As the country and economy slowly return to some level of normalcy, I can’t help but wonder: is it a good or a bad thing? Since the early ’90s, Black Gay Prides across the country have fully rejuvenated the freedom of sex, friendship, reunions and a remembrance of how proud we are to be Black! We were liberated and bold, even at the height of HIV. In the era of COVID-19 and the newly spreading virus, monkeypox, a stigma against survivors is not fair to those who have overcome either. Gay men currently constitute 95 percent of all U.S. monkeypox cases. “In our need to be on trend and in the know, we do things that expose ourselves and others and cast a stigma of shame and bad behavior on the entire community,” said Lesley Dixon of the Georgia State University Prevention Research Center. As gay men, we have a responsibility to destigmatize and counter misinformation from others not within our ranks, but also to act responsibly. I have witnessed people who tested positive for COVID-19 and monkeypox share “safe” spaces with others in close proximity. This behavior is selfish and shameless and disregards the health and safety of others. With the overturning of Roe v. Wade, the autonomy and agency over our bodies is under attack. It has been insinuated that marriage equality may be next on the chopping block. A new age of activism in the fight for our freedoms is imperative and must be galvanized as it was when the first person threw a brick at the Stonewall riots. From 1969 to 1973, Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera fought so that we may be afforded a freedom of expression that Black gays only dreamed of during that time. During this new era of pandemics and viruses, let nothing threaten our sense of pride for each other or our love for our community. If you or anyone you know is exhibiting symptoms of COVID-19 or monkeypox, please contact your nearest health department or medical professional and enact the precautions necessary to keep us all safe and healthy.
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J. Tebias Perry PHOTO VIA FACEBOOK
— J. Tebias Perry
Editor:EditorialKatie kburkholder@thegavoice.comBurkholder
Editorial Contributors: Sukainah Abid-Kons, Cliff Bostock, Jim Farmer, Debra Tyler Horton, Tianrui Huang, Divine Ikpe, J. Tebias Perry, Dante Rhodes, Craig Washington
THEGEORGIAVOICE.COM AUGUST 19, 2022 EDITORIAL 3
J. Tebias Perry Happy Black Gay Pride, Atlanta!
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“A new age of activism in the fight for our freedoms is imperative and must be galvanized as it was when the first person threw a brick at the Stonewall riots. From 1969 to 1973, Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera fought so that we may be afforded a freedom of expression that Black gays only dreamed of during that time.”
georgiavoice VOLUME 13• ISSUE 11 WE NEED TO KEEP
Publisher Emeritus: Chris Cash Fine Print All material in Georgia Voice is protected by federal copyright law and may not be reproduced without the written consent of Georgia Voice. The sexual orientation of advertisers, photographers, writers and cartoonists published herein is neither inferred nor implied. The appearance of names or pictorial representation does not necessarily indicate the sexual orientation of that person or persons. We also do not accept responsibility for claims made by advertisers. Unsolicited editorial material is accepted by Georgia Voice, but we do not take responsibility for its return. The editors reserve the right to accept, reject, or edit any submission. Guidelines for freelance contributors are available upon request. A single copy of Georgia Voice is available from authorized distribution points. Multiple copies are available from Georgia Voice office only. Call for rates. If you are unable to reach a convenient free distribution point, you may receive a 24-issue mailed subscription for $99 per year. Checks or credit card orders can be sent to Tim Boyd, tboyd@thegavoice.com
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The Biden administration, amid criticism it was slow to act on the monkeypox outbreak and still not meeting the demand for vaccines as the number of cases continues to grow, has announced a shift in guidance for implementation of the shot in an effort to enhance availability. As the estimated number of monkeypox cases in the United States reaches 8,900, top health officials announced the new move on Tuesday as part of a decision by Secretary of Health & Human Services Xavier Becerra to issue a determination under Section 564 of the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act to justify emergency use authorization of vaccines. The announcement follows up on the Biden administration’s announcement last week declaring the monkeypox outbreak a public health emergency. Becerra said in a conference call with reporters the 564 determination and change in approach to vaccines would “boost and strengthen” the Biden administration’s response to monkeypox, which has overwhelmingly affected gay and bisexual men, and “safely accelerates and multiplies our supply of effective vaccines by up to “Today’sfivefold.”action also reaffirms HHS and this administration’s commitment to using all available resources and capabilities to end the monkeypox outbreak and provide the best possible care to those suffering from the virus,” Becerra added. The new vaccine approach, which may be considered minor to non-medical observers, would change injections of the JYNNEOS vaccine from the subcutaneous route (delivery of the vaccine under the fat layer underneath the skin) to the intradermal route (delivery of the vaccine into the layer of skin just underneath the top layer). In theory, that would allow for greater accessibility of monkeypox vaccines as it increases the number of doses from each vial of vaccine.
As The New York Times reported last week, the Biden administration has faced criticism for not moving quickly enough in acquiring and distributing vaccines, including bulk stocks already owned by the U.S. government manufactured in Denmark by Bavaria Nordic now being given to other clients. “The government is now distributing about 1.1 million doses, less than a third of the 3.5 million that health officials now estimate are needed to fight the outbreak,” the Times reported. “It does not expect the next delivery, of half a million doses, until October. Most of the other 5.5 million doses the United States has ordered are not scheduled to be delivered until next year, according to the federal health agency.”
Biden Administration Shifts Monkeypox Vaccine Approach Amid Shortage
4 NEWS AUGUST 19, 2022 THEGEORGIAVOICE.COM Staff reports Read these stories and more online at thegavoice.com
Washington Blade has placed a request in with the Centers for Disease Control seeking comment on the legislation. Secretary of Health & Human Services Xavier Becerra said Tuesday the federal government has the capacity to conduct an estimated 80,000 tests each week.
The bill introduction comes the week after the Biden administration declared the monkeypox outbreak a public health emergency and the same it has issued new guidance to enhance to the accessing of existing vaccines doses amid criticism federal officials were too slow in distributing shots.
