Charlotte Pride Magazine - August 2019 - Inaugural Edition

Pride

AUGUST 20 1 9

INAUGURAL EDITION

Charlotte

M AGAZI N E

STONEWALL 50 CELEBRATING

BLACK PRIDE

BETTY WHO

RESOURCES

Charlotte Black Pride and other groups across the state uplift the Black LGBTQ community

A Q&A with 2019 Charlotte Pride headlining entertainer Betty Who

LGBTQ-affirming neighborhoods, annual events, community organizations and more

Charlotte Pride

MAGAZINE

Contents INSIDE THE INAUGURAL EDITION

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Stonewall at 50

Love Overflowing

A primer for this year’s landmark 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising

A Q&A with Charlotte Pride 2019 Headliner Betty Who

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on the cover

The Stonewall 50th Anniversary Community Rally in Romare Bearden Park in Uptown Charlotte, June 15, 2019

full contents 5 • Welcome from the president

6 • Pride 365

Charlotte Pride’s Story

10 • Honors

Champions & Grand Marshals

21 • What’s New at the 2019 festival

22 • Events Featured Events

30 • Amara

Q&A with Amara La Negra

36 • Love Wins

Q&A with Kristin Collins

38 • Black and Proud A look at Black Prides in N.C.

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45 • Scholars

2019 Charlotte Pride Scholars

48 • Queer City

Photographer Nelson Morales

55 • Pregnant Dad

Love and Harmony

A trans man’s journey from pregnancy into fatherhood

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Local couple Courtney Lynn & Quinn bring love, harmony and soul to their indie folk sound

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COMMUNITY RESOURCE DIRECTORY Neighborhoods Annual Events Nightlife Community Organizations

Charlotte Pride

MAGAZINE

Our People

2019 PROGRAM TEAM MEMBERS & VOLUNTEERS Bearbeque James Jenkins

THE BOARD, STAFF & VOLUNTEERS OF CHARLOTTE PRIDE

Drag Events Jeff Capel, Elaine Davis, Brooklyn Dior, Buff Faye, Aurora Nicole, Cierra Nicole, Valerie Rockwell, Sierra Santana

BOARD OF DIRECTORS Daniel Valdez, President Nan Bangs, Vice President Brisa Ramirez, Secretary Lee Robertson, Treasurer Riley Murray, Director

Entertainment Jairo Aviles Finance Jennifer Chandler, Margaret Kocaj, Bryce Moffett

STAFF Jerry Yelton, Programs Director Matt Comer, Communications Director

Flourish Shannon Dixon, Jenny Gunn Interfaith Marty Bacher, Sandy Carson, Bridgett Eble, Megan Jones, Kevin Proffit

2019 FESTIVAL & PARADE TEAM COORDINATORS John Walton, Bearbeque Team Coordinator Bryce Carey, Drag Team Coordinator Travis Shannon, Entertainment Team Coordinator Tiffany Crooks, Flourish Team Coordinator John Simmons, Interfaith Team Coordinator Will Martin, Operations Team Co-Coordinator Katie Cormier, Parade Team Coordinator Dan Foreman, Vendors Team Coordinator Will Allen, VIP Team Coordinator Douglas Taylor, Volunteer Team Co-Coordinator Justin Pate, Volunteer Team Co-Coordinator

Operations Will Martin, Jeff Sampson Parade Rachel Griswold, Vanessa Kovalcik Reel Out Charlotte Donell Beaty, Jason Coye, Alicia Emmons, Jenny Gunn, Heather Hudson, James Jenkins, Gary Knight, Daavonia Lee, Will Martin, Lupe Silva, John Walton, Asia Washington VIP Juwan Alston, Mohammed Jibriel, Kadean Maddix

CHARLOTTE PRIDE MAGAZINE A publication of Charlotte Pride, Inc. © 2019, Charlotte Pride, Inc. All rights reserved.

No portion of this publication may be reprinted or otherwise reproduced without written permission from Charlotte Pride. For reprint or reproduction requests, contact us at media@charlottepride.org.

Charlotte Pride, Inc. PO Box 32362, Charlotte, NC 28232 | info@charlottepride.org Charlotte Pride is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.

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Volunteers Allie Alu, Charles Cable, Sunny Cooper, Maurice Falls, Jesse Kalin, Asia Washington

Magazine Editing & Production: Matt Comer Contributors: Judith Barriga, Denise Coleman, Charlotte is Creative, Anna Douglas, Maurice Falls, Wes McNeely, Stonewall 50 Consortium, Daniel Valdez, Jerry Yelton

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elcome to our first edition of our Charlotte Pride Magazine. I cannot think of a better time to debut this inaugural issue than during the 50th anniversary of Stonewall. This magazine, much like all our Charlotte Pride programs, is a labor of love, passion, and intentionality. We are beyond excited to share it with you.

It has been said before, in numerous ways, our Movement for Queer Liberation has come a really long way since Stonewall, yet there’s so much more that we must continue to fight for. I couldn’t agree more. I moved to North Carolina in 1998 and have seen our queer community change drastically in the past twenty years. We are multi-racial, multi-generational, and nonbinary. We are black, immigrant, and Muslim. We’re entrepreneurs, teachers, construction workers, lawyers, and low-income workers. We want affordable housing, living wages, economic opportunity, a brighter future for our kids and our environment. In many ways these identities and experiences may seem new, yet we’ve always been all of these things.

The difference now is that these voices and these experiences are becoming more visible, are being valued, and brought forth. We must continue to challenge our community about what it means to be queer and create spaces for those voices and stories to be shared.

It is this diversity of lived experiences, perspectives, and identities that make our community and our organization stronger! I’m extremely thankful to our Charlotte Pride staff, Matt Comer and Jerry Yelton, for all they have done to guide our work, including for leading our amazing volunteers and Board of Directors into a more equitable, diverse, and intentional organization.

Much like our broader movement, we have a long way to go but we are headed in the right direction. I look forward to seeing our community celebrate and increase the visibility of the unique lives and experiences of our LGBTQ+ community, not just during the annual Charlotte Pride Festival and Parade, but throughout the year. My hope for Charlotte Pride and for all of you is to feel comfortable sitting at the intersection of celebrating our accomplishments and not losing sight of the continued struggle for the liberation of all of our communities.

Enjoy this magazine, celebrate our community, and think about how you can contribute to a more equitable and brighter future for all!

With Love, Daniel Valdez President, Charlotte Pride Board of Directors he/him/his

Photo Credit Top: Gina Esquivel Photo Credit Bottom: Jack Stuts

Charlotte Pride

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charlotte pride A

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hen many Charlotteans think of Charlotte Pride, it’s understandable that the first thing to pop in their minds might be our annual festival and parade. After all, the Charlotte Pride Festival & Parade is the region’s largest and most visible LGBTQ event. Each year’s festival and parade offers the single-greatest opportunity for LGBTQ people in Charlotte and the Carolinas to connect with their friends, their family, community resources, and LGBTQ-owned or -affirming business. In 2018, more than 165,000 visitors attended the event. But Charlotte Pride isn’t only active in August. Like most other community nonprofits, we have programs and projects throughout the year. We take our mission seriously — to empower, strengthen, and make visible the unique lives and experiences of LGBTQ people — not just once a year, but on each and every day throughout the year.

