TCB May 5, 2022 — The art of the tease

MAY 5-11, 2022 TRIAD-CITY-BEAT.COM

WINSTON-SALEM EDITION

The ART of the

TEASE Burlesque takes (it all) off in Winston-Salem

by Sayaka Matsuoka | p. 12

MAY 5-11, 2022 TRIAD-CITY-BEAT.COM

GREENSBORO EDITION

“This is life or death.

This is serious.

“

He needs it.

What trans-affirming care looks like in the Triad

by Autumn Karen | p. 4

UP FRONT | MAY 5-11, 2022

EDITOR’S NOTEBOOK Elephant ears

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he first elephant ears didn’t take.

I bought the bulb from the garden store, planted

by Brian Clarey it in our flower bed and… nothing. Then I just kind of forgot about them for a few years, another five bucks crumpled into a ball and thrown over my shoulder.

Five years ago I gave it another shot. I got a new bulb, like a dark turnip covered in bark, and buried it in a sunny, open patch by the gardenia.

Lo, behold: Within a couple weeks, three distinct, white cones had sprouted from the black mulch. Caterpillars devoured those first leaves, but by the greenest days of spring they could no longer keep up with the bounty this trio of stalks put forth.

At their peak that first year, the leaves on the elephant ears grew slightly larger than a ping-pong paddle. I expected more — I noted with some envy a neighbor’s flower box filled with rows of the plant, each leaf large enough to create a skimpy top.

I must’ve got the small ones, I thought.

But the next year they came in a little bigger, bigger still the year after that. I watched them evolve over two pandemic seasons, when there wasn’t all that much else going on,

BUSINESS PUBLISHER/EXECUTIVE EDITOR

Brian Clarey brian@triad-city-beat.com

PUBLISHER EMERITUS

Allen Broach allen@triad-city-beat.com

OF COUNSEL

Jonathan Jones

ART ART DIRECTOR

Charlie Marion charlie@triad-city-beat.com

SALES KEY ACCOUNTS

Chris Rudd chris@triad-city-beat.com

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into tropical lushness, with leaves the size of placemats and stalks like tendons.

We’ve had a tough year in our little house, agonizing enough that I’d begin eagerly anticipating the annual sprouting of the elephant ears as a sign of new life, a symbol of continuity, an allegory for re-emergence, all that.

Two of them had popped by the day we trimmed the hedges and laid fresh, black mulch. By the end of the week the third had sprouted. And then… a fourth elephant-ear stalk nosed its way to the surface. I literally gasped when I saw it. In hindsight, I probably got a little too excited when the fifth stalk made itself known. But that’s how I do.

And now! My five luscious elephant ears, each sprouting from that same five-dollar bulb purchased on a whim in the checkout line, are starting to bloom. The first leaves have pushed through the tiny, white cones — little ones, the size of bar coasters, that are being fairly devoured by the bugs, but the big ones are right behind them. More of them will unfurl each day, soaking up the sun like solar panels, which, I guess, they kind of are.

I won’t know until June how big they’re going to get. But it doesn’t really matter. They’ve already done their job.

1451 S. Elm-Eugene St. Box 24, Greensboro, NC 27406 Office: 336.681.0704 EDITORIAL WEBMASTER Sam LeBlanc MANAGING EDITOR Sayaka Matsuoka PHOTOGRAPHY INTERN sayaka@triad-city-beat.com

Stan Sussina

CHIEF CONTRIBUTORS Suzy Fielders

James Douglas james@triad-city-beat.com

CONTRIBUTORS

Carolyn de Berry, John Cole, Owens Daniels, Luis H. Garay, Kaitlynn Havens, Jordan Howse, Matt Jones, Autumn Karen, Michaela Ratliff, Jen Sorensen, Todd Turner

TCB IN A FLASH @ triad-city-beat.com First copy is free, all additional copies are $1. ©2022 Beat Media Inc.

COVER: GREEENSBORO: What trans-affirming care looks like in the Triad | Design by Charlie Marion WINSTON-SALEM: Performer Ophelia Pop Tart seduces the crowd during the Art of the Tease: An Evening of Classic Burlesque at Camel City Playhouse (photo by Stan Sussina)

THURSDAY May 5

SATURDAY May 7

SUNDAY May 8

Our Winston-Salem Journal @ MUSE Winston-Sa- Fishin’ With Special Friends Fishing Tournament lem (W-S) 7 p.m. @ High Point City Lake (Jamestown) 10 a.m.

Undergraduate students at Wake Forest University are hosting an evening screening of original student films produced in recent weeks, created to tell the stories of various locations in Winston-Salem. Visit the event page on Facebook for more information.

Mother’s Day Picnic @ Foothills Brewing (W-S) 12 p.m.

Foothills Brewing is hosting a Mother’s Day picnic with live music, specialty mimosa flights and charcuterie boxes for sale. Visit the event page on Facebook for more information.

UP FRONT | MAY 5-11, 2022

CITY LIFE May 5-8

by Michaela Ratliff

Mother’s Day Market @ Wise Man Brewing (W-S) 12 p.m.

FRIDAY May 6

Fishin’ With Special Friends, a non-profit that organizes fishing events for children and adults with A New Era Art Show @ Downtown (GSO) 5 p.m. special needs, invites you to a day of fishing and NC A&T student Lance Davis aims to introduce friendship. Visit fishinwithspecialfriends.org for viewers to a new era of art and technology during more information and registration.