Maloney has been representing New York’s 18th congressional district, but after redistricting is now seeking re-election in the 17th district. Amid controversy over a potential showdown between Maloney and Rep. Mondaire Jones (D-N.Y.), who’s Black, another openly gay member of Congress and the current representative of that district, Jones has since opted to run for re-election in the New York’s 10th congressional district. Maloney is now running unopposed in the 17th.
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PHOTO BY PEXELS.COM / RFSTUDIO
Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney Introduces Bill to Make Monkeypox Testing Free
The legislation would require private health insurers as well as Medicare and Medicaid to cover the costs of monkeypox testing at no expense to the patients, either through deductibles, co-payments, and co-insurance.
Biden administration shifts monkeypox vaccine approach amid shortage.
Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney (D-N.Y.), amid the ongoing monkeypox affecting gay and bisexual men, has introduced legislation in the U.S. House seeking to make testing for disease free to the public. Maloney, one of seven openly gay members of Congress and chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, said in a statement the measure, called the No Cost for Monkeypox Testing Act, would testing amid the monkeypox outbreak would be accessible to all. “It is critical that we eliminate cost as a barrier to testing for monkeypox to ensure we can identify cases and prevent further spread,” Maloney said. “This legislation takes the lessons we learned from past public health emergencies and protects those at risk of contracting monkeypox by making tests accessible to everyone.”
Judge Robert McBurney heard arguments from both sides on August 8, but did not issue a decision at that time. In a post-hearing press conference, attorney Julia Stone voiced frustration at the process of receiving one of the two blocks on the ban, stating that the state’s defense was allowing harm that results from the law to “continue and compound” for however long the litigation will take. Stone also stated that the state’s defense was downplaying the consequences of the ban that Georgians are actively facing. “That can’t stand,” Stone said. “Georgia has protections for people in Georgia.”
SisterSong Collective and ACLU Continue to Fight Six-Week Abortion Ban
Ultimately, SisterSong and the ACLU hope that the court will rule that the ban is unconstitutional under Georgia law, preventing it from being enforced at all.
Attorney Stone and Susan Lambiase, a civil rights attorney with the Planned Parenthood Federation, also criticized how the ban had been put into effect and alleged that abortion providers were not notified. Lambiase stated in the post-hearing press conference that abortion providers had to cancel appointments for many patients with no prior warning, leaving those further along than six weeks in their pregnancy with no options in Georgia. “People in the waiting room that day, waiting for an abortion, were in a panic,” Lambiase said. “They either have to forcibly remain pregnant or find a way to travel to a state with fewer restrictions.” Lambiase cited the various financial barriers that come with that option, such as plane and hotel costs, taking time off work, and finding child care for those who have children at home. It is difficult at this point in the case to predict when a decision will be reached, but Stone said that she hopes it will be soon.
If you are interested in watching the hearings, they are available to the public on Judge Robert McBurney’s YouTube channel.
Sukainah Abid-Kons Abortion is no longer a constitutional right in the United States, but organizations across the country are taking states to court to try to protect the individual’s right to reproductive care. Here in Georgia, lawyers are currently fighting the restrictive six-week abortion ban that went into effect on June 20. The law prohibits women from receiving abortions after a fetal heartbeat is detected, as early as six weeks into the pregnancy. It offers exceptions for life-threatening pregnancies, rape, and incest, but only if a police report has been filed. Initially blocked for its direct infringement on the constitutional right to abortion, the law had been on legislative hold for more than two years. In an attempt to block the law, SisterSong Women of Color Reproductive Justice Collective and the American Civil Liberties Union have taken the state of Georgia to court, arguing that the bill is in direct violation of the right to privacy protected under the Georgia Constitution and that the bill is “void ab initio” as it was unconstitutional at the time of its passing. The hope is to receive a preliminary injunction or temporary restraining order on the enforcement of the ban.
PHOTO VIA FACEBOOK / SISTER SONGS
6 NEWS AUGUST 19, 2022 THEGEORGIAVOICE.COM LOCAL NEWS
NATIONAL NEWS
Tianrui Huang, Washington Blade courtesy of the National LGBTQ Media Association A southwest Florida district put parental “advisory notice” on over 100 books, many of which are race or LGBTQ-themed. A great number of books in Collier County Public Schools, either digital or physical, now have warning labels with an “advisory notice to parents,” according to an NBC report. The label, tweeted by nonprofit free-speechpromoting group PEN American, states, “This Advisory Notice shall serve to inform you that this book has been identified by some community members as unsuitable for students. This book will also be identified in the Destiny system with the same notation. The decision as to whether this book is suitable or unsuitable shall be the decision of the parent(s) who has the right to oversee his/her child’s education consistent with state Stephanalaw.” Ferrell, co-founder of the Florida Freedom to Read Project, an organization working to fight book banning, told NBC that she had a call from Elizabeth Alves, the associate superintendent of teaching and learning for Collier County Public Schools. In the call, Alves told her that the district added the labels starting in February. These measures, which Alves described as a “compromise,” happened after the district’s legal representative talked with the Florida Citizens Alliance, a conservative group which initiated a “Porn in Schools Report” project last year. The report included a list of books that “promote gender self-identification and same-sex marriage” as well as titles that include “indecent and offensive material,” as the group explained.
Chad Oliver, the Collier County Public Schools spokesperson, on the other hand, offered a different story. Oliver sent an email to NBC News saying, “Based upon advice from the General Counsel, we placed advisory notices on books about which parents and community members had expressed concern and in accordance with the recently passed Parents’ Bill of Rights Law (HB 241).” The law Oliver referred to is also colloquially known as the “Don’t Say Gay” law. According to PEN America, there are 110 books now bearing this label in total, and the list greatly overlaps with the one Florida Citizens Alliance inquired about with Collier County Public Schools. LGBTQ- and Race-Themed Books in a Florida School District Labeled with Advisory Warning
THEGEORGIAVOICE.COM AUGUST 19, 2022 NEWS 7
ADVISORY NOTICE IS COURTESY OF PEN AMERICA VIA TWITTER.
