgeable person around when it comes to gear, Willingham says. As Quadzilla, Sanders skates for the Death Row Rumblers, and when his team isn’t playing, fans will probably see him ref ereeing or helping out in some other way, Willingham says.
SKATE DALLAS Skate culture in our city is altogether blossoming, Sand ers says. The little DFW Skate group on Facebook, which started with a few people, has some 8,000 members now. Outdoor and lifestyle skat ing — on trails, the pedestri an bridge, skate parks and smooth streets — is especially popular. It’s good exercise and looks cool on social media, but roller skating, in whatever form, is mostly about enjoy ment, Sanders says. “It’s just one of those things that is fun, a tie to childhood,” he says. “There’s this endor phin release when you’re just having a good time with it. It is what I love.”
The Trinity River is attractive to wildlife, and one reason why is because of the water, especially during droughts. And it’s not just the lake. Almost all of the neighborhoods surrounding it are covered with lush lawns, which & RODENTS & BOBCATS, OH MY!
S pend any amount of time at th Trinity River, and you’ll see wildlife.
“It’s really only been the last 20 or 30 years that we started seeing more,” Johnson says. “You would have a periodic deer down along the creeks and along the river.”
THERE ARE TWO TYPES OF RODENTS IN THIS WORLD. Well, that’s a generalization. But for our purposes, this is true. There are species such as Norway rats and black rats that are commensal to humans; that means they enjoy living in human habitats. Then there are species such as cotton rats and deer mice, which live in natural areas.
SPEAKING OF BODIES OF WATER…
OH, DEER Texas Parks and Wildlife estimates there are about 4 million whitetailed deer in the state, and they can be found in urban areas where deer overpopulation is a problem. But they aren’t common here. Historically, Dallas was part of the Blackland Prairie area, which wasn’t a deer habitat. Now, there’s a small deer population near the Trinity River Audubon Center.
COYOTES
A wildlife guide to Dallas
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At this point, we’ve all heard about the coyotes, the bobcats, the bald eagles — critters that can cause havoc and generate a lot of chatter on social media and during community meetings. But often overlooked are animals such as rabbits and rodents.
HERE’S WHERE BOBCATS COME INTO THE PICTURE. Most of us don’t see bobcats every day. But if one is spending a lot of time in a neighborhood, Johnson says there’s a really good chance that somebody has a rodent “Allproblem.ittakes is one house in that neighborhood to be unintentionally feeding rodents, and you’ll have a bobcat that’ll hang around,” Johnson says. The scariest part is that in the bobcat cases he has seen, Johnson says the homeowners — most of the time — have no idea they have a rodent problem WHAT ABOUT COYOTES? They feed on rodents, too, but they’re omnivores. They eat flora and fauna, as opposed to bobcats, which are exclusively meat-eaters. That’s why bobcats are more likely than coyotes to be seen sick because of too much rodenticide in their body, ingested by their rodent prey.Both coyotes and bobcats can injure humans and pets, but it’s rare.
“Just because you have a prairie or a wildflower area across the street from you does not mean that’s where the rodents in your house are coming from,” Johnson says. “Because the ones that are typically found in your house don’t like living in those natural areas.”
Lurking in grassy patches and flying across the skies all over Oak Cliff are animals and birds large and small that, if they could talk, would call home.neighborhoodour
Curious about our non-human neighbors, we called Brett Johnson, an arborist and wildlife biologist with the City of Dallas. Here are a few highlights from our conversation.
Though the Lake Highlands coyote attack is still fresh in the minds of Dallas residents, it really was an outlier, statistically speaking.
SEPTEMBER 2022 oakcliff.advocatemag.com 13 DAN NEAL stykidan@sbcglobal.net972-639-6413 COMPUTER TROUBLESHOOTING HARDWARE & NOINSTALLATION,SOFTWAREREPAIR&TRAININGPROBLEMTOOSMALLORTOOLARGE $ 10 0/HR. MINIMUM ONE HOUR DON’T PANIC, CALL DAN. provide additional food and water to animals. Many homes have English ivy, which holds moisture, making it attractive to rodents and rabbits and thereby, maybe some bobcats. BUT WHAT HAPPENS WITH UNDEVELOPED LAND? When plowing and construction starts, predators including bobcats, coyotes, owls and hawks flock to the area because rodents are stirred up. That’ll last for a few weeks, until most of the vegetation is gone. Then, over a course of months to years, wildlife numbers decrease; it’s youspike.againmaturing,LandscapingyearsincreasingPopulationsdisplacement.canbeginagainaroundfiveafterconstructionends.isgrowingandmakingtheareadesirabletowildlife.Inshort,Johnsonsays:“YouYougodown.Andthenstartgoingbackup.” ONE THING TO REMEMBER ABOUT INTERACTING WITH WILDLIFE
“In the end, the best thing you can do is let them fend for themselves, and let them figure out what they’re doing,” Johnson“Supplementalsays. feeding, or feeding them in general, in the longterm, does not help them. It makes them dependent on people. It can turn them into borderline pets, and that’s when we start seeing more nuisance issues.”