This afternoon market is perfect for purchasing a this showcasing of artists, performers and fashlast-minute gift for any mothers in your life! Live ion designers in Greensboro. RSVP at tinyurl.com/ Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella @ High Point music will be provided by Big City Lights, and food yc7r6fsz for the exact location.

Community Theatre (HP) 2 p.m. trucks Uptown Pizza and Twin City Mini’s will be in High Point Community Theatre invites you to a attendance. Find more info on the event page on Send your events to production of the Tony Award-winning Broadway Facebook. calendar@triad-city-beat.com for musical Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella, consideration in City Life and complete with an orchestra and unexpected the Weekender. twists. Purchase tickets at hpct.net.

RE-ELECT

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GUILFORD COUNTY SHERIFF

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NEWS | MAY 5-11, 2022

Finding wholeness: Trans-affirming care in the Triad

NEWS

by Autumn Karen

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mother’s voice breaks as she sits at her desk on her lunch break in a government building in Forsyth County.

“This is serious,” she says. “This is life or death. He needs it. If I have to pay for it, I’m going to pay for it. I’m going to help him be the most complete human he can be.”

This mother, who asked that her name not be shared to protect the privacy of her teenager in transition, shared that her family moved from a neighboring rural county to Forsyth to find a more open environment. A former missionary and religious conservative, she was driven to support her child by finding the right care. Having already come out as gay in middle school, she shares she wasn’t as shocked as she could have been when her child told her he was transgender in high school.

“Thankfully, I didn’t react,” the mother tells Triad City Beat. “I just said ‘How can we help you? How can we work on this?’”

At the center of gender-affirming medicine is heartening reassurance and support. For transgender individuals, therapists and physicians can be a source of validation that they don’t get in the places like houses of worship or within their families. And in the wake of dozens of legal attacks on transgender rights across the country, parents, community members and trans individuals themselves are fighting for their rights within the Triad.

A maze of resources

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n an early spring day, Thomas Livengood sat in the driver’s seat of the family SUV as his child sat next to him. After months of taking trips back and forth to school, doctor’s appointments and mental health providers in search of a reason behind the teenager’s anxiety and depression, the car had become a safe space for them to talk.

“I have something to tell you, but I don’t know how to say it,” his child said.

“Tell me kid, but it’s your choice to tell me or not,” Thomas replied. “This is safe zone — we can talk about anything here, you know that.”

“Umm. Dad, I think I might be transgender.”

For Livengood, hearing his child say those words following a regular visit with their psychiatrist was a beautiful relief. After years of working with mental health professionals to address a cascade of challenges: transitioning schools, finding counseling and seeking support from their pediatrician, his child was finally able to find

the words to express it.

“Up until then, we were still talking about the problems with executive functioning and anxiety, but not the cause,” he said during a January presentation at a Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) event.

There would be other battles in the years to come. Livengood and his family had to move from their longtime church home after a member of the youth group stood up and asked that they pray for protection against the “LGBTQ+ influence in schools”. Already in the midst of hormone therapy and counseling, it was a major blow to the family.

For families with transgender children, gender-affirming healthcare is a complex maze of providers and resources. Getting to this kind of front-seat revelation isn’t the starting point for many families; they’ve already been working for years. Oftentimes, there’s a winding and frustrating series of misaligned diagnoses, confused emotions and deeply engrained societal roadblocks that stall the process and delay transgender youth and adults from arriving at this first step.

According to a 2019 study by the Campaign for Southern Equality, 41 percent of trans respondents in North Carolina report being mistreated by healthcare professionals. Close to half reported having to educate their care providers about their identity.

A decade ago, transgender individuals had to make the trek to Chapel Hill, Charlotte, or Winston-Salem to gain access to basic affirming care, much less the surgical procedures that don’t come until late in transition. The distance was brutal for many members of the population, particularly in marginalized communities where access to transportation is lower.

However, things are changing slowly. For the last several years, Wake Forest University has hosted the annual Southern Trans Health and Wellness Conference which focuses on enriching local partnerships and developing clinical skills to further support gender-expansive communities. New offerings in both private practice and in more local hospitals across the Triad are giving more people a way to get the care they need to find the peace they deserve.

Dr. Eva Shaw of Kalos Comprehensive Care in Greensboro, who focuses specifically on transgender and affirming care, is clear about her role in the lives of her patients.

minimal for both puberty blockers and hormone therapy, where the mental health benefits are tremendous. A 2019 study on transgender teens published in the journal Clinical Practice in Pediatric Psychology found that almost 50 percent of teens had suicidal tendencies before starting hormone therapy. After the start of treatment, that number plummeted to 12 percent.

Medically, the biggest long-term impact of hormone therapy is on fertility. Patients at Kalos are counseled through methods to preserve fertility, such as freezing eggs or sperm for the future. Allergic reactions are another real possibility, but there are now multiple options for implanted puberty blockers, time-release hormones, twice-monthly hormone injections, or daily oral medication.