Over 100
Florida School District advisiry notice on over 100 LGBTQ- and race-themed books.
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Debra Tyler Horton, AARP Georgia State Director It’s coming up on a busy time here in the state of Georgia. As summer comes to an end, many Georgians will be wrapped up with sending the kids back to school, hopping around some of the state’s great outdoor festivals and, of course, cheering on the Dawgs. But there’s one important obligation that should not get lost in the shuffle: Georgiavoting.hasseveral consequential elections coming up this November. Voters will go to the polls to decide which candidate will lead our state from the Governor’s mansion for the next four years. They could also potentially determine, for the second consecutive election cycle, which party has control of the United States Senate. They will vote on a host of Congressional races, as well as critical statewide offices — all incredibly important contests for a variety of reasons. In recent election cycles, LGBTQ voters’ voices have grown louder and louder. With key legislation impacting the lives and livelihoods of members of this community, this emerging voting bloc has had its say in several key races. Looking back to the presidential race of 2020, 93 percent of registered LGBTQ voters turned out to vote, according to GLAAD. As a sign of just how motivated the LGBTQ community was, especially those younger LGBTQ voters, 25 percent of those LGBTQ voters were casting a ballot for the first time. With the November 8 election day still way off in the future, does it make sense to start planning your vote now? Of course it does. Deadlines for voter registration are fast approaching. Soon enough, early voting will be underway across the state. The time is now to begin researching candidates and issues that matter in these upcoming races. AARP, the nation’s largest nonprofit organization for LGBTQ membership, is a reliable source for voting information. To find out how to register, as well as the where, when, and how of voting in the fall elections, visit aarp.org/GAvotes. AARP is a non-partisan organization that advocates for issues but does not endorse or make political contributions to individual parties or candidates. NEVER TOO EARLY aso.org/unison
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JOAN GARNER JANE MORRISON TICKETS www.lambdalegal.org/atlanta Lambda Legal opened its Southern Regional Office in Atlanta in 1997 as southern states continued to fiercely resist a growing nationwide acceptance of justice and equality for LGBTQ people and everyone living with HIV. Join Lambda Legal's Atlanta Leadership Council and Host Committee members to honor 25 years of legal advocacy to advance the rights for LGBTQ people and everyone living with HIV in the South. ATLANTA LAMBDA LEGAL IN WHEN Sunday, September 18, 2022 11:00 AM EST WHERE InterContinental Buckhead Windsor Ballroom 3315 Peachtree Rd. NE, Atlanta, GA HONORING JOIN US AS WE CELEBRATE 25 YEARS IN THE SOUTH THEGEORGIAVOICE.COM AUGUST 19, 2022 ADS 9
Katie Burkholder
“Because I’m a masculine female, I’ve been able to embrace more of my masculinity and feel comfortable with who I am, but I’ve also been able to help others get there.”
BLACK GAY PRIDE
No one embodies Black Gay Pride quite like Amber Moore. The multihyphenate community organizer wears many hats, all dedicated to serving the LGBTQ community and creating a space where everyone, especially Black and brown folks, sees themselves and gets the education and resources they need. We recently sat down with Moore to discuss her involvement with Atlanta Black Pride and In The Life Atlanta, how her work has influenced her understanding of her others’ identities and her own, and the importance of building community over Atlanta Black Pride weekend. Quotes have been edited for clarity. To start, tell me about yourself. Currently, I wear three hats in the LGBTQ community. I am a founder of Sigma Omega Phi Fraternity, which is the only collegiate LGBTQ fraternity or sorority in the United States that’s on campus. I run as President and founder at this time. I also wear the hat as executive director for Real Bois Talk, a program that came out of the Health Initiative that is now a nonprofit on its own. It is for African American masculineidentified gay females’ health disparities and wellness. My third hat is Atlanta Black Pride. I’ve been on the board for In The Life Atlanta since 2013. In The Life Atlanta is the original organization behind Atlanta Black Pride weekend. Between 2015 and 2017, In The Life’s president Ricky Smith had the vision to take In The Life Atlanta to a foundation level and pull the program of Atlanta Black Pride Weekend [to make it] an entity that can stand on its own with the backing of the In The Life Atlanta foundation. I became the COO and Vice President of Atlanta Black Pride. I go out and talk to our sponsors, I make sure our programs and events are all in place, I also do some of the year-round programming. I’m the day-to-day person. To go back a little bit, how did you first become involved with In The Life? Because I was a part of the Rush Center, I did work for the Atlanta Pride Committee under James Sheffield and Buck Cooke, and I worked for the Health Initiative as the program manager of Real Bois Talk at the time. I was in the mix of everything. When my job changed at APC, I realized I still liked doing the festival kind of stuff, so I joined in with Atlanta Black Pride ... They said they had board positions and I interviewed for it.
10 BLACK GAY PRIDE AUGUST 19, 2022 THEGEORGIAVOICE.COM
To learn more about Atlanta Black Pride, visit atlantablackpride.org.
Amber Moore COURTESY PHOTO
For the first three years, I was a seat warmer. I was doing my [Black masculine LGBTQ women brunch] event during Atlanta Black Pride, I was very much working on that. Then I was like, ‘It’s time for me to step up.’ So that’s how I became [COO]. Amazing. You’re obviously incredibly involved with the LGBTQ community, so to shift to your personal journey, how did you get to this point of involvement? How has your identity manifested and changed because of this work? Because I’m a masculine female, I’ve been able to embrace more of my masculinity and feel comfortable with who I am, but I’ve also been able to help others get there. It’s not so much that our programming is for Black lesbians who are masculine. [Through this work], I’ve been able to better understand the transgender community, my gay male community, my bisexual community. Because of being in this role, my knowledge has become broader. I’m not transgender, I’m not bisexual, but I carry them with me. So, I make sure that I get as much of my own personal education. I’m interested to know because I want to serve that community in the best light I can. It also gave me an understanding of what kind of education we as Atlanta Black Pride are responsible for giving to the community — and I don’t mean just the Black and Brown LGBTQ community, but our community as a whole. For us, we’re looking at the fact that when it comes to the Black and Brown LGBTQ community, we’re not getting the resources, education opportunities, and other things that our white counterparts are. If I can connect one small business to get exposure, if I can put a podcast out there, if there’s an artist that I can put on my stage and give them more opportunities, that’s my joy right there. When we put a stage together, the people we put on that stage are us. I want you to be in my community.