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14 oakcliff.advocatemag.com SEPTEMBER 2022 ALL IN THE FAMILY An Elmwood pizza shop is adding grab-and-go dinners Story by RACHEL STONE | Photography by KATHY TRAN food
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Left: Chicken parm surrounded by pizza and wings from Roselli’s Pizza Fritta.
entre preneurs David Rice and Roxy Chairez say they feel lucky to be planted on South Edgefield with their second Oak Cliff restaurant. Their cozy Bocce Italian Kitch en served comfort food on West Davis at Madison in the Bishop Arts District for about 4.5 years. With Roselli’s Pizza Fritta, they dipped into Rice’s family heri tage and put a spin on Neapolitan street food to create a concept they are working to expand with beerand-wine sales and grab-and-go dinner options.
SEPTEMBER 2022 oakcliff.advocatemag.com 15
Sitting amid the ongoing West Oak Cliff Area Plan and poised for renovations like new sidewalks and lighting, it brims with big potential while encapsulating the small-town feel that makes people love Oak Husband-and-wifeCliff.
THE ELMWOOD COMMERCIAL CENTER ON EDGE FIELD HAS ITS COMPLI CATIONS.
The restaurant serves 16-inch New York-style pizzas that are hand-tossed and will serve 3-4 people. But it was Dave’s idea to make pizza fritta as well. Rice uses a pan to fry the dough in hot oil before topping it with sauce, cheese and fixin’s and finishing it in the oven. “He researched it, and he calls it ‘the pizza of the people,’” Chairez says.The result is a 10-inch personal pizza that can be customized or ordered with the same specialty toppings as the larger pies. Those concoctions include the Elmwood pizza, with brisket, giardiniera and caramelized onions, or the Sicilian, with eggplant, bell pep pers and feta. The wings are a star here, with not a buffalo in sight. Spicy garlic parm and lemon scampi wings are crispy and well-seasoned. Pasta and subs like meatball and
David Rice and Roxy Chairez previously owned Bocce Italian Kitchen. Fried artichoke hearts, above, are a holdover from that Bishop Arts District Restaurant. Spicy garlic parm and lemon scampi wings, left, are crispy and well-seasoned.
The restaurant is BYOB, but Rice and Chairez are applying for a Tex as Alcoholic Beverage Commission License to sell beer and wine by-thedrink and to-go as a complement to their planned grab-and-go selection of pastas, sauces and salads.
Chairez and Rice live in the South Edgefield neighborhood, and after four years in Bishop Arts, decided they weren’t done with Oak Cliff. They say they feel right at home in Elmwood.
Roselli’s Pizza Fritta 2109 S. Edgefield Drive, 469.372.5632, rosellispizzafritta.com
chicken parm round out the menu, along with appetizers like fried arti choke hearts, a holdover from Bocce.
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“It’s the perfect place for us,” she says.
Henderson Elementary is within 250 feet of the restaurant, prohibit ing alcohol sales, so they are asking for specific permission from the state of Texas. Many neighbors in the area have said they want beer and wine sales to be allowed in downtown Elmwood as a way to invigorate the area, according to the West Oak Cliff Area Plan, which remains otherwise very contentious in ourChairez,neighborhood.36,andRice, 43, met at Ten Bells Tavern about 10 years ago, when he was still chef of Whitehall Exchange. They now have three daughters. Chairez, who is from Oak Cliff orig inally and is a math teacher at Moli na High School, handles much of the business side of the restaurant. Rice is from Michigan, but his mom is Italian American from Chicago. Roselli was her maiden name, and it was Chairez’s idea to use it in the restaurant’s name as a tribute to Rice’s grandmother, to whom he was devoted.