Charlotte Pride’s board, staff and volunteers have been hard at work ensuring that our programs intentionally reach as many people as possible across the wide and beautiful spectrum that comprises the local and regional LGBTQ community. With the intersectionality of our collective, lived experiences in mind, we’ve reshaped existing programs or crafted entirely new outreach projects to better connect with our city.

Last spring, we worked with PFLAG Charlotte and Transcend Charlotte to present a special film screening for Trans Day of Visibility.

The film, “Becoming More Visible,” focused on the unique experiences of several transgender people. Following the film, a panel discussion of local trans community members discussed the film and their own personal experiences. 2018’s Trans Day of Visibility event marked a new beginning for Charlotte Trans Pride, a trans outreach and visibility program of Charlotte Pride.

Charlotte Trans Pride has gone on to present several other projects and activities. In October 2018, Charlotte Trans Pride supported the inaugural International Pronouns Day by creating a series of online educational and awareness resources designed to be shared on social media networks. Also in the fall, Charlotte Pride was honored to support a community-wide event for November’s Trans Day of Remembrance. And, this spring, Charlotte Trans Pride reprised its Trans Day of Visibility event by presenting a larger, more community focused event with partner PFLAG Charlotte. The March 2019 event included more than two dozen organizations in a community resource fair and the talents of trans artists and entertainers.

Over the past two years, our annual LGBTQ film festival, Reel Out Charlotte, held its 10th annual event. In 2018 and again this spring, our focus was to dramatically increase the number of LGBTQ-centered films highlighting the new and diverse viewpoints and experiences, including those of people of color, trans and gender-nonconfirming, people, youth, elders, immigrants, and more.

Charlotte Latinx Pride continued its programming throughout 2018 and into the new year. In the summer of 2018, Latinx Pride, a program of Charlotte Pride, gathered community members together to remember the lives lost in 2016’s tragic Pulse Orlando shooting. In December, Latinx Pride partnered with the Arts & Science Council to host photographer Nelson Morales and his photo exhibit of local LGBTQ Latinx community members during the program’s annual Latinx Pride Expo. Later, this May, Latinx Pride again showcased Morales’ work alongside visual and other artistic talents from performers at the Latinx Pride Arts Showcase. (Read more about Morales and his photography work on page 48.)

Charlotte Pride’s commitment to LGBTQ visibility in the arts was also felt in our support this year of local artist-activist Andrea Downs’ women’s-focused “Airing Out The Dirty Laundry” project, expanded community auditions for each year’s festival stages, and increased resources for Flourish: A Celebration of LGBTQ Arts and Culture, Charlotte Pride’s mini- arts festival within the larger Charlotte Pride Festival.

As we headed into Pride season this year, Charlotte Pride was honored to work with a variety of community organizations and community leaders to present the June 15, 2019, Stonewall 50th Anniversary Rally in Romare Bearden Park. With two dozen speakers, the event was a true call to action — in keeping with the spirit of Stonewall and our shared Queer Liberation Movement.

Throughout the year, Charlotte Pride has also striven to increase its volunteer outreach and community involvement efforts by offering new and imaginitive events with structured social activities. Our Interfaith Programs have expanded beyond each year’s Interfaith Service to support a wide range of intersectional faith programs. Outside of Queen City, Charlotte Pride has continued to support the efforts of InterPride, the International Association of Pride Organizers, through donations to support smaller Pride organizations who seek to attend InterPride conferences and other events. In March 2020, Charlotte Pride will host a joint regional conference bringing together Pride organizers from both the Northeastern and Southeastern regions of InterPride.

Be it in August, October, February or March — the Charlotte Pride team is always hard at work fulfilling our mission to make our community more empowered and more visibile. Want to join us in our important work? We are always welcoming new volunteer leaders and will soon open applications for team coordinators for the 2019-2020 year. Learn more at charlottepride.org/apply/.

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Charlotte Pride

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Champions OF PRIDE

Our Seventh Annual Champions of Pride Awards seek to recognize those whose work and dedication exemplify the spirit of Pride. Our Champions endeavor to empower and unite LGBTQ and allied people through their leadership, service and support. Champions understand the importance of celebrating our past, present and future while advancing LGBTQ rights and visibility.

JAMES RICE III Harvey Milk Award he/him/his

James Rice III has served Charlotte’s LGBTQ community in various roles over the past seven years, including as a board member and director of communications for the Charlotte LGBT Chamber of Commerce and Charlotte Black Pride. James currently serves as assistant director of programs and service for Time Out Youth — a position he calls his “dream job,” having worked his way from intern in 2013 to full-time employee in the fall of 2017. James is only the second black gay male to hold a full-time position with the agency. When not working with LGBTQ youth, you will find James ministering at St. Luke Missionary Baptist Church or hosting events as Semaj The Real M.C., his drag alter-ego. James is engaged to his “African Prince” Warren Radebe and together they have adopted one son Mduduzi.

ASHLEY NURKIN Outstanding Ally Award she/her/hers

For the past two years, Ashley has served as the president of PFLAG Charlotte.

Under her leadership, the chapter was recognized among 400 chapters nationwide as the 2017 “We Are The Change” Outstanding Chapter Award. Ashley also cofounded Transparents of PFLAG Charlotte, helping local parents navigate the unique healthcare, social, educational and safety issues associated with raising their transgender children. Since its inception four years ago, this group has grown to support more than 70 Charlotte families. Ashley has worked with the Charlotte-Mecklenburg School System, Atrium Health, Novant Health and others to educate and advocate for transgender youth. Ashley, a native Charlottean, and her husband Matt are the proud parents of daughters Taylor (10) and Harris (12).

AUDREY ANSEL Young Catalyst Award she/her/hers

Audrey Ansel is 15 years old and identifies as a lesbian. Originally from Ohio, she has lived in Charlotte for three years. Over the past year, she has strived to create change within the LGBTQ community. She is a part of Time Out Youth’s speaker’s bureau and has appeared on their podcast, “Out With It.” She is active within her school’s GSA and will serve as an officer this coming school year. Audrey has also created and facilitated an event in her church where members of the congregation can learn more about the LGBTQ community and how to be better allies. Audrey will continue to endeavor to create a better world for everyone. She wants all LGBTQ youth to be heard and loved for who they are. Audrey’s goal is to see a world where LGBTQ youth are not afraid to be themselves.

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Grand Marshals

2 0 1 9 B A N K O F A M E R I C A C H A R LOT T E P R I D E PA RA D E

CHARLOTTE BLACK PRIDE

THE HONORABLE JOHN S. ARROWOOD

Founded in 2005 by Damon Blackmon, Jermaine Nakia Lee, Monica Simpson and Korey Handy, Charlotte Black Pride is a local nonprofit organization consisting of volunteers interested in promoting a positive image of LGBTQ people of color. The vision of Charlotte Black Pride is to empower the hearts, minds and spirits of all LGBTQ people, while embracing diversity, uplifting the community, and working to bring social change.

Judge John S. Arrowood (he/him/his) was the first openly LGBTQ person to win a statewide race in the South when he won his race to remain on the North Carolina Court of Appeals in 2018.