“Parents, guardians, and providers feel that we are helping adolescents with that What transition care looks like in the Triad choice,” Dr. Shaw tells TCB. “We take that with a lot of weight, oftentimes with ommon misnomers about transition-related healthcare are that it’s much more importance than the kid wishes.” primarily for children and that surgical transition is at the center of Patients might try several different combinations of hormones to get the desired the process. In reality, gender-affirming healthcare can begin at any effects and ease any adverse symptoms like mood or weight change. Once they find age, and often does. Care always starts with mental health support, what works for them, patients only see their care providers twice a year unless issues which is then followed by years of low risk and mostly arise. reversible hormone treatment. Surgery is the most dramatic The mother of the Forsyth teen in transition talked with step, but it doesn’t happen until late in the process, after an her son about options for his testosterone injections. He individual has had years to process and make that decision. could do it in the office of the endocrinologist every two The World Professional Association for Transgender weeks, his father could do it, or he could do it himself. He Health (WPATH) provides doctors with guidelines for treatchose to do it himself. ing gender-nonconforming patients. Their recommenda“This kid is fiercely independent,” she said. tions, which are standard practice across the field, including Currently, surgical options for gender-affirming procein North Carolina, recommend holding off on surgical A mother of a transgender child dures are available in Chapel Hill, Winston-Salem, Durham changes until a child reaches the age of consent. WPATH and Charlotte.

The risks of surgeries are similar to those recommends that adults seeking gender reassignment risks associated with any surgery, such as blood loss, infection surgeries be on hormone therapy for at least twelve months during healing and complications with anesthesia. Most prior to the procedures. surgical options are available through providers of plastic surgery.

At Kalos, children who identify as gender non-conforming go through an extend-

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NEWS | MAY 5-11, 2022

“I get to be a very joyful part of medicine,” she said. “I get to give people things that are good for them that are going to lead to their long term and improved mental and physical health.”

After working as a primary care physician for almost a decade, Dr. Shaw pivoted to a focus on gender non-conforming patients. There was an immediate need at the time, after the only dedicated provider in Greensboro retired. Her work is holistic in nature.

“When people feel good about their bodies, they are much more likely to take care of their bodies,” she said.

I’m going to help him be the most complete human he can be.

ed process. There’s an initial visit with the child and their parents, then a visit without the parents present, according to Dr. Shaw. Kalos works with an outside support network of therapists to provide mental health support. Often times, such as with Livengood’s child, gender non-conforming children are already under the care of mental health professionals by the time they seek gender-affirming medical care.

Dr. Shaw begins seeing patients for puberty blockers as early as age 10, when adolescent bodies begin to change. There’s a series of baseline bloodwork and discussion about possible side effects. Children are monitored for calcium loss and sometimes given supplements of vitamin D and calcium to ensure their bones will be strong later in life.

For children, puberty blockers are a way to buy time. The process brings massive changes in secondary gender characteristics like body hair and breast growth, which can be confusing for children who have a mismatch between the gender they feel and the gender their bodies express. In the long term, puberty blockers can prevent the need for surgery in the future, as well as reduce the level of hormones needed for transgender adults. Timing is important, as it takes several months to get insurance to authorize any kind of medication, and puberty blockers only work when kids start them before puberty is in full swing. The insurance process goes faster when a child is already under the care of a therapist or psychiatrist.

On the other end of the spectrum, it’s not uncommon for Dr. Shaw to begin hormone treatment with people in their fifties and sixties, though the bulk of her work is with adults who are younger. In the past, WPATH advised that those seeking hormone therapy had to live as that gender for a year. Those guidelines changed as it became clear that social transitioning was unreasonable for patients who still bore the physical characteristics of their gender assigned at birth. Now, a letter from a behavioral health provider, along with informed consent, is enough for people over the age of 18 to begin treatment. Adults sometimes begin hormone treatment on their first visit if they have been waiting for a long time and have worked with a mental health professional previously.

According to specialists, both the short-term and long-term physical risks are

Barriers to treatment

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urrently, one of the biggest barriers to receiving gender-affirming care is the cost. Surgery costs tens of thousands of dollars and is only covered by some insurance companies. Transgender individuals sometimes save money for years to pay for the procedures. Flex Jonez, chair of the Greensboro Transgender Task Force, has worked with college students in the Triad who took out student loans to cover the cost. College students can sometimes get coverage for hormone therapy and counseling through their university health insurance, and that can be the first time they’re able to access affirming care. The wealth of universities in the area means that transgender students leaving home for the first time are finally able to be themselves in the Triad.

Vital mental health services for transgender individuals are generally covered by insurance, though copays can add onto the financial burden. The Forsyth mother whose son is in transition shares that therapy isn’t just for her transgender child, either.

“Everyone in the family has their own therapist,” she said.

Her health plan with BCBS currently waives copays for mental health visits, lessening her family’s financial burden.

Still, many patients lack access to health insurance at all which creates a significant racial disparity in the Triad in trans-affirming care according to Jonez. He calls this the “world of separatism” when dealing with health and wellness.

Prior to the Affordable Care Act (ACA), many trans people couldn’t afford housing or basic medical care, much less gender-affirming medical care. Lower insurance costs with the ACA, along with free and sliding scale services, have increased access to marginalized populations in the area, but it’s been a long road. HIV rates are high in the transgender community in the Triad, making gender-affirming care all the more complex. And finding the right resources can be difficult when dealing with discrimination both at home and in the workplace. According to the National Center for Transgender Equality, more than one in four transgender people in the

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NEWS | MAY 5-11, 2022

NEWS

United States have lost a job to workplace bias.

Finding care providers of color is another important point, especially for children in those communities because the ability to connect with providers that look like them significantly increases trust and connection, leading to more adherence to treatment and better outcomes. One local family finally found a Black therapist to work with their child in transition, but they had to go to the Triangle to see them. United Healthcare Center in Winston-Salem offers affirming services to people of color and is both aware and accommodating according to Jonez.