ROLY-POLIES,SILKIESANDDRAGONS Dr. Dolittle’s got nothing on April Castillo Story by LUCY ERSPAMER Photography by JESSICA TURNER
SEPTEMBER 2022 oakcliff.advocatemag.com 19
F our Pomeranians, six silkie chickens, a rabbit, a cat, three frogs, a bearded dragon, 14 geckos (five species) and a western hognose snake, along with an incalculable number of Dubia roaches, super worms and isopods inhabit a Kes sler Plaza home with two humans.
Silkie chickens are the most high-maintenance pets at April Castillo’s home, requiring mud puddles and frozen treats multiple times a day in the Texas heat.
April Castillo and her husband’s menagerie began with Castillo’s childhood pet, a Pomeranian named Princess.
When Castillo and her husband moved into their first apartment together in 2013, they only made it 28 days in their no-pets-allowed apartment before breaking the lease.“Icried every day because I
“I remember the exact day I woke up to Princess being tossed onto my bed by my dad,” she says.
Princess was found walking the streets of Oak Cliff as a stray, and she begged for them to keep her.
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“Once you have this many rep tiles, you have to start thinking about how to be more economical with their feeding,” she says. “Espe cially because a lot of these species can live up to 15 or 20 years. It’s a hugeCastillocommitment.”breedsDubia roaches and super worms to feed her pet reptiles. But then insects also
missed Princess so much,” she says. “I couldn’t handle not living withAfterher.”finding a pet-friendly place, another Pomeranian, Higgs, joined the family. Princess and Higgs be gan a Pomeranian dynasty in 2016, adding Olive to the mix. Over the years they also acquired Ollie, an other stray Pomeranian they res cued, and Bear, a descendant from Princess’ litter, who they adopted after Princess died on Thanksgiving inThe2018.four Pomeranians caused enough trouble for a while. A few years ago, Castillo decided she wanted a classroom pet.
“My husband and I are both teachers, so we went all in with research,” she says. That’s how they found the North American Reptile Breeders Confer ence, which has an annual stop in Arlington. At that convention Cas tillo connected with breeders who are dedicated to educating people about reptile care, and she brought home a Hermann’s tortoise. Ulti mately, the tortoise never made it to the classroom. “We just didn’t want to put it in that stressful environment. But really … we wanted to keep it for ourselves,” she says. The menagerie grew quickly as she fell in love with more reptiles as well as the human connections she made after attending more conven tions. Since 2019, the couple has collected 19 reptiles. Their house has a room dedicated to housing about 20 bioactive enclosures for all the reptiles and creepy crawlies.
“Most people wouldn’t do that, but we aren’t most people,” she says.
SEPTEMBER 2022 oakcliff.advocatemag.com 21 became part of the family.
“We started breeding isopods as well, which you probably know as roly-polies, and now we have 10 different species,” she says. “They aren’t for food though, just for fun.”
Castillo admits that most of her free time is spent on pet care, but she finds it rewarding. She says it’s important to find reputable breeders for geckos, and she researches each one to understand the pet’s needs ahead of“Itime.definitely spoil them because I view them as more than just a cool reptile,” she says. “I want to make sure that I treat them as I would any pet in our home, like a cat or a dog.”
These silkie chickens are the newest addition to the family, and the Castillos like them so much that they want to acquire more, despite the amount of care they require. When one of their chick ens died mysteriously, they had a necropsy performed to understand why (an ear infection that spread to the brain) and how to prevent it happening again.
And the dogs are given top-ti er care, fed a raw diet with goat milk daily. The reptiles are lower maintenance because they don’t require daily feeding. Castillo and her husband spend about an hour twice a day caring for their animals, splitting the job between them.
“The most high maintenance of our animals are definitely the chickens during the summer be cause they’re really sensitive to heat,” she says. “We have to make puddles for them in the yard, feed them frozen fruit multiple times a day, and just make sure they are staying cool enough.”
To see more pictures of the Castillo pets, check out their Instagram, @pomfolk. Reptiles can live up to 15 years as pets, so April Castillo started breeding insects to feed her herpetological collection, and now bugs are a hobby.
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“Some people just want someone to vent to, and some people are really looking to build a relationship with some one, and they don’t end up sticking with us too long because we just can’t provide that,” Gaither says.
An Oak Cliff nonprofit supporting trans health care pivoted to prison abolition
The nonprofit often receives letters from people whose safety is at risk. Many of them want “safekeeping,” a prison housing designation for people who are vulnerable to sexual abuse and other forms of violence. Attaining that status can be difficult, especially if the person has any history of violence themselves.Thisisn’t a pen-pal organization.
| Photography
The nonprofit, founded by Nell Gaither, received its first letter from a prisoner in 2013. The following year, a Texas prisoner wrote to say they wanted to start hormones. Gaither reached out to several LGBTQ organizations, and no one wanted to get involved. One specifically said they wouldn’t help any trans person access trans health care in “Thatprison.mademe mad,” Gaither says. So she wrote the person back herself and said, “let’s see what we can do.”