Judge Arrowood is a North Carolina native. After obtaining his law degree at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, he clerked, and served as a staff attorney and head of the Court of Appeals Central Staff. He then relocated to Charlotte, where for a total of 26 years he practiced with the firm of James, McElroy & Diehl, P.A. doing complex civil litigation, employment and administrative law.

From its first event 15 years — attracting 7,000 patrons from all over the Carolinas and the Southeast — Charlotte Black Pride has continued to reach more members of the African-American LGBTQIA community and its allies. Average attendance at Charlotte Black Pride events has grown to 25,000 people each year.

Judge Arrowood was initially appointed as a Special Superior Court Judge in 2007 by Gov. Michael Easley. Later that year Gov. Easley appointed him to the Court of Appeals. When Judge Arrowood lost his election to retain the seat, he returned to his old firm.

The LGBTQ Community continues to grow in prominence & visibility throughout Mecklenburg County and the state of North Carolina, especially in the African-American community. In 2017, the Black LGBTQ-focused, Center for Black Equity recognized The Queen City as one of the top five cities for Black LGBTQ growth & prosperity.

Charlotte Black Pride’s mission is to promote LGBTQ Pride primarily for, but not limited to, members of the Black community.

It does so while building social awareness, embracing spirituality and celebrating the diversity that exists within the community.

In 2017, Gov. Roy Cooper reappointed Judge Arrowood to the Court of Appeals. In 2018, he was elected to a full eight year term and was the leading vote-getter in the state.

Judge Arrowood has served as the Chair of the Equality NC PAC, served for many years on the board of the Gay and Lesbian (now LGBTQ) Victory Institute, and serves on the board of One Victory.

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Charlotte Pride

MAGAZINE

Stonewall Y O U R G U I D E TO

compiled by the Stonewall 50 Consortium

Fifty years ago, the LGBTQ movement would be forever changed. Decades in the making, the riots at the Stonewall Inn beginning in the early morning hours of June 28, 1969, would end up being the spark which launched the Queer Liberation Movement. Historians and community members — even those who were present at the uprising — have differing, sometimes conflicting accounts of what happened and why. But one thing is clear: the riots and the community organizing that launched immediately afterward would reshape our community and its movement for equality forever. The following primer has been compiled by the Stonewall 50 Consortium. It’s simple Q&A format about these special events five decades ago will give you something fresh to ponder — from the new learner to those who think they know all there is to know about Stonewall.

What was the Stonewall uprising or the Stonewall riots?

In the early morning hours of June 28, 1969, homeless LGBTQ teens, trans women of color, lesbians, drag queens, gay men, bisexuals, and allies all decided to take a stand. What started out as an all-too-routine police raid of the Stonewall Inn gay bar in New York City turned into a multi-night uprising on the streets of Greenwich Village. It wasn’t the first time LGBTQ people fought back and organized against oppression, but the Stonewall uprising ignited a mass movement that quickly spread across the U.S. and around the globe.

was a long rectangular room. On the right side of the room was a long bar and beyond that was a dance floor and a jukebox. Opposite the bar was a small entrance back into 53 Christopher where there was a second dance floor, with a jukebox and a small bar at the rear, which was adjacent to two bathrooms. The Stonewall’s interior was painted black as a quick and inexpensive way to mask the fire damage the space sustained in 1964.

The large front windows were painted black and backed by plywood. The Stonewall Inn’s main bar had no running water and there were no fire exits.

Who went to the Stonewall Inn? It drew a diverse, young clientele, although only a small number of lesbians. Some patrons dressed in various forms of drag, including “scare drag,” and there were also people who wore business attire or jeans and flannel shirts. As Stonewall veteran Martin Boyce once said, “Stonewall was like Noah’s ark. There was two of everything.”

When did the Stonewall Inn open?

The Stonewall Inn was opened in 1967 by Mafioso Fat Tony Lauria as a “private” gay club—one of the few in Greenwich Village where patrons could dance. Gay bars often operated as “private” clubs to circumvent the New York State Liquor Authority regulation that prohibited gay people from being served alcoholic beverages.

Why was the Stonewall Inn raided by the police?

Starting in 1934, after the end of Prohibition, the New York State Liquor Authority regulated liquor licenses, which prohibited the serving of alcohol in “disorderly” establishments. The presence of gay people was considered de facto disorderly. This led to routine police raids of gay bars and clubs.

They’d selectively arrest patrons and managers, impound the cash register and alcohol, and padlock the front door. Management typically bribed the police, Mafia, and State Liquor Authority officials for protection, so they were tipped off in advance of an imminent raid and would sometimes turn up the lights to warn patrons to stop any open displays of affection or slow dancing, which could risk arrest.

What was there before 1967?

The two storefronts occupied by the original Stonewall Inn at 51-53 Christopher Street were constructed as stables in the mid-19th century. In 1930, the buildings were combined with one facade to house a bakery. In 1934, Bonnie’s Stonewall Inn opened as a bar and restaurant and operated until 1964, when the interior was destroyed by fire. The building’s existing 50-foot-wide facade looks much as it did at the time of the uprising in 1969.

Since Stonewall was a “private” club, what were the requirements for getting in?

To get in, you had to get past a bouncer, pay an entry fee ($1 on weekdays and $3 on weekends), and sign a club register. It was common for people to sign in with joke names such as Judy Garland or Donald Duck.

Who started the confrontation with the police?

A number of eyewitnesses have offered differing accounts, but, as with almost any riot or spontaneous confrontation with the police, no one knows for certain what exactly sparked the confrontation or who threw the first punch or object.

What was Stonewall like inside?

Beyond the front door, which was located in the 53 Christopher Street building, you entered a small vestibule. To the left was a coat check and to the right, through a doorway into the 51 Christopher Street building,

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How long did the confrontations with the police last?

The confrontations with the police unfolded over the course of six nights, with the most intense clashes occurring on the first and sixth nights.

How many people participated?

Accounts vary, but according to eyewitnesses the first night brought out five to six hundred people, the second night about two thousand, and the sixth and final night five hundred to a thousand. The third and fourth nights were relatively quiet.

How many people were arrested?

On the first night of the uprising 13 arrests were made, on the second night three, and on the sixth night five.

Was anyone killed?

There were no fatalities among the rioters or the police, although on the second night a group of rioters swarmed a cab on Christopher Street, rocked it back and forth, and the driver died later that night from an apparent heart attack.

Was it a riot, an uprising, or a rebellion? Was there any looting?

What took place at the Stonewall Inn is variously described as a riot, uprising, rebellion, or all three. A handful of Greenwich Village shops were looted on the final night of the uprising.

What happened to the Stonewall Inn after the uprising?

The Stonewall Inn went out of business shortly after the uprising and was leased as two separate spaces to a number of different businesses over the years, including a bagel shop, Chinese restaurant, and clothing store. From 1987 through 1989, a bar named Stonewall operated out of 51 Christopher Street. When it closed, the historic vertical sign was removed from the building’s facade.

None of the original Stonewall Inn’s interior finishes remain.

What about the current Stonewall Inn? When did it open?