Amber Moore TALKS COMMUNITY BUILDING AND ATLANTA BLACK PRIDE
Atlanta Black Pride Park Festival September 4-5, 2pm to 7pm Central Park The 25th Atlanta Black Pride Park Festival is a twoday free outdoor festival featuring live music on two stages, a drag show, arts, food, and more! More info at atlantablackpride.org. Booze Cruise September 5, Noon Lake Lanier Party buses depart from The Starling at noon sharp. Learn more at atlantaprideweekend.com.
September 1, 7pm to 9pm Location Provided Upon RSVP Mayor Andre Dickens is proud to host the upcoming 3rd Annual Mayor’s Black Pride Reception, powered by Gilead Sciences. Join Mayor for an evening of celebration and entertainment, as we kick off Black Pride weekend. Tickets are complimentary, and all guests are invited to make a donation to the Mayor’s Youth Scholarship Program. RSVP through Eventbrite.
Pure Heat Community Festival
Annual All White Party September 5, 10pm to 3am LearnOpiummore atlantaprideweekend.com.
LGBTQ Food and Wine Festival September 4, 11am to 8pm Central Park This food and wine event will feature cooking demonstrations, artisans and lifestyle vendors, live entertainment, and delicious cuisine from Atlanta’s best LGBTQ- and ally-owned restaurants. Tickets are $50, to purchase visit lgbtfw.com/festival-tickets.
Atlanta Black Pride Weekend Influencers Dinner
BLACK GAY PRIDE
Atlanta City Hall You’re invited to attend the 2022 Inaugural Equality and Unity Pride Reception hosted by Atlanta City Councilmember Keisha Waites! The purpose of the Equality and Unity Pride reception is to celebrate diversity, promote equality, unity, and recognize the work and contributions of LGBTQ pioneers, trailblazers and community leaders. Register through Eventbrite.
September 2, 6pm to 9pm
Kirkwood Presents Dick Camp September 3, 10pm to 3am DA City Hookah Café
Atlanta Black Pride Signature Fashion Show September 2, 7pm to 9pm 120 Ralph McGill Blvd This fashion show will feature local designers The Thrift Jesus, Her Love Clothing, Kodak Kelz, and Kings Thread. Learn more at atlantablackpride.org.
September 4, Noon to 8pm Piedmont Park
3rd Annual Mayor’s Atlanta Black Pride Weekend Reception
The Trans Life Awards
All White Party September 3, 10pm to 3am Hidden Gem
BLK Gay Pride Day Party September 4, 3pm to 10pm Energy Daiquiri Bar
September 2, 6pm to 10pm The Starling An evening to highlight and honor trailblazers and role models who influence the LGBTQ community, this semi-formal event includes a cocktail reception, live entertainment, recognition ceremony, a four-course meal, and more. Purchase tickets at atlantaprideweekend.com/ influencer-dinner.
ATLANTA BLACK PRIDE WEEKEND CALENDAR
Joseline Hernandez performs at this year’s Pure Heat Community Festival PHOTO VIA FACEBOOK
This free community festival is one of the largest Black LGBTQ events in the country, fostering communication, tolerance, and mutual support among the LGBTQ community. This year’s entertainment lineup includes Joseline Hernandez. Learn more at pureheatcommunityfestival.com.
September 3, 5pm to 9pm Tongue & Groove Ladies at Play is celebrating Atlanta Black Gay Pride 2022 with a dash of old and a splash of new! DJ NUTTY is back by popular demand spinning old school and new school hip hop, club bangers, R&B, house and much more! Get your tickets through Eventbrite.
Katie Burkholder
Literary Café September 3, 2pm to 5pm 120 Ralph McGill Blvd All LGBTQ authors are invited to this literary café to sell their books. Learn more at atlantablackpride.org.
Ladies at SaturDAYPlay’sParty Bash
Atlanta Black Pride Celebration September 2, 9pm to 2am 2001 MLK Mark Gregory, Keisha Waites, and Gold Space Atlanta present a 2022 Black Gay Pride celebration along with Gold Space Atlanta. Join them along with Comedian Dee Mahoney and DJ Carlos Seaborne. Get your tickets through Eventbrite. Speakfire Erotic Poetry September 2, 11:30pm 120 Ralph McGill Blvd LGBTQ and allied poets are encouraged to share poetry about sensuality, intimacy, and eroticism. Doors at 11pm. Learn more at atlantablackpride.org.
Atlanta Black Pride weekend is just around the corner. Over Labor Day weekend, Atlanta’s Black LGBTQ and allied community gathers for a weekend of support, love, and fun in one of the largest Black Pride celebrations in the country. Check out the weekend’s event lineup and start filling your calendar now! Find the full calendar online at thegavoice.com.
Pride Multifaith Celebration
One Sweet Night LGBTQ Adult Prom September 3, 4pm to 8pm The Dawn Event Center If you missed prom, or weren’t able to be your authentic self, or you’d like another opportunity to do it all again, join Iana Skye for the 3rd annual LGBTQ adult prom. Enjoy an evening of food, music, dancing, and mingling in a safe, affirming, and accessible atmosphere with gender neutral restrooms available for all. This year’s theme is LGBTQ Royalty. Get your tickets through Eventbrite.