Four months later, the letter-writer started hormones. It’s hard to tell for sure because data is scarce, but Gaither thinks that could be the first case of a person starting hormones in Texas prison who wasn’t on them when they entered. Word began to spread, and prison letter-writing soon became the focus of Trans Pride Initiative, “because really nobody else is doing this work.”
TRANS PRIDE INITIATIVE started 11 years ago to focus on supporting people who are transgender and gender-di verse, focused on homeless shelters and health care access.
Story by RACHEL STONE by JOHNATHAN JOHNSON A VOICE FOR THE INCARCERATED
SEPTEMBER 2022 oakcliff.advocatemag.com 23
We have support from foundations and an individual, so that has given us a nice working fund. Right now, we’re not even really seeking funds because I don’t think it’s fair to take mon ey that other groups could use if there’s no immediate need.
VOLUNTEERS CAN SIGN UP ONLINE It’s easy to join us. Our meetings are twice a month, and we talk about how to write letters and answer questions about different things people are experiencing in the letters. We deal with a lot of violence in the system.
TRYING TO EXPLAIN IT ANYWAY
People think prison abolition is just destroying things, when actually, it focuses on building new systems that have more healthy ways of dealing with social harm. What we currently do is, we farm out dealing with social harm to dedicated groups like judges, prosecutors, the police and the prison system. But when you do that, you take away all the conditions that create the situation for social harm, and all you deal with is an instant. You don’t deal with the history that leads up to something. Prison abolition and transfor mative justice looks at how do we build community-based systems that are flexible and deal with harm that accrues generationally over time rather than a specific incident.
HOW PRISON ABOLITION AND TRANS RIGHTS ARE RELATED
MORE VOLUNTEERS COULD ACTIVATE MORE SER VICES
RENTLY
TRANS PRIDE INITIATIVE IS RUN ENTIRELY BY VOLUNTEERS To me this kind of work should be volunteer. And I know there’s people who disagree with that, but I think you lose some of your grassroots and community-mobilization char acteristics if you start paying staff. Because then nobody wants to do the work unless they’re being paid, and you become more driven by fundraising than doing the work.
Sometimes I feel like we got off our mission, but we are sticking to it in that a lot of what we deal with has to do with housing and anti-vi olence and health care access. We just didn’t initially recognize that as being a prison issue as well as a free-world issue.
The National Center for Transgender Equity estimates that one in six transgender people has been incarcerated, compared to a rate of one in 20 people in the overall pop ulation. For Black trans women, the estimate is very high, almost 50%.Harassment or lack of encour agement from teachers means trans and queer people can be less successful in school, Gaither says.“As a person who’s different, you’re told you don’t have any opportunities in employment, and you should just give up, and so you go to the street economy, and the street economy results in interactions with law enforce ment,” she says. Gaither, 61, is retired from the Dallas Public Library. She doesn’t take a salary from Trans Pride Initiative, and she keeps costs as low as possible, renting a space at Tyler Station and spending a few thousand dollars a year on letter-writing.
THE NONPROFIT IS NOT SEEKING FUNDING CUR
convictions in Texas cannot legally change their names until two years after their sentences have ended. That means a person could access hormones and transition in prison, but they’re unable to change their name until long after their release. “We’re very disproportionately affected by the prison system,” Gaither says. “And the prison system is not set up to help people succeed once they get out.”
Prison abolition is the main thing that people don’t understand. And what you can say about that is lim ited because it’s a long conversation, and it takes work to understand.
If we had more involvement, we could start up more things like health care access and houseless services and things like that. We have inactive committees for education and movement-building. So if somebody has something they want to do, they’re welcome to look at our member guide, and they can suggest something. So long as it fits in with our work, we would consider it.
THE THING PEOPLE DON’T UNDERSTAND ABOUT TRANS PRIDE INITIATIVE
Trans Pride Initiative is also working on Project 103, named after Texas family code 45.103, which deals with namePeoplechanges.withfelony
QUESTION: “WHY AREN’T YOU
Story by CHRISTINA HUGHES BABB | Illustrations by JESSICA TURNER
24 oakcliff.advocatemag.com SEPTEMBER 2022
ANSWER:DRINKING?”YOU ARE. Even if alcohol is out, the days of teetotalers sipping sad soda waters, excluded from toasts and cheers, are over.“All the best places in the world, cocktail-wise, have equity on their menus dedicated to non-alcoholic cocktails,” says Trey Roland, former bartender and sales representative for a line of nonalcoholic spirits. “That’s just the standard now.”