In 1990, 53 Christopher Street was leased to a new bar named New Jimmy’s at Stonewall Place and about a year later the bar’s owner changed the name to Stonewall. The current management bought the bar in 2006 and have operated it as the Stonewall Inn ever since. The buildings at 51 and 53 Christopher Street are privately owned. continued on page 16 >>> 15

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<<< continued from page 15 Where can I find photos, film, and video of the Stonewall uprising?

There is no film or video footage of the Stonewall uprising. There is one photo from the first night taken by Daily News photographer Joseph Ambrosini and four photos of Stonewall uprising participants from the second night taken by noted Village Voice photographer Fred W. McDarrah. There are several photographs of the damaged interior taken by McDarrah, and exterior photos taken right after the uprising by Diana Davies. Larry Morris with the New York Times took a number of photographs of groups of people on the streets on the sixth and final night of the disturbances.

Was the Stonewall uprising the first confrontation between the police and LGBTQ people?

No. In addition to routine police raids of gay bars around the country where many arrests occurred, there were several previous, well-documented confrontations between LGBTQ people and the police, including at Cooper Do-Nuts in Los Angeles in 1959; at a fundraiser for the Council on Religion and the Homosexual in San Francisco in 1965; at a Dewey’s restaurant in Philadelphia, also in 1965; at San Francisco’s Compton’s Cafeteria in 1966; and at the Black Cat Tavern in Los Angeles in 1967.

Was the Stonewall uprising the start of the modern gay rights movement?

No, the uprising was a key turning point and a catalyst for explosive growth in a movement that began in the United States in 1950 with the founding of the Mattachine Society in Los Angeles. (The first gay rights organization in the world was founded in 1897 in Berlin by Dr. Magnus Hirschfeld and the first, short-lived American organization, the Society for Human Rights, was founded in 1924 in Chicago by Henry Gerber.) Prior to the Stonewall uprising there were more than two dozen gay rights organizations in the nation’s major cities with a modest number of members. In the aftermath of Stonewall and in the years that followed, organizers founded hundreds of new LGBTQ civil rights organizations across the country and around the world that drew hundreds of thousands of activists into the fight for equal rights.

Is Stonewall where pride began?

While there are many reasons to take pride in how young people fought back against the police at the Stonewall Inn, “pride” as it relates to gay identity predates the uprising by three years. That’s when a new gay activist organization was founded in Los Angeles that called itself PRIDE (Personal Rights in Defense and Education). PRIDE’s newsletter evolved into the Advocate magazine, which is published to this day.

Stonewall is a national monument. What does that mean?

In 2016, President Barack Obama designated the Stonewall National Monument in recognition of Stonewall’s pivotal role in LGBTQ history, and it remains the first and only LGBTQ-related national monument. (National monuments are nationally significant lands and waters set aside for permanent protection.) The monument itself is Christopher Park, which is across the street from the site of the original Stonewall Inn. The buildings that were once occupied by the original Stonewall Inn are state and city landmarks. They were the first LGBTQ-associated properties listed on the State and National Registers of Historic Places and were the first LGBTQ National Historic Landmarks. The park is owned by the federal government. The two buildings at 51 and 53 Christopher Street remain in private hands.

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How can I learn more about Stonewall?

• David Carter’s exhaustively researched Stonewall: The Riots That Sparked the Gay Revolution (2004) is a definitive book on the Stonewall uprising. https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/stonewall-david-carter/1117391845#/ • The PBS documentary Stonewall Uprising (2010) can be streamed on the American Experience website here: https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/ americanexperience/films/stonewall/. It features several Stonewall uprising participants as well as Deputy Inspector Seymour Pine, who led the police raid on the Stonewall Inn. (Please bear in mind that all of the film and video used in the documentary that depicts riots comes from other riots or is a contemporary reenactment.)

• In the fall of 2017, the National Park Service hosted a scholars’ roundtable on the significance of Stonewall. Read essays from multiple perspectives by participants David Carter, Lillian Faderman, Emily Hobson, Jen Manion, and Eric Marcus here: https://parkplanning.nps.gov/document.cfm?parkID=565& projectID=75123&documentID=85195.

• Love and Resistance: Out of the Closet into the Stonewall Era (2019), Jason Baumann, Editor. https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/love-and-resistanceroxane-gay/1128958954?ean=9781324002062#/ • The Stonewall Reader (2019), New York Public Library, Editor.. https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-stonewall-reader-new-york-public-library/1129 244929?ean=9780143133513#/ • In Search of Stonewall: The Riots at 50, The Gay & Lesbian Review at 25, Best Essays, 1994-2018 (2018), The Gay & Lesbian Review. https://glreview.org/ product/in-search-of-stonewall-paperback/ • Stonewall: A Building. An Uprising. A Revolution (2019), Rob Sanders, Author; Jamey Christoph, Illustrator (Age Range: 5–8 years). https://www. barnesandnoble.com/w/stonewall-rob-sanders/1129198783?ean=9781524719524#/ • NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission Designation Report for the Stonewall Inn (2015). http://s-media.nyc.gov/agencies/lpc/lp/2574.pdf • Stonewall National Historic Landmark Nomination (1999). http://www.columbia.edu/cu/lweb/eresources/exhibitions/sw25/gifs/stonewall_national_ historic_landmark_nomination.pdf • NYC LGBT Historic Sites Project Website. http://www.nyclgbtsites.org/ • National Park Service’s Stonewall National Monument Website. https://www.nps.gov/ston/index.htm To find out how the New York City media reported on the Stonewall uprising back in 1969, check out the links below.

• New York Mattachine Newsletter (by Dick Leitsch). https://www. advocate.com/society/activism/2012/06/29/our-archives-1969advocate-article-stonewall-riots#article-content • New York Daily News. https://www.nydailynews.com/opinion/gayrights-wrongs-article-1.2628050 • Village Voice. https://www.villagevoice.com/2009/06/24/stonewall-at40-the-voice-articles-that-sparked-a-final-night-of-rioting/ • New York Times: June 29, 1969: https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/ timesmachine/1969/06/29/89004281.pdf; June 30, 1969: https:// timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1969/06/30/78384817. pdf; July 3, 1969: https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/ timesmachine/1969/07/03/78385244.pdf

Stonewall at 50, reprinted with the permission of the Stonewall 50 Consortium. © 2019 Stonewall 50 Consortium. This project by the Stonewall 50 Consortium has been made possible through a generous grant from the New York Community Trust. Consortium members and partners include: NYC LGHBT Historic Sites Project, Making Gay History, New York Public Library, GLSEN, and National Parks Conservation Association.

get involved!

The story of Stonewall and our five decades of LGBTQ Liberation can be quite inspiring and motivating. Do you want to be part of keeping the Spirit of Stonewall alive in Charlotte and throughout the year?

Charlotte Pride is currently looking for awesome, talented and dedicated volunteers and leaders just like you.

Come join us as a team coordinator and help us plan our programs and events, including the festival and parade, during the 2019-2020 season.

learn more: charlottepride.org/apply/

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charlottepride.org

2019 What’s new in

The Charlotte Pride Festival & Parade continues to grow year over year with new and exciting additions! Check out some of our new additions and expansions for this year’s event in Uptown Charlotte, August 17-18, 2019.