And this increase in visibility has come at a cost. Across the country, there has been a wave of anti-transgender bills filed in recent months.

In February of this year, Texas governor Greg Abbott instructed Child Protective Services in his state to investigate parents of children in gender affirming care for child abuse. Those investigations are currently on hold until the Texas Supreme Court makes a final decision. Alabama and Arkansas have both outlawed trans healthcare for minors. In Alabama, it’s now a felony for a doctor to administer puberty blockers or hormone therapy to trans youth. The Department of Health in Florida More young people feel recently released a memo recommending doctors to not offer affirming care to minors.

How North Carolina law affects comfortable telling their In April of 2021, NC Republicans proposed Senate gender-affirming care parent or guardian about Bill 514, known as the “Youth Health Protection Act.” If ver the last few years, there has been an passed, it would have made it illegal to provide trans-aftheir identity. increase in young people who identify as genfirming care to anyone under the age of 21. The ban Dr. Eva Shaw der non-conforming and have begun seeking would have included puberty blockers, hormone therapy treatment. Gender has become a more and affirming surgery, as well as imposing fines and supintegrated part of the adolescent process than it was in the porting controversial “conversion therapy.” SB514 didn’t past, and young people are more likely to have non-traditional gender expression make it out of committee for a vote on the floor of the NC House, but Republicans overall, according to Dr. Shaw. across the country continue to introduce similar pieces of legislation.

“I’m seeing a huge increase in the number of adolescents who are identifying as Just this week, Yale Law School released a major report analyzing misleading non-cisgender and are able to verbalize that,” she said. “More young people feel texts in the Alabama law and Texas legal action. It found that missives targeting comfortable telling their parent or guardian about their identity and seeking care gender-affirming medical care for transgender children and adolescents present a for that.” “warped picture” of medical evidence. This includes false claims about sterilization, While the data is not clear due to privacy regulations and binary reporting meaexaggerated risks of drug therapy and a complete dismissal of the positive effects of sures, the Williams Institute at UCLA estimates that just under 5,000 young people gender-affirming care for young people. ages 13-17 identified as transgender across North Carolina in 2020. Overall, there Currently in North Carolina, state employee health coverage does not pay for are roughly 50,000 people who identify as transgender in the state. gender-affirming care in beneficiaries. That includes the family of the Forsyth

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February 5–May 8, 2022 The exhibition is organized by Aperture Foundation, New York and Kwame S. Brathwaite. The exhibition Black Is Beautiful: The Photography of Kwame Brathwaite and the accompanying Aperture publication are made possible, in part, with generous support from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Photographic Arts Council Los Angeles.

Major Sponsors

The Cathleen and Ray McKinney Exhibition Fund

PLAN YOUR VISIT

reynolda.org/beautiful

Reynolda House Museum of American Art 2250 Reynolda Rd. Winston-Salem, N.C.

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Kwame Brathwaite, Carolee Prince wearing her own jewelry designs. Prince created much of the jewelry and headpieces featured in Brathwaite’s work. African Jazz-Art Society & Studios (AJASS), Harlem, circa 1964; from Kwame Brathwaite: Black Is Beautiful (Aperture, 2019). Courtesy the artist and Philip Martin Gallery, Los Angeles.

NEWS

A mission to live in peace

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oth transgender individuals and the families who love them say that transitioning is about finding a way to lead a life that is whole and happy.

Flex Jonez is open about his own experience with gender-affirming care, both personally and as a leader in North Carolina in the last three decades.

“My journey has allowed me to live in peace,” he said. “Once I advocated for myself, I advocated for others.”

This sentiment was echoed again and again in conversations TCB had with families.

At the end of the day, transgender people just want to live their lives. Parents want their children to find a way to be authentic and at peace. The mother in Forsyth County sums up what she wants for her son: “The dream is to have a happy, whole kid who can make it in the world.”

All of the families TCB spoke with shared that they had seen tangible improvements through holistic gender-affirming care. With supportive care has come success in school and stronger relationships. The juxtaposition can be dramatic.

“He went from high performing, to barely getting by, to failing,” Livengood said about his child. “He wouldn’t get out of bed and was missing a lot of school due to high anxiety.”

After several years of hormone therapy, his son is now considering top surgery and isn’t struggling the way he did in those tumultuous days of early transition care. At a college outside of the Triad, this young man is thriving.

Transgender individuals, parents and care providers all shared the same opinion about the difficult processes people have to go through when they are transgender — no child or adult would choose to put themselves through it if it wasn’t necessary.

Having blood drawn is painful, and it’s scary for kids. Daily hormone medications are cumbersome. Injections every two weeks hurt, whether they’re given by a nurse or self-administered. Surgery is not an easy road for anyone for any reason.

Now, after helping his child receive the care that he needed, Livengood is hopeful for his future.

“I look forward to what the next chapter brings,” he said with hope in his eyes and pride in his voice. “I’m watching him realize that he’s powerful, and that he can do whatever he needs to do.”

Shape our community’s future for the next 50-100 years.

for the school bond.

NEWS | MAY 5-11, 2022

teenager in transition, whose endocrinology coverage is set to stop this month. In January, the U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal from the North Carolina State Health Plan for Teachers and State Employees that would stop Kadel v. Folwell, a lawsuit filed against the state that alleges this policy is in violation of the Affordable Care Act. Pending the outcome of that lawsuit, families are forced to pay the full cost of care out of pocket for endocrinologists and surgical interventions.