“It’s about people being able to say that, in this moment, I don’t want to drink. If I’m entertaining clients in a business setting, going on a first date and prefer not to drink with somebody I don’t know, or if I’m starting a family — I might not care to explain that to everyone,” he says. “Now, I am having a cocktail — it looks like one, tastes like one and we’re enjoying ourselves.”
“We want to give folks who abstain some dedicated curation and also offer a pacing tool for those who do partake but want something lower proof,” Roland says.
He says Revelers Hall, Written By the Seasons, Tiny Victories, Chimichurri and Krio in Bishop Arts all also carry the nonalcoholic brand, Lyre’s.
Brands such as Lyre’s (Ritual and Seedlip also are popular NA names) mean nondrinkers need not sacrifice the intended feel and taste of a crafted beverage, the mixology pros say.
To test the theory that one can enjoy a pleasurable evening of drinking while 100% sober, we bounced around to several spots within walking distance of Atlas (because, though perfectly fit to drive, parking still stinks).
Inside Atlas a few hours before Bishop Arts grows wild with bachelorette parties and impromptu photo shoots, Roland lines the bar with bottles that look like high-end libations — bourbon, gin, an orange aperitif. But this is a zero-proof brand called Lyre’s.
BARBOOZE-FREEHOPPING
Tending bar a few years ago, Roland noticed increasing demand for socalled “mocktails.” He thinks no-booze bar hopping will become even more common in this post-pandemic, morehealth-conscious world.
Even among establishments without a dedicated low-alcohol-by-volume or mocktail menu, an encouraging number of gracious bartenders stepped up to the task with beautiful, lovingly crafted, buzz-free — caffeine doesn’t count — creations.
“Back then it was a lot of vodka tonic, vodka Red Bull, Crown and Coke, Sex on the Beach,” he says. “But now it’s coming back to the actual spirits. You see the daiquiris and classics coming back. People are respecting the ingredients and the bar program in general.” And alcohol is optional.
“When people were stuck home, I think drinking probably spiked, but as we come out of that, there is a movement toward mindfulness and wellness,” he says. And there is no denying the trend’s favorable social element, he says.
In an “evolved drinking culture” quality potables come in varying levels of potency, including zero proof
Atlas owner Danny Bui, who also owns Krio, started bartending in the 2000s to finance college and says he’s been watching the drinking culture evolve for years.
2.
Friday afternoon customers are beginning to fill the barstools at La Reunion. In days past, alcohol abstainers might feel obligated to clear out and make way for the “real” clientele buying liquor. But it’s a new world where the sober can run up a tab like anyone else. Bartenders Patrick Saadatmand and Riann Wilson do not shun the temperate — they blend three boozeless, addicting nonetheless, beverages:
THE LAURA PALMER, THE MISS JUDY OR THE CHAI SODA AT LA REUNION
Three: Chai Soda, made with Fever-Tree ginger beer, housemade chai, topped with nitro iced coffee and cinnamon. For designated drivers requiring a pick-me-up, this is the one.
SEPTEMBER 2022 oakcliff.advocatemag.com 25
Two: The Miss Judy, a variation of the Laura Palmer but topped with green matcha, for dark, rich, emerald layers.
La Reunion owner Mike Mettendorf says bartenders here can come up with all manner of low- or no-abv concoctions to suit varying tastes, but he highly recommends taking advantage of La Reunion’s exceptional coffee program. And for those steering clear of caffeine, order direct-source, high quality herbal teas or sugar-cane processed decaf, he suggests.
It’s not the first place that comes to mind when one thinks of bar hopping, but the new West Davis juice bar Pressed by Perla is an oasis for anyone on a health journey in the land of BBQ, extreme doughnuts and adult milkshakes. Naturally sweet hydration is bottled with care by Perla Murillo, who opened Pressed last spring. Murillo says the Pinky Summer is her most popular summertime drink— that’s fresh aloe and mango in watermelon and pineapple juice. She says the Pinky “keeps you hydrated when hungover and helps with acid reflux too.”