GET NEIGHBORLY

GET HEALTHY

Levine Avenue of the Arts bursts with neighborly pride

Stop by the Charlotte Pride Health Zone presented by

during this year’s event inside the PNC Bank Festival Zone.

Amity Medical and RX Clinic Pharmacy near the intersection

Stop by our new Neighborhood Market to shop with an

of MLK Blvd. & S. Tryon St. inside the PNC Bank Festival

array of local arts and crafts vendors. Further down Levine,

Zone. Vendors include HIV organizations, trans healthcare

visit with our neighboring Pride organizations from across

providers, reproductive healthcare and justice resources,

the region and learn more about their events. Engage with

substance abuse resources, and more!

local first responders from across Mecklenburg County. On Saturday, Aug. 17, 1-4pm, Campus Pride presents its annual LGBTQ-Friendly College Fair.

GET GROOVY Charlotte Pride presents an historic number of openly

GET CHARLIT

LGBTQ artists and entertainers on festival stages this year.

Stop by either of the two stages to dance, sing, clap, and

Expanded festival bars and beverage ticket booths

party the day away!

will streamline your festival experience.

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Charlotte Pride

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featured

events

Name/Date/Time

Charlotte Pride Drag Pageant Sunday, August 4, 2019 6-9pm Out with Dance - Youth Pride Dance Friday, August 9 Uni-Tea Queerlesque/Candidate Forum Saturday, August 10, 2019 6:30-9pm Charlotte Pride Interfaith Service Sunday, August 11, 2019 4-6pm

A sampling of featured and special events in the lead up to this year’s Charlotte Pride Festival & Parade.

For a full events schedule, see our mobile app or visit us online at charlottepride.org

Description

Charlotte Pride’s annual Drag Pageant, crowning the next Ms. Charlotte Pride, Mr. Charlotte Pride and Mx. Charlotte Pride for the 2019-2020 season. Hosted at the Levine Museum of the New South.

Time Out Youth Center presents its annual Youth Pride Dance. Hosted at Time Out Youth Center.

A fun, speakeasy-style “queerlesque” show by troupe Queerly Beloved will also include a laid back and relaxed candidate meet-and-greet and forum. Hosted at C3 Labs.

Charlotte Pride’s annual LGBTQ-affirming Interfaith Service is open to all people of all faith backgrounds in the community. This year, in recognition of Stonewall, the Interfaith service “comes home” to its original host, Caldwell Presbyterian Church.

Charlotte Trans Pride Job Fair Tuesday, August 13, 2019 11am-3pm

Trans-affirming employers will be present to discuss career opportunities for transgender community members. Other folks from the LGBQ community are welcome. Hosted at the Leon Levine Opportunity Center on the Goodwill Opportunity Campus. Presented in partnership with Bank of America.

Trans Pride Mixer Tuesday, August 13, 2019 6-9pm

Join Charlotte Trans Pride for a social mixer at Resident Culture in Plaza Midwood following the Trans Job Fair earlier in the day.

Queen City Connects Mixer Thursday, August 15, 2019 5:30pm

Queen City Connects hosts a Pride-themed cross-company and professional mixer. Expand your business network with over 45 Charlotte area organizations and employee resource groups. Hosted at Bar Argon.

Charlotte Pride Women’s Takeover Friday, August 16, 2019 8pm-until

Calling all women! Begin Charlotte Pride weekend with a special party and takeover just for you! Open to all women-identified people. Drink specials and other goodies at Taproom Social in Uptown! For the latest information, visit us online at charlottepride.org.

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Charlotte Pride

MAGAZINE

Everyone different. All Equal.

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We are thrilled to add Charlotte to our 2019 Daimler Pride Tour. With 13 stops around the globe, the Tour shows our commitment to diversity and inclusion. #iamdaimler #daimlerpride

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Charlotte Pride

MAGAZINE

Love

Overflowing

by Jerry Yelton

BETTY WHO TALKS IDENTITY, ART, PRIDE — AND THE IMPORTANCE OF QUEER REPRESENTATION Over the past few years, Betty Who has gained incredible prominence, especially with LGBTQ audiences. From her first single, “Somebody Loves You,” inspired by a goal of bringing joy back to pop music after the loss of Whitney Houston (also known for going viral after its use in a same-sex proposal video), to her most recent record of gender-bending pop tracks about love, life and loss, Betty is one of the most exciting and visible queer artists in pop music in 2019.

This year, we are excited to have Betty Who join us as our headliner for Charlotte Pride because we acknowledge the importance of representation on our stages and the importance of storytelling through music. Read on to learn a little bit more about the person behind the buoyant, joyful pop you’ll hear on the Wells Fargo Stage: Charlotte Pride: Especially important this year with the Stonewall 50th Anniversary, Pride festivals are the opportunities for LGBTQ folks to see themselves visible and proud of their identities. What does Pride mean to you?

Betty Who: Pride, to me, is about community. It’s about representation and seeing people who are living their lives authentically and proudly continued on page 28 >>>

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Charlotte Pride

MAGAZINE

<<< continued from page 26 and being inspired by that and trying to bring more of that to your own life. We excite and inspire each other through the celebration of love and joy.

Can you talk about your identities and how they inform your music and your artistry?

My strangeness, my individuality, my bisexuality, my queerness... It’s all a huge part of what informs my art. I want to tell inclusive stories as well as explore myself through art-making.

Playing with different character-versions of myself through song and film have proved to be an amazing outlet for experimentation. It’s a really safe way for me to explore and discover parts of myself I didn’t even know were there.

Are there any songs or records of yours that are particularly tied to your relationship with the LGBTQ community?

Most of them are, to be honest. But especially “Somebody Loves You” (given its particularly gay origin story). It’s still the song that, even after seven years, still feels so special.

In your videos like “Between You and Me,” you showcase a queer relationship with yourself.

Can you talk a little bit about the inspiration behind that and the relationship of the video’s message to self-care and self-love?

The video can certainly be left open to interpretation, but I mostly was unsatisfied with always having to be one or the other — the pursuer or the pursued... the lover or the loved. I wanted to be both. I am both! Love isn’t as simple as it usually feels when it’s portrayed in three and a half minutes along to a song. I’m in the process of exploring more complex, human moments.

Any tips for our audiences on how to practice more self-care, self-love and self expression?

As a culture, we spend a lot of time worrying about what other people think. Especially in my business, it’s hard to ignore but it takes so much energy away from me and I don’t like the person it makes me when I’m playing the comparison game. Real, human interactions are what’s important, not how many likes a photo has. My self-love is worth more than that.

“I have a feeling we’ll all wake up one day and realize sexuality has always been about connection, not orientation.”

BETTY WHO

Of your catalogue, what are your favorite songs to perform? Why? Are there any songs in particular that you really enjoy performing at Pride festivals?

I love performing “I Love You Always Forever” at Prides. Not only because it’s a cover so even people who have never heard of me can sing along, but because of the way it makes people feel. I just want to spread joy and light and this song has been an incredible vessel for that.

For season two of “Queer Eye,” you performed a cover of their theme song. Can you tell us a little bit about the Fab Five and how it was working with them?