When parents disagree on gender-affirming medical procedures, children who already face societal bias get caught in the middle. In North Carolina, custody contentions revert back to what’s in the “best interest of the child.” Mental health professionals and doctors then become the guiding force in what the child needs in terms of gender-affirming care, though the ultimate decision is up to the judge.

Social transitioning, including gender changes on documentation, is another essential part of codifying identity. In North Carolina, it’s possible to change the gender marker on a driver’s license without medical documentation. To change the gender marker on a birth certificate, an adult must show proof to the state that they have had gender reassignment surgery. For many people, surgery either isn’t appropriate or isn’t medically possible due to potential health risks associated with major surgery. A lawsuit filed in November of last year by Lambda Legal is attempting to overturn this policy. Campos v. Cohen is being heard in the Middle District Court of North Carolina, but no trial date has been set for the case.

The average school building in Guilford County is more than 55 years old and in desperate need of heating, roofing, plumbing, technology and security upgrades.

The $1.7 billion school bond will:

• Ensure every school in Guilford County receives technology and safety upgrades, such as wireless connections, increased bandwidth and digital locks.

• Renovate, rebuild and construct 34 schools across the county designed for today’s learning environment.

• Expand Career & Technical Education, STEM, Arts and Early\Middle College opportunities to children of all income levels and demographics.

• Create facilities 1.5 times more efficient to operate, lower energy costs and reduce operating expenses.

• Create nearly 20,000 local jobs as construction takes place over the next 7-10 years.

Strong public schools benefit our entire community by preparing talent for the workforce, attracting and retaining businesses and supporting economic development.

More information about the school bond and the fraction of a penny (0.25%) sales tax to help repay the bond can be found at

www.smartschoolbond.com

Citizens from across the community are supporting the school bond and fraction of a penny sales tax for schools.

Scan here to hear their stories.

Turn out to vote on May 17

(or vote early starting April 28) and vote YES and YES at the bottom of the ballot.

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OPINION | MAY 5-11, 2022

OPINION

EDITORIAL Removing our freedoms in the name of liberty Mark my word, if and when these preachers get control of the [Republican] party, and they’re sure trying to do so, it’s going to be a terrible damn problem. Frankly, these people frighten me. Politics and governing demand compromise. But these Christians believe they are acting in the name of God, so they can’t and won’t compromise. I know, I’ve tried to deal with them.

— GOP icon Barry Goldwater

feel that abortion is a personal choice between a woman and her doctor and not the government’s business at all.

Yet, here we are. And if you’re surprised, then you have not been paying attention.

The Republican party — which once stood for individual freedom and against government intervention in personal business — seized on the abortion issue in the 1970s, when their other policies became unpopular with most Americans here’s a lot to unpack and their president, Nixon, barein the leaked Supreme ly escaped prison. And so they Court opinion on courted the religious right, which overturning Roe v. Wade, the case was already incensed about a that gave American women the SCOTUS decision banning prayer right to choose whether or not to in schools and the general deterireproduce. oration of their worldview, to beef Let’s get a few things out of up their numbers. It was part of the way first: This is an opinion, the Southern Strategy to realign albeit a majority white Democrats one, which has not in the South with a Three of these yet been ruled upon, judges were appointed new kind of conserso it’s not yet set in by a president, Trump, vatism. Fealty to the stone. Yes, SCOTUS pro-lifers was the who did not receive price they paid. And, has suffered very a majority of the few leaks in its exisas Barry Goldwater tence, but the leak is vote and who tried to warned, the party not the story — we overthrow the govern- abandoned its core are very pro-leak ment after he lost his values to keep them here at Triad City happy. re-election bid.

Beat. And yes, this Remember: Goldis exactly what new justices Bret water was an asshole, an anti-laKavanagh, Amy Coney Barrett and bor war hawk who voted against Neil Gorsuch — all appointed by the Civil Rights Act and tried to a president, Trump, who did not pull the US out of the United Nareceive a majority vote and who tions. But he also helped de-segretried to overthrow the government gate Arizona schools, the Arizona after he lost his re-election bid — Air National Guard and the Senate told everyone they would not do in cafeteria. He was a proponent of their confirmation hearings. And gay rights and legalized marijuana yes, this is an unpopular opinion as well, because Goldwater’s Reamong the American populace. publican Party was about personAlmost twice as many Americans al freedom without government believe the court should uphold intervention.

Roe v. Wade than who think they Obviously, that is no longer the shouldn’t (54-28), and 70 percent case.

T

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Jen Sorensen jensorensen.com

CULTURE | MAY 5-11, 2022

CULTURE

AAPI Stories: Ingrid Chen McCarthy

by PAVE NC

ROB BROWN ROB BROWN PHOTOGRAPHY

Ingrid Ched McCarthy is a food nerd and an entrepreneur who was born in Taiwan but grew up in Greensboro.

In celebration of AAPI month, TCB will be sharing stories by PAVE NC, a local volunteer-run organization that highlights the stories of Asian-Americans in the South, for the month of May. For the first installment of the series this year, PAVE NC shares the story of Ingrid Chen McCarthy.

Story by Tina Firesheets, Photos by Rob Brown, Digital Production by Dave from Maunaleo Ventures.