One: The Laura Palmer, made of lavender lemonade, Topo Chico and topped with Kyoto Cold Brew. Imagine the classic Arnold Palmer but crisper and cleaner with burnt umber bite.
1. PINKY SUMMER AT PRESSED BY PERLA
With the right timing, you’ll drop in and find this juicebar tender making a batch of strawberry oat milk or kiwi lemonade, which she will serve on ice and strawberries.
4.ESPRESSO MOJITO AT CHOCOLATIERCOCOANDRE
3. PIS-NO SOUR AT TINY VICTORIES
Flying into the Tiny Victories pub solo sans that social lubricant is almost intimidating because, like all of the tenants in the TyPo (Tyler Polk) building, this place is so dang adorable. But inside, behind the bar, a shrine to painter Bob Ross makes everything seem OK. Barkeep Jake Crews mixes up one citrus-y mocktail, mint-y hued, garnished with a sprig, looking just like the pisco sour from which it is inspired. It hasn’t an official name, but, with crowd consensus, it’s dubbed the Pis-no Sour. A couple from Duncanville is in for a quick drink before the Oak Cliff Film Festival and a conversation about one of the movies ensues. Camaraderie among strangers in a bar, alcohol optional. Enter feeling tiny; emerge victorious.
Smiling, Rodriguez presents the beverage, announcing ingredients “lime, mint, simple syrup, sparkling water and espresso on ice.” It is life giving on such a day. Famous for its ethical chocolate (CocoAndre uses only fair-trade goods and services) — and now its no-jito — the Bishop Arts business is known for in-house horchata, a Mexican drink made from rice milk and cinnamon. Customers come for dirty horchata (with espresso) but there is also matcha, prickly pear, strawberry, piña colada, mocha, marzipan, pecan and cacao.
26 oakcliff.advocatemag.com SEPTEMBER 2022
On a melting hot summer day the chocolate, thankfully, is safe inside the cool confines of CocoAndre, a house of handmade truffles and candies lined up in cases like many fine jewels. Cindy Pedraza Puente, owner, along with her mother Andrea Pedraza, has instructed her son Andrew Rodriguez to whip up “something with clouds” for the teetotaling wanderers.
5. LYRE’S RUGGED FLOWER AT ATLAS
This dark and velvety Bishop Avenue bar is celebrated for craft cocktails such as the Rugged Flower (made with Chihuahua Marfa Sotol — sub Lyre’s agave reserva — tamarind puree, tajin, citrus). In the past, if you wanted the mocktail version, a bartender would add a little soda or citrus, subtract the hard stuff and serve it up. That’s a mocktail. But owner Danny Bui prefers intentionally crafted nonalcoholic spirits to “mocktails.”Hisnon-alcoholic spirits sales rep Trey Roland says, “We are not mocking anything. Here you’ll have something that engages with your senses and feels like a classic cocktail without any alcohol being involved in the process.”
6.THE BLUE HAWAII AT WOW LEMONADEWOWSTAND
Another darling Eighth Street bungalow, another opportunity to embrace your liquid diet. Fuel a 100-degree shopping spree with a sip — or guzzle — from a selection of handcrafted beverages made with pure cane sugar, just enough, because you want to taste the lemon, says Wow Wow’s Nancy Taylor, who owns the Oak Cliff lemonade bar with her husband Kevin.
84% READ & ADVOCATETRUSTMEDIA
SEPTEMBER 2022 oakcliff.advocatemag.com 27
Taylor says her favorite, today, is Mango Colada, a crushed passionfruit and guava fruit lemonade, or Butterfly Mojito with real mint, lime and butterfly pea flower. “My favorite is really whichever one I am drinking now,” she says. Buy your drink in a colorful glass mason jar or growler for discounted refills. And if you hop off the wagon, this makes for an exemplary mixer. “We can give you some tips,” Taylor says. Contact sales@advocatemag.comUs
“We try to keep everything as natural as possible — no artificial flavoring or syrup, just natural pureed fruit.”The prettiest and arguably most addictive drink on the menu is Blue Hawaii, a craft pressed-coconut lemonade that gets its azure hue from a splash of spirulina, a blue-green algae with antioxidant properties.
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Schrader’s discovery exposes that John 11 and 12 is a story about Lazarus’ sister, Mary Magdalene, who is from Bethany. “Magdala”, a non-existent city in the first century, is not where Mary was from. Rather the Aramaic word “Magdala” is a title given to Mary meaning “Tower”. Schrader’s work was published in the Harvard Theological Review and con firmed by the translation committee of the Greek New Testament. Whether or not you believe in Jesus as the Messiah, this is a story about a woman of faith that was kept hidden behind the name Martha by someone in the fourth century who edited the oldest text of John’s gospel. What were they trying to hide to affect the centuries to follow? What harm has been created by a lack of transparency?