12 BLACK GAY PRIDE AUGUST 19, 2022 THEGEORGIAVOICE.COM
Equality and Unity Welcome Reception
Hosted by Brian Greyson, this party will feature entertainers Knock Out and Black Diamond and DJ Ricoveli. Get your tickets through Eventbrite.
August 30, 7pm Spiritual Living Center of Atlanta Led by Bishop Sonya Williams, religious and spiritual leaders in the community Rev. Jean Bell, Rev. Dr. David Alexander, Bishop Elect Troy Sanders, Imanma Katrina Jackson, Rev. Nadine Rawls, Rabbi Nechemyah D. Sullivan, and Pastor Maressa Pendermon as well as Councilwoman Keisha Waites and ViiV Healthcare will provide inspiration and a blessing over the weekend with this non-denominational service.
This 30+ party is for mature women who love women. Party the night away with DJ Bombshell Boogie. Get your tickets through Eventbrite.
September 3, 5pm to 7pm Location TBD The Trans Life Awards honors the unselfish contributions of members of the transgender and non-binary communities in Atlanta. For more information, visit thetranslifeawards.com.
This red-hot day party will feature DJ Mikeith and special guests Hype Man Ant and Erotic Barber. Get your tickets at kirkwoodenterprisesllc.com.
14 BLACK GAY PRIDE AUGUST 19, 2022 THEGEORGIAVOICE.COM
For ten years, Pure Heat has been a gathering rooted in camaraderie, fellowship, and support, highlighting business, professionals, individuals, and charitable pursuits in the LGBTQ and allied communities. The free event brings together Atlanta’s Black LGBTQ community through competition, entertainment, and education to oppose prejudice, foster community, spread education about the cultural heritage of Atlanta’s Black and brown LGBTQ community, and encourage LGBTQ people to live openly and proudly. In partnership with The Vision Community Foundation, a portion of the proceeds from the event will go to aid the homeless LGBTQ youth and others affected by HIV/AIDS. The free event will include food vendors, dance competitions, giveaways, live hair battles, and entertainment from local performers and celebrity guests. Past featured guests and artists include Angelica Ross, Da Brat, Brandy, Monica, and Kelly Price.
Pure Heat is only a highlight of an extensive lineup of Atlanta Black Pride Labor Day Rock events backed by Traxx Girls and RockStars Production. Other events include day and night parties throughout the weekend, an influencer dinner, booze cruise, and more. Find more events on page 12 and online at atlantaprideweekend.com.
While this year’s full lineup of guests has not yet been announced, one guest at this year’s festival will be Joseline Hernandez, a former star on “Love & Hip-Hop: Atlanta.”
PURE HEAT
Pure Heat will be held at Piedmont Park from noon to 8pm on Sunday, September 4. To learn more, pureheatcommunityfestival.com.visit
Katie Burkholder
CELEBRATESFESTIVALTENYEARSBLACKGAYPRIDE
Bishop O.C. Allen, founder and senior pastor of The Vision Church, told Georgia Voice after the inaugural festival in 2012.
This year, the Pure Heat Community Festival celebrates a decade of unity in Piedmont Park on September 4. The festival is part of Atlanta’s Black Gay Pride weekend, celebrated every year during Labor Day weekend. The event is one of the largest Black LGBTQ events in the nation, attracting more than 140,000 attendees.
While the festival officially started in 2012, thousands flocked to the park on the Sunday during Labor Day weekend to celebrate Black Gay Pride for years before. “People always come to the park on Sunday [during Black Gay Pride] and we saw it as an opportunity to not only provide entertainment and also HIV testing, but also expose the community to the community on many levels,”
Hernandez came out as bisexual this year during Pride month on social media, tweeting, “My gayness is like my skin color! Proud #bi girl! Finally comfortable in my #skin … May you all be as comfortable and open as I am one day!”
Known as “The Puerto Rican Princess,” the Afro-Latina musician recently came to Atlanta with her Cabaret Tour, performing with the top four dancers from her reality competition show, “Joseline’s Cabaret: Atlanta.” She also recently released a music video for her newest single, “Ghetto Fantasy.”
“People always come to the park on Sunday [during Black Gay Pride] and we saw it as an opportunity to not only provide entertainment and also HIV testing, but also expose the community to the community on many levels.” — Bishop O.C. Allen, founder and senior pastor of The Vision Church
BLACK PRIDE
The advice she has for other Black queer people interested in getting into fashion design is, “to find your voice and project it through your designs. Tell a story with each collection and never allow people who don’t understand your vision to be the ones who destroy your confidence. You aren’t for everyone, and that’s okay.”
Eras that influence The Thrift Jesus’ work are ones where Black excellence and beauty were the blueprint of the fashion at the time, such as the ’70s, ’90s and early 2000s. Some brands that inspire her work are streetwear brands Fear of God, Chrome Hearts, and Pyer Moss, as well as Hanifa, a fun, colorful brand with sexy, yet eccentric clothes that have modern silhouettes with a ’70s flair. These inspirations should come as no surprise if you look through her body of work. Her earlier designs could be best described as regal, but this upcoming collection is a full 180-degree turnaround, with a “streetwear meets thrift shop” vibe. As a bisexual woman, her queerness influences her designs as well; she creates with inclusivity in mind. “I am aware of different body types and how people want to be represented through their look,” she told Georgia Voice. “Style [serves as] a freedom of expression, especially for the queer community. I just want to make the community proud by creating designs that make them feel unique and powerful.”
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Divine Ikpe On September 2, Atlanta Black Pride is hosting a fashion show showcasing local Black queer designers along with local LGBTQ Greek organizations. The show, which is chaired by new board member and friend of Georgia Voice Tiana Clay, promises to be a diverse and incredible event. “This fashion show is going to rock your socks off,” Amber Moore, the COO of Atlanta Black Pride, told Georgia Voice. “You’re going to see transgender people, gay men, lesbians, studs. You’re going to see a reflection of that in the artists and designers, in the crowd, in the entertainment, in the models.”