I’m completely obsessed with them all and NO I WILL NOT PICK A FAVORITE! It’s impossible!

Representation in music is so important, especially for our LGBTQ community. Who are some other LGBTQ artists you admire and recommend our audiences listen to?

Wrabel, Vincent, Fletcher and Superfruit are just a couple that come to mind immediately. But so many stories being told in pop culture right now are that of sexually fluid young people. I have a feeling we’ll all wake up one day and realize sexuality has always been about connection, not orientation.

Frequently, we see news stories about violence against trans women of color, discrimination from governmental and healthcare agencies toward trans and queer people, conversations of homelessness, and a huge array of obstacles facing our community. What do you believe are some of the most important issues facing our LGBTQ community that need more attention? What are some issues that you are personally most passionate about?

I think it’s important to not forget about those in our community who are still seeking representation, legislation and acceptance. Our fight is not over and we have so many more hearts and minds to change. We have to stick together and take care of each other. We’re all on the same side and want the same thing — for everybody to be able to live as they choose, in whatever body they feel most at home in, with whatever partner makes them happy.

What is the message that you want readers of this interview and folks who attend our Pride festival to take away? What’s the lesson you’d like them to leave with?

I hope they leave the show inspired and excited, with so much love overflowing for each other.

— Betty Who will headline the Wells Fargo Stage on Saturday, Aug. 17, at this year’s Charlotte Pride Festival & Parade, Aug. 17-18, 2019, in Uptown Charlotte.

For more information, visit charlottepride.org/stage/.

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Charlotte Pride

MAGAZINE

Afrolatina con Bandera de Colores por Judith Barriga

C

on candela y tumbao, Amara La Negra, ha cautivado los escenarios y la pantalla, desde muy corta edad, convirtiéndose en la Afrolatina más controversial del momento. De padres dominicanos, nacida y criada en los Estados Unidos, Amara inició su carrera a los cuatro años en el famoso programa ‘Sábado Gigante’, en donde como ella misma lo dice creció “como artista y como ser humano”.

“Siempre estoy agradecida con mi madre, por mi carrera y mi vida. Tengo raíces latinas y afro y estoy orgullosa de eso” comentó la exótica artista que deslumbra con su color canela y afro en cada una de sus presentaciones.

SU MUSICA Con un gran carisma, dejando huella en el escenario, en una nueva etapa en su carrera, Amara La Negra empodera y hace bailar a la mujer con su álbum ‘Unstoppable’.

“Mi música es jocosa, divertida, te anima a pasarla. Muchas veces la gente distorsiona la idea de un estilo o letras, yo creo que como mujeres podemos tomar poder y disfrutarlo” expreso la cantante.

Defendiendo su identidad y estilo, la cantante de Hip Hop and R&B, Amara ha tomado una posición que defiende su latinidad, cultura y lenguaje.

“Tomo mucho poder y mucho orgullo cuando represento a la comunidad latina en el mercado americano y en el mundo, meto mi spanglish aquí y allá y levanto en alto la bandera dominicana” dijo La Negra, quien ha estado en los Latin Grammys además de haber acompañado en el escenario a grandes íconos de la música como Celia Cruz, Tito Puentes y La India.

Con un carácter fuerte y con un gran carisma, la fuerza de Amara La Negra les da voz a las causas de la Bandera de Colores, identificándose con la comunidad LGBTQ. “De alguna manera nos identificamos, somos liberales, entienden mi energía, quieren ser libres de expresarse sin ser juzgados, y así mismo me siento yo” dijo Amara quien se ha presentado en el World Pride en Nueva York y San Francisco Pride.

Irreverente, rebelde como ella misma se describe, con todo el corazón agradece la confianza y apoyo que recibido de la comunidad LGBTQ en Estados Unidos y el mundo.

“Estoy tan agradecida y enamorada de la comunidad, por tanto cariño que me ha brindado, por creer en mí. Con mucho ‘Orgullo’ por la oportunidad de darle mi talento, mi música, mi arte y energía y seguimos con más” concluyó Amara La Negra quien emocionada anunció su participación en el Charlotte Pride el 17-18 de agosto.

Read the English translation of this feature on page 43.

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charlottepride.org

“Estoy tan agradecida y enamorada de la comunidad, por tanto cariño que me ha brindado, por creer en mí.”

AMARA LA NEGRA

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Love & Harmony LOCAL COUPLE COURTNEY LYNN & QUINN BRING LOVE, HARMONY AND SOUL TO THEIR INDIE FOLK SOUND

by Matt Comer & Wes McNeely

I

t’s strange the way life works. People float in and out of your social circle — acquaintances, friends, co-workers, lovers. But, every once in a while, a special person comes into your orbit. Something clicks. A new friendship or close relationship blooms.

So it was with Courtney Lynn and Quinn Henderson in Los Angeles in 2012. Courtney, originally from small-town Indiana, and Quinn, originally from Wilmington, N.C., met by chance while the two were testing out new lives in Los Angeles.

“Quinn and I were both couch surfing and trying to see if L.A. was a good spot for us,” Courtney recalls. “We met surfing the same couch, basically, and we were friends for four years.”

Both women are natural-born performers. Quinn has been dancing and singing since she was a child. Courtney has also always felt the tug of the entertainment life.

“I basically told her,” Quinn says, “that you’re way too talented to sit in your bedroom and do this. You’re gonna get on a stage.”

Their shared love of song was one of the first connections the two new-found friends discovered in L.A. “When we met in L.A., [singing was] one of the first things we did together. We actually have this old — now, looking back, very terrible — video of us singing together,” Courtney says, with a laugh. “I think we both felt that musical connection immediately and just the personal connection with each other. We became instant friends.”

Courtney would later move to Phoenix — where Quinn would join her shortly thereafter in 2015, taking a job in social work while the two continued to sing and create together .

Flash forward just three years later, the pair found themselves in Charlotte — and married. The two have since spent their time in the Queen City exploring the local music scene and continuing to pour their heart and soul into the harmonies that are so familiar to their fans now.

Courtney and Quinn are among several LGBTQ and local performers at this year’s Charlotte Pride Festival and Parade. We had an opportunity to catch up with them for a short Q&A about their music career, relationship, thoughts on Pride, and more.

The following conversation with Courtney and Quinn has been edited for clarity and brevity.

Charlotte Pride: How did you both find yourselves drawn to music as a career?

Courtney: I think at different times in our lives we have both pushed each other towards pursuing music because, yes, at the heart of ourselves, we both from a very early age were very passionate about it. I was very passionate about writing and singing and playing the guitar. Quinn, she’s just an all-around performer. But I don’t think I ever really would have pursued music if it weren’t for Quinn. It was really like a “for me” kind of thing. Quinn challenged me and pushed me to step outside of my comfort zone and I just fell in love with it.

Quinn: For me, it was something that I’d been doing since I was three years old. I’d been dancing since I was two-and-a-half. I’ve continued on page 60 >>>

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Charlotte Pride

MAGAZINE

LOVE WINS

A Q&A fit for a Queen

2018 MS. CHARLOTTE PRIDE KRISTIN COLLINS CHATS ABOUT HER ART AND COMMUNITY SERVICE

by Matt Comer Mix up a little bit of southern charm, a love for Dolly Parton, an intense passion for entertainment and dedication to community service — the only possible result is Bryce Carey and his drag persona, Kristin Collins.