Meet Ingrid Chen McCarthy, a Taiwanese-American self-described “food nerd.” This corporate chef lives in Greensboro with her baker/ pastry chef husband, Jeff, and their two children, Mabel and Milo. She is also an active community volunteer and social activist who speaks out against racism and injustices. Read more about her cultural and food background, as We were well as the causes most important to her.

siblings. My mom’s parents owned a hair salon in Kaohsiung, and my dad came from a poor farming family in Changhua.

My parents emigrated our family to New Jersey in 1982, when I was 2 years old. We moved to Greensboro when I was 7, and I lived here until I went to college.

Q A

Did your family observe cultural traditions, and if so how, or in what ways?

We grew up celebrating the Lunar New Year and the Moon Festival in addition to American holidays like Halloween and Christmas. We were fortunate to find a Taiwanese/Chinese American community here in Greensboro. fortunate to We were able to celebrate community-wide, find a Taiwanese/Chinese whether it was celebrations at friends’ houses, or in rented church halls, or at the Cultural Center Tell us a little about yourself.

American community downtown with the local Chinese Association. here in Greensboro.

Our friends’ families also maintained a “Chinese I was born in Taiwan and immigrated to the school” for the kids; Sunday afternoons we would United States with my family when I was 2. learn Mandarin Chinese via reading, writing and comprehension. Our I am a lifelong food nerd with 20+ years of restaurant and hospitality parents were the volunteer teachers and took turns teaching the classexperience. As a Food Developer for The Fresh Market, I am a corporate es to the kids. At the time we all loathed it, but now as an adult I wish I chef who develops recipes and operational processes for 160 stores in had kept up with it better.

22 states.

I also co-own a sourdough micro-bakery called Breadservice with my husband, which we run out of our state-certified home facility.

What was your experience like growing up

Q A Q 10 A

Where did you grow up?

I grew up mostly in Greensboro; I was born in Taiwan along with my

Q A

Asian American?

I often felt unmoored. When I moved to North Carolina, some of my first memories of living in Greensboro included being made fun of for the

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CULTURE | MAY 5-11, 2022

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first time for my flat face and slanted eyes and Asian features.

I spent most of my childhood feeling like I never belonged here, yet Are you also an entrepreneur? when we would go back to Taiwan to visit family (since we were the only ones in our family who lived in America), we didn’t feel we belonged Technically yes, though I loathe to use the term to describe myself! The there either. business we have built is far more community-oriented than income/ Both my parents spoke fluent English with a Chinese accent, and I growth-oriented, and after many decades of restaurant experience remember so many incidents of them being treated as less than simply between the two of us, my husband and I have zero desire to grow our because of their accents. As a child I felt ashamed of it and worked so business into a brick and mortar or to gain huge wholesale accounts. hard to make myself as “white American” as I possibly could, just so I Our goal is to make it sustainable enough for us to supplement our would no longer stick out. income while affording ourselves work/life balance that works for us.

I excelled in school but I struggled socially, and I spent most of my childhood wanting to run away from North Carolina How did Breadservice come about? and never come back. I also felt that my extroverted personality was something my parents It took me a long time We started Breadservice as a way to keep my and my Asian community tried to squash for primary-caretaker husband home with the kids to feel like I knew my many years, as it didn’t make me an ideal Asian while still working; it’s evolved now to where we daughter. Because my parents were concerned place in the world. have full-time childcare for both our kids but he about our safety and well-being, they inadverwas able to be home with my son for about a tently accepted some anti-Black narratives year after he was born. about “bad schools/parts of town” and as a result I grew up in largely Jeff is a pastry chef by trade and became a hobby bread baker once he white spaces, despite Greensboro being a majority minority city. became a stay-at-home dad when our oldest was 1-year-old. He kept baking more and more bread until one day—shortly after we moved to How did that shape who you are today?

Greensboro—I looked at our kitchen counter, and we had more loaves than we could ever eat. I suggested he try and sell it to interested parIt took me a long time to feel like I knew my place in the world. In my deties on Nextdoor. sire to get away from Greensboro as fast as I could, I went to college in One thing led to another and we started vending at the Corner Farmer’s Indiana and then moved to the West coast for 15 years after graduation.

Market in March 2018. Once the pandemic hit, we transitioned to monthI felt solidly at home in the Pacific Northwest, where there were many ly subscriptions with contactless pickups at our home in College Hill. more Asian Americans, and Asian food and culture were easier to inteWe have since added a handful of retail partners, Deep Roots Market grate into daily life. I think my experiences made me sensitive to injusbeing our biggest account. tice, and I have been politically active since I was a teenager.

I learned to be proud of my Taiwanese heritage and to stand up to How does culture play into how you’re raising your racist remarks and micro-aggressions. I also leaned into my passion children? (Or does it?) for restaurants and hospitality, despite disapproval from my dad about going into what he considered a blue-collar industry — he was a classic I try to be intentional about sharing my background and heritage with “tiger dad” who had wanted better for me. my kids. We celebrate the Lunar New Year as well, and we eat traditional I learned to love myself and to listen to myself in the process, but it took Taiwanese foods when we can. My kids are biracial (Taiwanese and me many years of unpacking my own anti-Asian internal narratives. white) and we have spoken to them regularly about race and racism since they were able to converse.

What is your life like today?

My daughter is currently the same age I was when I first experienced racism, and thankfully she’s in a supportive and diverse school and My dad died in an accident in 2003, and as a result it brought my mom, extracurricular community. my siblings and I much closer together. My brother and sister are two Last year my daughter attended a kids’ summer camp facilitated by We of my best friends in the world, and my husband and I moved to GreensAre, an anti-racist organization based out of the Triangle. I want them boro from Portland, Oregon in 2017 to be closer to my mom once we to grow up with a healthy racial identity and understanding about racial had my first child (Mabel). history in America, and to be proud of who they are.