ATLANTA FASHION SHOW TO FEATURE QUEER DESIGNER
Alexandria’s love of secondhand and vintage clothes helped ignite her brand. As the name
One of the featured designers in the show is Alexandria, more commonly known as The Thrift Jesus. She is a self-taught designer who has been in the industry for the past three years. She participated in last year’s fashion show and she said it was such an encouraging and supportive atmosphere that she happily accepted the offer to be in it for a second time.
Atlanta Black Pride’s fashion show will be held at 120 Ralph McGill Blvd from 7–9pm. To learn more, visit atlantablackpride.org.
The Thrift Jesus
BLACK GAY PRIDE
“I am aware of different body types and how people want to be represented through their look. Style [serves as] a freedom of expression, especially for the queer community. I just want to make the community proud by creating designs that make them feel unique and powerful.”
The Thrift Jesus suggests, sustainability is an important aspect of the brand. She is a fan of secondhand shopping and vintage clothing due to the creativity of the designs and the quality of the clothes themselves, and she tries to incorporate those vintage sentiments into the brand as much as she can. You can buy her clothes through pop-ups around the city, but in the past her work has been featured in The Pink Zebra in Little 5 Points, Merge Co. at Phipps Plaza, Mutiny Artwrx at the MET Atlanta, Citizen Supply in Ponce City Market, and at her website, thethriftjesus.com (which is currently under construction, but will be complete by winter). She is currently looking into commercial property in Midtown to open her own boutique, so be on the lookout! You can follow her on Instagram @thethriftjesus and on Facebook to get updates about all of her drops, pop-up appearances, and updates regarding her potential future boutique.
— The Thrift Jesus Alexandria, more commonly known as The Thrift Jesus. PHOTO VIA FACEBOOK
“I never thought we would have a Black president or that mygaywouldSupremetheCourtlegalizemarriageinlifetime.”
Throughout high school he did not dare act on his feelings and was never approached.
Life THE ATLANTA COMMITTEE, THE ROSE ROOM & MOREHOUSE COLLEGE (BEFORE LORETTA’S)
James Warren Jackson PHOTO VIA FACEBOOK
James Warren Jackson & An Earlier Atlanta Black Gay
James Warren Jackson is a Black gay man born in Atlanta in 1946. He and his family lived in the Herndon Homes, a housing project built expressly for Black tenants in 1941. His dad worked as a janitor at Atlanta Public Schools, while his mom worked as a housewife and later became a substitute teacher, also at APS. “It was enough,” Jackson recalled, “because we didn’t know there was anything more.” He remembers his childhood as pleasant and uplifting, with very little exposure to the world beyond Southwest Atlanta. When he was around 11 years old, he and his mother were riding a local bus and as white passengers boarded, she directed him toward the back of the bus. Not recognizing what one had to do with the other, he questioned why. His mother gently responded, “You don’t understand now, but you will when you get older.” On his first day of fifth grade, as he headed out for class, his mother advised, “That’s how girls carry their books.” He quickly corrected his stance and lowered the books to his side.
None of the adults he knew ever discussed homosexuality in front of him or other kids. Race discrimination and other social unrest of the day were not spoken about in his home.
Eventually, Jackson discovered other young gay men like him among fellow students at Morehouse College. “Not only did I find out I was not the only one, there were so many, I never dreamed,” he said, laughing aloud. It was at Morehouse where he found his first sense of community and lifelong friends with whom he could fully be himself. He attended Morehouse from 1966 to 1970, a time shortly before the Stonewall Riots. This was years before watering holes like Fosters, Loretta’s, and Traxx gave Black gays in Atlanta welcoming space and respite from the shady white bars that discriminated against them with unchecked regularity. They had the Marquette, however, a nowiconic dive that was within walking distance from the college. Their favorite option was
He experienced his first erotic interaction with another boy in a darkened sixth grade classroom. While viewing a film, students were paired up, and after the lights came down, his partner Johnny “started feeling my legs and my private parts, and I was not displeased.”
“As soon as I got outside,” he recalled with laughter, “I held those books so tight to my chest and kept moving.” Both of the separate worlds he occupied jointly insisted that he perform silence and submission long before he realized he was a natural threat to each one’s order.
Craig Washington This is the second article from “Reclaiming Our Time: A History of Atlanta’s Black LGBTQIA Life,” a series of editorials that presents vivid and personal accounts of one of the city’s most definitive communities.
“You would be exposed, and they would call you ‘sissy,’ ‘punk,’ and ‘faggot,’” he said.
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I could hear the swell in Jackson’s voice as he described how people flocked to these Atlanta Committee gatherings, the kind that Black cishet and white LGBTQ historians strive to overlook. He assessed Atlanta Committee as “a trailblazer in exposing gay men to be empowered, to enjoy and take pride in what they are doing.” Jackson looks in awe upon the achievements of Black and queer liberation in the many years that have rolled on. As a little boy, he had to go to the back of the bus to perform as inferior for whites. As a man, he and his peers enjoyed newly won civil freedoms. Yet as queer men who faced legalized discrimination from the state and social condemnation from their own people, they remained at the back of the bus. “I never thought we would have a Black president or that the Supreme Court would legalize gay marriage in my lifetime,” he said. I was honored to have Mr. Jackson speak with me about his growing up and coming of age in the ’50s, ’60s and ’70s in Atlanta. We cannot fully appreciate the fruits of liberation we regularly enjoy (visible Black LGBTQI+ advocacy, openly gay and trans Black artists, Black Pride events, shows like “Pose” and “P-Valley,” and the 2021 “B-Boy Blues” film) if we remain ignorant of those whose unsung acts and undocumented lives embodied the blood, seed and soil that bore those fruits.
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Decades before Atlanta Black Pride, the Atlanta Committee organized two signature events that drew attendees from all over the country. Their Red & White Ball was a mid-winter festive occasion that featured a Miss Black America drag coronation. “This was the ’70s!” Jackson said, emphasizing the risk of such expression. The Harvest Weekend was a four-day celebration held on the week of Thanksgiving. From Wednesday through Sunday, a circuit of functions was held at various members’ homes. For both events, printed invitations were mailed along with a lists of accommodations where out-oftown visitors could stay in or near Atlanta.