Carey, who grew up just outside of Charlotte in Lincolnton, has brought a special visibility to his role as Ms. Charlotte Pride since being crowned at the 2018 pageant. Once described by a local drag critic as having the “prettiest smile” at another local pageant contest, Carey can brighten up a room when he walks in. And when he performs as Kristin, you’d best believe his unique style — clogging it out to the classic “Rocky Top,” among them — brings people to their feet.

We had an opportunity to catch up with Kristin and chat a bit about her work as a drag artist, her thoughts as a volunteer with Charlotte Pride and more.

Charlotte Pride: What is your favorite character to perform as?

Kristin Collins: My character, Kristin Collins, is a blonde, fun, loving lady that exudes southern charm. Much like my favorite character tribute that I love to do, I love Dolly Parton. I’ve been a fan of hers as long as I can remember. Her message of love, helping others and giving back are all things I strive to emulate. the community, and using my platform to promote pride though drag entertainment. Inclusion: Charlotte has a wide variety of drag performers and its been a priority for me to let them know that everyone who considers themselves a drag entertainer, has a place on our stage. For me, doing drag is being more than a nightlife entertainer. While there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that — in fact it’s how I spent most of my drag career — in this season of my drag career it was imperative that I ventured out into new territory and connect with new audiences and venues as well as multi-media.

What is your favorite “Pride anthem”?

“I Am What I Am” and “This Is My Life” speak to who I am. I’ve enjoyed them for years. However, more recently, “Love Wins” by Carrie Underwood has become my favorite. It speaks to the message I’ve wanted to deliver during my reign as Ms. Charlotte Pride.

When was it that you first starting doing drag, and why? What attracted you to the art form?

I first became interested in drag while I was a theatre student at Western Carolina University, in the early ‘90s. I was attracted to the art form, because it allowed me to express myself creatively and in an arena that was accepting of it.

Why was it important for you to become involved in Charlotte Pride as a pageant contestant and volunteer organizer?

For me, it was a way to connect with a part of the community that I didn’t know. I wanted to use my drag performing talents to meet, network and engage new audiences in an effort to give back to the wonderful community that has given me so much over the past two decades. I’ve met some wonderful people over the past year, and have worked with some amazing organizations that will continue long after my time as Ms. Charlotte Pride.

What are some lessons you’ve learned from doing drag?

I’ve learned a lot in the past 25 years as a drag performer. I’ve learned that competition brings out the worst in some and the best in others. I’ve learned that everyone has a place on the stage and that at the end of the day, we’re all here to make you smile, laugh and have a good time. Don’t take yourself so seriously and step away from the art form when it’s no longer fun. It’s okay to pull back and do a reboot.

What advice would you give to drag performers who want to get more involved in their community?

My advice is to look beyond your comfort zone, try something new, and use that to better yourself as an entertainer and as a community member.

For me, I wanted to be the person I needed when I was younger. I took that statement and a charge to mentor younger entertainers and queer kids, volunteering with Time Out Youth and doing my part to make the LGBTQ community in Charlotte a better place.

What do you say to people who don’t view drag as a form of art or dismiss drag performers and their place in our community’s history?

I take the opportunity to share and educate on what drag performing is, how it played an integral role in our history, both mainstream and queer, and how it remains relevant today.

What are two or three key accomplishments during your reign as Ms. Charlotte Pride?

Visibility: It was important for me to be a positive, visible person in

— Be sure to follow Kristin Collins on Instagram at @MissCLTPride 36

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Charlotte Pride

MAGAZINE

say it loud: I

AM

BLAC K A ND

I A M PROUD

by Maurice Falls | QNotes

I

n 2019, being both black and an LGBTQ person can still seem like a revolutionary act. For those of us who are dialed into current events, we see the violence toward black and queer bodies.

Unarmed black men and women are still being killed by police, and transgender women of color appear to be turning up dead weekly. To paraphrase James Baldwin, “To be black and LGBTQ and to be relatively conscious is to be in a rage almost all of the time.”

To compound matters, many people of color who identify as LGBTQ, often feel like our community can default to following the same path as the broader society. Thus, Black Prides offer safe spaces where people who identify as black and LGBTQ can celebrate their unique identities. In North Carolina, Fayetteville, Raleigh, and Charlotte have all had Prides focused on the black community.

Some members of the all-volunteer board of directors and leadership team of Charlotte Black Pride, from left to right: Shann Fulton, Starr Johnson, Gladece Knights, Gelisa Stitt, and Quandrico Rutledge-Wade. the local military community were gone. These challenges did not deter him from starting another Pride celebration in 2015, one that would come to be known as Fayetteville Black Pride.

Alvernian Davis is a Philadelphia, Penn., native and founder of Fayetteville Black Pride. Davis’ impetus for starting Black Pride in Fayetteville was similar to the stories of other organizers. Being from Philadelphia, he participated in Pride festivals in other cities. So, when he moved to North Carolina in the early 2000s, he noticed that there were not many Prides in North Carolina at the time.

However, Davis has broadened his vision to include providing greater resources for the area. He noted that the Fayetteville area doesn’t have many resources for the gay community, and he would like to have greater buy-in from local services, including the health department which he is trying to partner with this year. Additionally, Davis is looking to help boost participation of young people in the area by moving the date of the event so that it may accommodate their return to school. He is hopeful that these changes will increase participation in the future. Since Davis began his Pride, the area has seen another Pride begin in Fayetteville, one that attracts more whites. He says he supports that Pride as well, but he feels that Black Prides provide a place to celebrate black culture, which he feels is still important today. continued on page 41 >>>

Davis’ first event was in 2003, and was hosted at the only two gay clubs in the area, Alias and Spectrum. Davis said that these were places which attracted many different segments of the gay community in the area. All of these segments of the community were able to participate in the first Pride.

Unfortunately, after this beginning, the event took a hiatus.

He moved away from the area and after coming back, the landscape had changed. The only gay club in the area burned down in that time, and Davis’ connections with

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Charlotte Black Pride began in 2005 as Charlotte Black Gay Pride and was held at the African-American Cultural Center in Uptown and included an Expo, town hall, entertainment and speakers. Photo courtesy QNotes. <<< continued from page 38 Charlotte’s Black Pride began with wanting to highlight the culture of the black LGBTQ community. It began in 2005 with board members Damon Blackmon, Jermaine Nakia Lee, Monica Simpson, and Lynkoya Handy, and it was met with initial resistance from some within the community. Lee recounts the racist emails that he received when the idea was announced to the public. He and the organizers saw the need for a space where those who identify as black and LGBTQ could be themselves.

That first event, Charlotte Black Gay Pride, was a four-day event consisting of a town hall meeting, an evening of live theatre, film screenings, multiple dance parties, spoken word performances, and the Pride Expo which took place at the African-American Cultural Center. The Expo included vendor booths, entertainment, and speakers. The town hall was held at the Lesbian and Gay Community Center of Charlotte (now closed). Simpson told QNotes, “there were 210 people at the opening town hall meeting... That’s one of the largest events ever in the history of the center and definitely the highest number of African-Americans ever in the center at one time.”