Ancient
Transparency
In addition, pronouns are altered and “sister” is made plural. These intentional edits resulted in making a story that was initially about Mary, the sister of Lazarus, into a story about two sisters, Mary and Martha. These edits hid the fact that Mary made the Messianic Proclamation in John 12, not Martha — who then disappears from the gospel story. Mary is present at the cross and witnesses the resurrection.
I’ve just learned about something that has been hidden for more than 2,000 years. Inasmuch as what has been hidden comes from the Christian New Testament, its mes sage is relevant to faithful living regardless of your tradition.
AMY W. MOORE, a pastor in the Presbyterian Church, serves the Grace Presbytery Social Justice Task Force and is a regular contrib utor to the Advocate’s Worship Column. To support the Worship Column, email sales@ advocatemag.com. AMY MOORE reduces our risk texts reveal Mary as ‘the Tower’
S
New Testament scholar Elizabeth Schrad er discovered something that had been hid den in the Gospel of John’s most ancient historical writing. Known as Papyrus66, circa 200 CE, the writing is housed in a library in Cologny-Geneva, Switzerland. Access to this original papyrus required travel, academic credentials, time and mon ey. Only recently has digitization made these ancient manuscripts more widely accessible — opening a new world of transparency! With the ability to examine P66 by com puter and magnify the text, Schrader discov ered alterations scratched into the letters.
WORSHIP By
chool is back in session, this year with a new policy for transparent backpacks. The transparency requirement, established with community input, prevents items from being hidden that could risk putting students and staff in harm’sTransparencyway. is critical to honesty, accountability and establishing trust.
The original text did not have the name Martha. Throughout John 11 and 12, where the name Martha appears, an ancient editor had changed what was originally “Mary”.
Christian history scholar Diana Butler Bass wonders what Christianity would look like today if these 2,000 years were informed by “Mary, you are the Tower, and by this Tower we shall stand” and not only “Peter, you are the Rock and upon this Rock I will build my church”?What would our faith lives look like if “Mary the Tower” was the story? How might our homes, families, neighborhoods be different if we really knew one another’s story? How can transparency reduce our risk of harm?
Transparent backpacks will not solve all the safety concerns in school, but I got to wondering how being transparent might impact community?
30 oakcliff.advocatemag.com SEPTEMBER 2022
BAPTISTWORSHIP CLIFF TEMPLE BAPTIST CHURCH / 125 Sunset Ave. / 214.942.8601 Serving Oak Cliff since 1898 / CliffTemple.org / English and Spanish 9 am Contemporary Worship / 10 am Sunday School / 11 am Traditional GRACE TEMPLE BAPTIST Come to a Place of Grace! Sunday Worship: English Service 9:30am / Spanish Service 11:00am 831 W. Tenth St. / 214.948.7587 / gracetempledallas.org CATHOLIC ST. CECILIA CATHOLIC PARISH / StCeciliaDallas.org / 1809 W Davis St. Saturday - Bilingual Mass 5PM; Sunday – English Masses 7:30AM & 11AM; Spanish Masses 9AM & 1PM DISCIPLES OF CHRIST EAST DALLAS CHRISTIAN CHURCH / 629 N. Peak Street / 214.824.8185 Sunday School 9:30 am / Worship 8:30 am - Chapel 10:50 am - Sanctuary / Acting Senior minister Rev. Allison Drake / edcc.org EPISCOPAL CHRIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH / ChristChurchDallas.org Sunday School: 11:15am /Mass: 9am & 10am English, 12:30pm Español Wednesday Mass: 6pm English, 8pm Español / 534 W. Tenth Street METHODIST TYLER STREET CHURCH / Join us @tylerstreet.church / 927 W.10th St. / 214-946-8106 / Study of God’s Word Contemporary / Anderson Hall Sat 5 pm / Traditional & Worship Sunday 