Save for a few exceptions, Jackson’s peers avoided being outed. “Exposure could cause embarrassment for your family and cause you to be ridiculed, so you kept quiet,” he said.
THEGEORGIAVOICE.COM AUGUST 19, 2022 COLUMNIST 17 the Rose Room, a modest bar on Monroe Drive where Jackson first danced with a man. He and his friends would party on Friday and Saturday nights and again at the Sunday Tea dance. Those who could sew created outfits that they could show off at the Rose Room. “It took a lot of courage to get on that floor” Jackson reflected. “To be free, to express yourself was the excitement, not being inhibited or concerned about being ridiculed, because we were all gay.” Atlanta Committee, one of the city’s few social networks for Black gay men, was a silently subversive product of its time. Jackson first heard about the Atlanta Committee from a fellow student who invited him to one their social events, and he soon became a regular member. Among its members was Dr. Otis T. Hammonds, the prominent anesthesiologist and major supporter of Black arts. The events, mostly brunches and dinner parties, were private affairs held in members’ homes.
“It was a great group to be a part of,” Jackson said. “They were intelligent and aware of who they were, living as best as they could.”
Dante Rhodes, Co-Host of The Gayly Dose
Seeing people in spaces that Pride has provided has been pivotal in my accepting different parts of what makes me unique as not only valid, but important. Being Black has always been that thing that has provided a setback for any advancement. Regardless of the acceptance of my gender or sexuality, and those of others like me, to exist in spaces where my Blackness is also poignant can still feel disuniting in certain ways. Just when you think you have found a new home or a group of people that identify in similar ways to you, being Black can push you to an outer ring of singularity. Even if unintentional, it has the same effect on the individual as if it were intentional. We continue to make strides in understanding people’s identities and sexualities, but seem to continue to lack the understanding of what Black is and what makes Black culture unique without the ostracization. In spaces where I have “slipped” and used AAE (African American English), people gaze in either amazement, confusion, or disgust; whereas a non-Black counterpart may do the same thing and it be seen as normal and nothing to flinch at. Beyond that, expression of music in traditional rap, hip-hop, or R&B can be seen as uncomfortably “urban” by people in accepting spaces if explored by Black people like myself; whereas someone who isn’t Black is deemed as “cultured” when exploring these forms of art. If we are going to be honest in our pursuit of Black Pride, we need to show an unfaltering support of all things related to Black culture and the Black experience. In writing this piece about Black Pride, I didn’t want it to be another article or essay about celebrating Black, queer people. I wanted it to highlight how difficult it can be to explore a queer lifestyle as a Black person. This short piece doesn’t even begin to scratch the surface of what it really feels like to live in this intersection day in and day out, but I hope it has provided a more honest view.
Dante Rhodes is a founding chief host and lifestyle expert of The Gayly Dose, an Atlanta-based podcast hosted by an all-queer cast. Premiering Season 3 this fall, the podcast is unique in its mission and follow-on format with weekly episodes known for their real conversations — featuring real live guests — about things that matter to the community and its listeners. Purposefully candid and brutally honest, the cast speaks on a range of topics, including monogamy, body issues, coming out, dating apps, gender norms, transgender rights, and growing up gay in the church. Listen at thegaylydose.com.
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE GAYLY DOSE 18 COLUMNIST AUGUST 19, 2022 THEGEORGIAVOICE.COM DANTE RHODES THE GAYLY DOSE
Being Black and queer (as I identify as both gay and nonbinary) has proven not to be complicated, but beautiful in the way it has led me to explore the queer-focused world I live in. Whether it’s a circuit party or voicing my opinion on my podcast, The Gayly Dose, those things that define me (my race, sexuality, and gender identity) shape the way I choose to express myself. In that expression lies a spectrum of esteem that has either pushed me to a space of complete pride or caused me to cloak certain facets of my identity that may make the environment I am in feel precarious. I think the latter is what makes Pride so important.
DEFINING MY INTERSECTIONALITY
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Jim Farmer Peacock’s new film, “They/Them,” made in Georgia, is almost like two movies rolled into one — a conversion camp drama and a slasher film. It stars an appealing and talented group of younger performers, in addition to some more established stars. A group of campers comes to an LGBTQ conversion camp, only to find that an axe murderer is on the loose. Kevin Bacon and Carrie Preston — who hails from Macon, Georgia — star as Owen and Cora Whistler, who run the camp, and Anna Chlumsky plays a new nurse. “They/Them” is directed by John Logan, who has written films such as “Skyfall” and “Gladiator.” Filming took place at Camp Rutledge, just outside Covington. Nonbinary performer Theo Germaine headlines as Jordan, a 17-year-old nonbinary trans person who comes from a religious, military, and dysfunctional background. “They are a creative and independent person who clearly is very traumatized by something and they come to this camp as part of a deal they have made with their parents,” Germaine told Georgia Voice. “Basically, they are on the outs with the parents, and they really just want to go off and live their life and not be connected to all the dysfunction in their past. Their parents are [saying] if you go to this camp and it does not work, we’ll get out of the way and make sure you can legally emancipate yourself. They are sending Jordan to this camp with the intention of Jordan changing their mind about their gender identity, which is not going to happen.”
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“John was so open to bring part of ourselves to this movie,” del Fabro said. “As an actor just starting here in America, having those artists willing to celebrate who you are is very moving to me.”
JIM FARMERACTING QUEEROUT SLASHER FILM ‘THEY/THEM’ USES GEORGIA LOCATIONS AND“They/Them”PERFORMERS PUBLICITY PHOTO
“These characters have layers that I don’t think we’ve seen from LGBTQ representation in any horror film or any media,” he said. “You see it sometimes, this focus, in front of the camera, in back of the camera, people consulting the production, the people executive producing. It’s like there is a thoroughness you probably don’t get other places.” He likes that the project allowed him to stretch a bit.