I never envisioned moving back to North Carolina, much less Greensboro as an adult, but after a bumpy transition we are very happy here. I Interested in Breadservice goodies? Follow them on Facebook at Breadworked full time for my family business in nonwovens for 4 years before service and on Instagram @breadservice.

I found my dream job at The Fresh Market last year.

I’m an active volunteer with Guilford For All, a grassroots political organization focused on turning out local voters to elect leaders who will enact progressive policies and legislation. I’m an active volunteer with various community organizations as well, from our local farmers market to several nonprofits in the area.

I’m outspoken about racism, not just what I experience but especially anti-Black racism here in Greensboro. There’s a history of anti-Black racism among Asian communities and vice versa, and I feel like it’s part of my responsibility to speak up about it when I can.

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CULTURE | MAY 5-11, 2022

CULTURE

Art of the tease: Burlesque takes (it all) off in Winston-Salem

by Sayaka Matsuoka

STAN SUSSINA May Hemmer performs at the Art of the Tease: An Evening of Classic Burlesque at the new Camel City Playhouse in Winston-Salem.

“B

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urlesque is all about consent.”

But she doesn’t stop there. She makes her way to the floor of the stage Those are the first words spoken by Selia d’Katzmeow Carand moves her hips back and forth, rolling them into the air so the lower michael, as she takes the stage at Camel City Playhouse on a half of her body is suspended above her, giving the audience a clear view recent Saturday evening. of her many colorful tattoos that run up and down her thighs, including an For two hours, Carmichael entertains the audience between numbers as anthropomorphized taco. And despite striking what many might consider five performers — Phoebe Nyx, Ophelia Pop Tart, May Hemmer, Darla Chera vulnerable pose whilst wearing very few clothes, Pop Tart looks comfortry and Memphis Muerte — dance, tease and strip for the sold-out crowd. able, at ease, in command.

The show, which was organized by Carmichael, is the first burlesque show This is the difference, Carmichael explains, between traditional stripping hosted at Camel City Playhouse, formerly the ARTC, which was the Garage at clubs and burlesque. before that.

“In clubs, the stripping seems to be more for the Titled Art of the Tease: An Evening of Classic male gaze, which is fine,” Carmichael says. “But It’s like women are not valued the burlesque show is a different vibe because the Burlesque, Carmichael says she put on the show to create a safe space for performers to showunless they go with the status performer on stage is in control.” case their artform.

And setting up those boundaries starts at the quo, and burlesque definitely very “It’s about safety,” she says. “We know to look beginning of the show. After telling the audigoes against the status quo. out for one another and to provide that knowlence about the importance of consent, Carmichael edge and hold space for other people who might lays down a few ground rules. She tells viewers to Selia d’Katzmeow Carmichael be inexperienced.” hoot and holler and encourage the dancers all they And this aspect of making sure the dancers are empowered is important want, but to not yell things like, “Take it off!” as might be customary in other because of the nature of burlesque, Carmichael says. places. There’s also no touching.

“It’s stripping,” she says. “I have been on the scene since 1995 doing “The performers will decide when to take it off,” she tells the audience. “If striptease, which is why, several times during the night, I called the pershe’s teasing you and you encourage that, she’s going to take it off.” formers strippers.”

This understanding of consent goes both ways. The audience isn’t alIn one set, performer Ophelia Pop Tart, the cofounder of the House of lowed to touch the performers, but the dancers are also not to touch viewStardust Burlesque, takes the stage in a glittery black getup, her voluers unless they get explicit consent. And that’s another difference between minous blonde hair pinned up like a ’50s queen. She starts by sensually how strip clubs and burlesque operate. sauntering across the stage, then slowly slides off her long orange gloves, “In order to make your money at the club, it’s typically through lap dances pulling on the fngers one at a time. Before long she’s unwrapping her dress, and VIP dances,” says Carmichael who worked in clubs for more than 10 letting her legs peek through the slit; soon she’s completely exposed except years. “In some cases it’s very exploitative because the clubs actually take for a pair of glittery, tassled pasties with a matching, bedazzled G-string. the girls’ money. A lot of clubs are run by men, that’s a big difference.”

CULTURE | MAY 5-11, 2022

As a woman who has worked in both strip clubs and as a burlesque performer, Carmichael understands the importance of creating a safe space for other workers.

When she started burlesque in 2006, she performed at Artistika in downtown Greensboro and as part of the Fringe Festival.

From there, she started doing monthly shows until 2010 when she moved away from the area. Towards the end of last year, she returned to the Triad with the hopes of hosting shows in Winston-Salem.

“We’re here to make sure that things are legit,” she says, “and we’re not being exploited by male producers or club producers who just want to profit off of women’s bodies.”

Plus, it’s fun to just have a community of people who are passionate about the same thing, she says.

“Backstage is the best because you’ll see this flow where performers are helping one another by tying up a corset or helping someone with their hair or with their stockings,” she says. “It’s really love and supportive and we back each other, hype each other up.”

In the wake of the #MeToo movement and a heightened awareness about bodily autonomy for women and nonbinary people, burlesque is an artform that can heal those who have been shamed for their bodies.

“A lot of people have addressed their trauma through burlesque because they are taking back ownership of their body,” Carmichael explains.