10 am Tylerstreet.com KESSLER PARK UMC / 1215 Turner Ave./ 214.942.0098 I kpumc.org 10:30am Sunday School/11:00 Worship /All are welcome regardless or r ace, creed, culture, gender or sexual identity. NON-DENOMINATIONAL KESSLER COMMUNITY CHURCH / 2100 Leander Dr. at Hampton Rd. “Your Hometown Church Near the Heart of the City.” 10:30 am Contemporary Service / kesslercommunitychurch.com TRINITY CHURCH OAK CLIFF / Love God. Love Others. Make Disciples. Sundays 10:00 am / Worship & children’s Sunday School 1139 Turner Ave. / trinitychurchoakcliff.org PRESBYTERIAN PARK CITIES PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH/ 4124 Oak Lawn Ave Sunday Worship 9:00 & 11:00 A.M. To all this church opens wide her doors - pcpc.org SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION
SEPTEMBER 2022 oakcliff.advocatemag.com 31 EDUCATION GUIDE 214.560.4203 OR SALES@ADVOCATEMAG.COM TO ADVERTISE • Reading/Writing Workshop Model • STEM Lab, Art, Music & Library Time • Spanish, PE and Recess Daily • Leadership & Community Service • Middle School - Mandarin, Innovation & Entrepreneurship Program • After School Care & Enrichment Programs ACCEPTING NEW STUDENT APPLICATIONS 2022-2023 SCHOOL YEAR 1215 Turner Ave. | 214.942.2220 | TheKesslerSchool.com Serving Grades PK-8TH 69% of our readers say they want to know more about private schools. *2019 CVC Audit Life School is a free public charter school that builds character, leadership and life skills. Learn lifeschool.net/real-voicesmore. We know they’re in good hands. Once we drop them off at school, it feels like a family there. We know they’re going to take care of them. Neighborly.com (214) 501-1068 DryerVentWizard.com KNOW WHEN TO CALL A 972-773-9141 DryVentWizard.com Locally & Independently Owned & Operated Franchise • Clothes aren’t drying as fast as they should • Excessive lint behind the dryer or on the dryer door • Moldy or must smell on your clothing BEFORE AFTER Mary Velez is an Oak Cliff Real Estate agent with excellence.unmatchedMaryVelez469-853-2194 Se habla español Top Producer 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 Mary.VelezRealtor@gmail.com
1115 Crownview Lane 3 BEDROOMS | 2.1 BATHS | 1,554 SQ. FT. | $480,000 Susan Melnick susanmelnick@daveperrymiller.com214.460.5565 1115 crownview.daveperrymiller.com 1934 Kessler Heights Lane 3 BEDROOMS | 3.1 BATHS | 2,428 SQ. FT. | $660,000 Kathy Hewitt Jason Saucedo 214.684.1233 214.403.4082 kathy@hewittsaucedo.com jason@hewittsaucedo.com 1934kesslerheights.daveperrymiller.com The best of Oak Cliff real estate is at daveperrymiller.com Price and availability subject to change. Information deemed reliable, but not guaranteed. 2785yellowjasmine.daveperrymiller.com 2785 Yellow Jasmine Lane 3 BEDROOMS | 3.1 BATHS | 1,852 SQ. FT. | $547,500 Alicia Schroeder alicia@daveperrymiller.com214.709.0907 633strong.daveperrymiller.com 633 Strong Street 4 BEDROOMS | 3 BATHS | 2,179 SQ. FT. | $625,000 Ged Dipprey & Sandra Bussey gooddeedgroup@daveperrymiller.com214.225.4663 1722 pebblebeach.daveperrymiller.com 1722 Pebble Beach Lane 4 BEDROOMS | 4.1 BATHS |5,323 SQ. FT. | $1,690,000 Rob Elmore robelmore@daveperrymiller.com214.770.8885 An Ebby Halliday Company SOLD, R epresented Seller 1547 Kings Highway 3 BEDROOMS | 2 BATHS | 2,128 SQ. FT. | $750,000 Ged Dipprey & Linda Ward gooddeedgroup@daveperrymiller.com214.225.4663 3030 Gladiolus Lane 3 BEDROOMS | 2.1 BATHS | 2,668 SQ. FT. | $600,000 Susan Melnick susanmelnick@daveperrymiller.com214.460.5565 SOLD, Represented Seller SOLD, Represented Seller 631 N. Clinton Avenue 3 BEDROOMS | 1.1 BATHS | 1,408 SQ. FT. | $475,000 Ged Dipprey & Sandra Bussey gooddeedgroup@daveperrymiller.com214.225.4663 127 N. Willomet Avenue 3 BEDROOMS | 2 BATHS | 1,888 SQ. FT. | $645,000 Ged Dipprey & Linda Ward gooddeedgroup@daveperrymiller.com214.225.4663 SOLD, R epresented Seller