For Darwin del Fabro, who plays Gabriel Hernandez, the movie was a celebration of uniqueness.
“Growing up in Georgia I did not have all of that space to express myself,” Crute said. “I am a pastor’s kid, and I grew up in the church. On this [project], I was able to spread my wings some and relax. Toby is a little more natural femme than me, but it is fun to lean into the femme of it and be one of the girls for an entire movie.”
One of the executive producers is Scott Turner Schofield, a transgender actor and activist who used to live in Atlanta. Schofield was ecstatic to work in the horror/slasher genre, where the LGBTQ characters usually don’t last long. “This film was built on your expectations,” Schofield said. “You and everybody else has watched LGBTQ characters be the victim over and over again, so what’s exciting (without any spoilers) is you’re going to have a better time.” Besides the cast, Schofield also credits an unbelievable crew for making the experience such a positive one. “In Georgia we are shooting so many projects, we were worried about getting crews,” Schofield said. “LGBTQ members of other crews quit their jobs to come work on this because they wanted to work on something queer. I ended up running into a friend that I used to work with when I was a waiter at Cowtipper’s. The hometown vibe was wonderful. The way we feel queerness in the South, the way we create community in the South, is a warm and beautiful thing and it was right there on our set. It was awesome.” “They/Them” is now streaming on Peacock.
Austin Crute, who was born in Norcross, stars as camper Tony. He feels LGBTQ representation is vital and that this project offers that.
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WHITENESS & BLACK GAY PRIDE
I start with white nationalist Josh Hawley. I confess that when I first saw the infamous photo of the senator from Missouri pumping his fist in support of the white crowd of rioters gathering outside the Capitol, I experienced a rush of testosterone. I thought he looked hot in that stupid bad-boy-in-a-suit way. Granted, he was a neo-Nazi posturing behind barriers, surrounded by annoyed police tasked with protecting him, but it was such a perfect photo op for a senator who was leading the charge to overturn an election that ejected his beloved neo-Nazi racist pussy-grabbing daddy. In a subsequent act of bravery — copyright infringement — the Republican senator from Missouri proudly plastered the image on white coffee mugs that sold for $20 each. I really hate it when my libido usurps my rationality, as it did for a second when I saw Hawley posing for thousands of armed white nationalists. Libidinal short-circuiting is common and embarrassing, but it’s frequently an opportunity to acknowledge that nobody escapes the lunacy of the culture in which we are bred. The degree to which we deny those culturally internalized quirks and cruelties is the degree to which they will eventually and dramatically reveal themselves. Thus, the House investigatory committee, led in part by the wonderfully spiteful but still reprehensible Liz Cheney, closed its summer session with a hilarious video of the balls-tothe-wall fist pumper racing out of the Capitol while his followers hunted the vice president for a manly public hanging. Alas, Hawley overnight became an icon of milquetoast masculinity, rendering his tribe of white-boy nativists a bit confused but not enough to consider that hypocrisy is required to nourish hateful speech and action. No doubt, when they learn to read, they will buy Hawley’s forthcoming book on “manhood,” the title of which I refuse to state. Besides the fake masculinity that Hawley’s elevated fist evoked, a counteractive image immediately came to my mind, probably because I’m old. It reminded me of the 1968 Olympics, when two medalists, Tommie Smith and John Carlos, outraged the globe’s white people by holding their clenched, black-gloved right hands overhead during the national anthem. The gesture was that of the heroic but violent Black Panther Party, a Marxist group that, by the way, endorsed the Gay Liberation Front of the time. Being angry, closeted, marginalized, curious, and an adoring fan of Panthers-affiliated communist Angela Davis, I actually knocked on the door of the Panthers’ offices around 1970 in downtown Atlanta. The skinny white boy from the Golden Ghetto who had seriously found refuge in Atlanta’s Black community was a five-minute comedic hit. It hurt, but it hurt good.
Cliff Bostock I want to explain why Black Pride is essential to our community’s health. As a white person, I probably have no business attempting this, but humor me. I will, as always, proceed elliptically.
I don’t know, but … come on. My gay point is that we live in a world that is becoming more starkly divided. The United States’ economy was built on racism that is still enforced by the political state. Likewise, the world’s social structure has been built around gender, which is why the white male nativists are as offended by women’s autonomy as they are by Black and Indigenous liberation. White gay people are not different in our pending loss of bodily freedom, but we also share the privilege accorded white people. Ignorant shit comes out of our mouths. The Black Panthers were right to laugh and push my white teenaged ass away in 1970. They didn’t need the kind of neurotic interference that later caused me to get my life’s briefest boner when Hawley raised his fist. And don’t even get me started on white gay men’s fetishization of Black men. So, stop saying dumb stuff like, “There should be no Black Pride, because there is no white Pride.” The very fact that you think that betrays your privilege and unconscious commitment to cultural lies. Step back and stand by, white Proud Boys, as the Donald might say. Examine yourself and cultivate self-awareness instead of complaining about the insight and pleasure that Black gay people openly and proudly pursue.
OLD GAY MAN CLIFF BOSTOCK
Cliff Bostock, PhD, is a former psychotherapist who offers life coaching to creative people of all ages and queer men vexed by aging. cliffbostock@gmail.com, 404-518-4415.
The Black Power salute has never disappeared. Its most visible recent use has been with the Black Lives Matter movement, and it is a leftist symbol of resistance that has been used all over the world during the last 100 years, including by the original Antifa’s resistance to the Nazi takeover in Germany. At the time I saw Hawley’s photo, I did not remember that the white nationalist movement had adopted its own version — the “Aryan salute” — in the 1980s. It remains a favorite tattoo of those who skedaddle out the door a la Hawley when threatened. Whether Hawley’s fist pump specifically references the “Aryan salute,”