STAN SUSSINA So it’s important for her to showcase a variety of different body types, whether it’s “It’s really love and supportive and we back each othe, type each other up,” Selia d’Katzmeow (in the light blue) says about her burlesque family. through different shapes, races or genders.

“Burlesque has traditionally been thin, Basic etiquette for attending a burlesque show white bodies, and thin, white bodies with money,” Carmichael says. “The according to Selia d’Katzmeow ones that can afford the most expensive, sparkly costumes. And in the past 10 years it’s been, ‘No, look what this person can achieve.’”

1. We thrive off of audience participation so that’s clapEven with this heightened awareness for the artform, Carmichael says ping, hooting and hollering and tips! But remember that it is that some performers continue to face stigma when it comes to blending based on consent and the performer will “take it off” when their personal or professional lives with their burlesque personas because they are ready. of the taboo that exists when it comes to stripping. Carmichael explains how a few years ago, a dancer named Lottie Ellington, who worked as a 2. Not all burlesque shows take tips so listen to the MC high school teacher, was forced to resign after someone sent pictures of and don’t be afraid to ask. her performing to a Virginia school board.

3. Absolutely no touching, just appreciation and respect.

“It’s the idea that a woman is not smart or capable the moment a woman decides to be sexual or confident,” she says. “It’s like women are not valued 4. Photos are dependent on the show. But if you do take unless they go with the status quo, and burlesque definitely goes against photos, don’t use flash. Also, maybe don’t post anybody’s the status quo.” bare breasts on the internet without their consent.

Carmichael plans on more shows this year, to continue the conversation 5. Have fun! This is a celebration of bodies. about burlesque and create more community around it.

“We need to normalize seeing bodies and appreciating people for what To learn more about Selia d’Katzmeow, follow her on Instagram at they are and the art they provide,” she says. “And also yes, they can be a @Meowzeebub.

She will be hosting a free show at Single Brothers on badass professional out here in the world.”

July 2 and another show at Dye Pretty Salon on Oct. 7.

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SHOT IN THE TRIAD | MAY 5-11, 2022

SHOT IN THE TRIAD

BY CAROLYN DE BERRY

Chestnut Street, Greensboro

Stormtrooper sighting in Dunleath neighborhood.

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‘Are You Cereal?’—it’s right there on the box.

by Matt Jones

LAST WEEK’S ANSWERS:

Across

1. “Call of Duty: Black ___” 4. “The Ten Commandments” figure 9. Irritate 14. On a pension, briefly 15. Blazing 16. Risky GPS suggestion 17. Tried a little tender... loin 18. One-liner expert 19. Word in the name of many dental offices 20. Cereal featuring a wide receiver on the box?

23. “___ Scared Stupid” (1991 film) 24. 86.4 trillion nanoseconds 25. Run up a bill 28. “Spotlight” actor Schreiber 29. “Confessions” R&B singer 32. The ___ (mysterious “Top Gear” driver) 33. Film composer Morricone 35. Acid in proteins 36. Cereal featuring a Grammy-winning singer-songwriter on the box?

41. Per ___ (salary phrase) 42. “Turning Red” studio 43. Off-duty 44. Turn down an offer 46. White who voiced Muriel on “Courage the Cowardly Dog” 50. Brett’s role on “Ted Lasso” 51. Put two and two together 52. Monkey for whom a blood factor is named 54. Cereal featuring a “Muppets Take Manhattan” and “Man of La Mancha” actor on the box?

58. Soft palate dangler 60. Rolled chip brand with “Fuego” and “Nitro” varieties 61. One in Orleans 62. Pesto ingredient 63. Take out 64. Shortz employer, for short 65. To the point that 66. Coat or shirt, maybe 67. Slide into your ___

Down

1. Treatment for sore gums 2. Czar known as “The Great” 3. “Tristram Shandy” author (and 23-Across anagram) 4. Thanksgiving parade sponsor 5. “Carmina Burana” showstopper 6. ___ Valley (Thousand Oaks neighbor) 7. “Domino Masters” host Stonestreet 8. Form a splinter group 9. Like annoying telemarketers 10. “I relate,” online 11. Foolishly impractical 12. Website address 13. Benz tag?

21. Income

PUZZLES | MAY 5-11, 2022

CROSSWORD

© 2022 Jonesin’ Crosswords (editor@jonesincrosswords.com)

SUDOKU 22. Monopoly game piece 26. Subtle (or not-so-subtle) gesture 27. Vanity centers 30. Bit of a beverage 31. Like most IPAs 32. Like Yogi, compared to other bears 34. ___ pla (fish sauce) 35. “How to Get Away with Murder” actress ___ Naomi King 36. Clear-skies forecast 37. Proto-___-European (early language) 38. Barely 39. “In the Heights” creator ___-Manuel Miranda 40. Drive out, in a way 44. Storm of the Fantastic Four 45. Beer brand from Holland 47. It’s heard twice in “Have you heard?” © 2022 Jonesin’ Crosswords (editor@jonesincrosswords.com) 48. Well-suited name (and a notable National Spelling Bee final word shout-spelled by the winner) 49. Ledger column LAST WEEK’S ANSWERS: 51. T-shirt size 53. Putdown for Bob and Doug McKenzie 55. Et ___ (and others) 56. Model/actress Delevingne 57. About a B-minus, if I’m being generous 58. “Sit, ___, sit. Good dog” (“Family Ties” vanity card) 59. Moving vehicle

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