Black Pride in Charlotte, with a number of different management structures over the years, has gone through its struggles like other Black Prides. Nevertheless, it has persevered and grown because it still provides a service to the LGBTQ community. Shann Fulton, the current president of Charlotte Black Pride, says the organization’s events are still critically important for the local black LGBTQ community. “As a marginalized group of people, Black Pride is important to make sure our voices are heard, and our faces are seen,” Fulton says. “We must create a safe space for people of color to embrace their culture without judgment or fear….”

Latoya Hankins says that “Black Prides provide a place where people who identify as black and as LGBTQ are safe to be themselves and be understood.” Hankins is a Southpoint, N.C. native and one of the founders of Shades of Pride. Shades of Pride began in 2009 and went through two iterations. It was an independent organization from 2009-2014. In 2016 and 2017, it became a program under the LGBTQ Center of Durham, but it has not returned since then. Hankins and her other founders, Akil Campbell, Kelly Eddings, Nina Ricci, Yvonne Ricci, and Purusha Jones began Shades of Pride because, like Davis, they visited Prides in other areas and wanted to replicate those experiences for the Raleigh area. Hankins says that the event was well-attended in the beginning, but numbers began to decline. She cites the “novelty” wearing off and life happening as reasons for the eventual folding of the organization.

Hankins says that she, the other founders, and Kenneth Freeman all began to have additional commitments or moved from the area, so they were unable to devote the same effort to the endeavor. Regardless, as mentioned above, Hankins still sees Black Prides as providing essential spaces for those who identify as black and LGBTQ. In fact, she plans to visit Charlotte Black Pride in July and credits that event as another inspiration for her decision to begin Shades of Pride.

The need for safe spaces was echoed by all of the people involved with these Black Prides. So, as we celebrate Pride Month, we encourage you to think about how you are providing the people of color within your community a place to be their authentic selves without judgment or fear.

— Originally published by QNotes on June 14, 2019. Reprinted with permission.

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Afro-Latina with a Rainbow Flag

by Judith Barriga

W

ith candela and tumbao, Amara La Negra has captivated crowds at concerts and on the screen during her early years, making her the most controversial Afro-Latina of the moment. She was born and raised in the USA to Dominican parents, beginning her career at only 4 years old in the popular show “Sabado Gigante” where she shares with us that she matured as an artist and as a person.

“I’m forever grateful to my mother for the life I have and for my career. I have Latino and Afro roots and I’m very proud of it”, said the exotic performer that radiates energy on all her performances with her brown skin color and afro background.

HER MUSIC With lots of charisma, she leaves her mark on the stage, in a new phase of her career, Amara La Negra empowers and makes today’s woman dance on her album ‘Unstoppable’.

“My music is lively, fun and it cheers you up. Many times people distort the idea of one’s style or lyrics, but I believe that as women, we can take ownership of what we do and enjoy the ride” said the singer.

Defending her identity and style, the Hip Hop and R&B singer, Amara has taken a position that defends her Latinidad, culture, and language.

“It gives me a lot of pride to represent the Latino community in the English speaking market and internationally. I stick my Spanglish here and there and raise the Dominican flag up high”, said La Negra, who got to be a dancer in the Latin Grammys also sharing the stage with big music icons like Celia Cruz, Tito Puentes, and La India.

With a strong personality and big charisma, the force of Amara La Negra give voice to the causes of the Rainbow Flag, identifying herself with the LGBTQ community in the US and in the rest of the world.

“In a way I identify with them, we’re liberal, they understand our energy, they want to be free to express themselves without being judged and that’s how I feel” said Amara who has performed at the World Pride in New York and San Francisco Pride.

Irreverent, rebellious, as she describes herself, she wholeheartedly thanks everyone for the trust and support she has received from the LGBTQ community and from the international community.

“I’m so grateful, and in love with the community, for so much love that they’ve given me, for believing in me. With a lot of Pride for the opportunity of giving talent to my music, my art and energy and we still have so much more to give” concluded Amara La Negra who announced her participation at the upcoming Charlotte Pride on August 17-18.

“I’m so grateful, and in love with the community, for so much love that they’ve given me, for believing in me.”

This English translation of our feature on page 30 was provided by Denise Coleman.

AMARA LA NEGRA

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Charlotte Pride SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM

The Charlotte Pride Scholarship Program aims to improve economic mobility for LGBTQ and ally college students from the Charlotte metro area by funding college scholarships.

Congratulations to the 2019 cohort of Charlotte Pride Scholars!

ABENA ATIEMO UNC Charlotte ‘22

ASHLEY CASTRAJON NC State University ‘22

JAIRE CLARIDA NC A&T University ‘21

IMOKHAI JAMES NC A&T University ‘22

Pronouns: she/her/hers Hometown: Charlotte, N.C. Major: Graphic Design

Pronouns: she/her they/them Hometown: Portland, Ore. Major: Architecture

Pronouns: he/him/his Hometown: Charlotte, N.C. Major: Social Work

Prounouns: he/him/his Hometown: Charlotte, N.C. Major: Legal Studies

EMIL MARANCHELLO UNC Asheville ‘23

DAPHNE REYNOLDS Ringling College of Art & Design ‘22

This scholar has chosen to remain anonymous since they are not yet fully out. We respect the coming out journey of all our scholars.

Pronouns: they/them/theirs Hometown: Charlotte, N.C. Major: History

Pronouns: she/her they/them Hometown: Kannapolis, N.C. Major: Computer Animation

The Charlotte Pride Scholarship Program awards scholarships to LGBTQ and ally students in the 16-county metro region around Charlotte. Applications open each spring. For more information or to bookmark our application page for next year’s scholarship applications, visit charlottepride.org/scholarship/ 45

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queer city

Photographer Nelson Morales explores Charlotte’s LGBTQ community through compassionate lens

by Charlotte is Creative

T

aking the stage to share his story with 350 Charlotteans, photographer Nelson Morales didn’t know if his family was alive or dead. Just hours earlier, a massive earthquake activated near his native home in Oaxaca, Mexico.

Nevertheless, Morales took the stage and spoke of his evolution as a photographer which started as curiosity, and has resulted in a very intimate and compassionate relationship with a community within Oaxaca – the muxe (pronounced “moo-shay”), who are recognized as a third gender.

“A muxe is a homosexual who adopts female roles and is accepted by society,” said Morales.

“He dresses as a woman, acts as a woman and people say that it is a blessing for the parents since when they grow old, a muxe will stay at home to take care of them.”

Morales was introduced to the muxe when a friend invited him to a group of muxes who were participating in a beauty contest. When reviewing his photographs, Morales found a true connection and compassion for his subjects. He dove into their community and continued chronicling their lives, which fluctuated between exuberant flamboyance and loneliness.

Soon, he found that not everyone shared his passion for the muxe. continued on page 51 >>>

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<<< continued from page 48 “During the annual festival of muxes, I decided to do my first exhibition in the town square,” Morales said. “Many people liked it, others considered it offensive. It made me think that I could do a lot to make a more compassionate place for them.”

In the process of discovering the muxe, Morales discovered more about himself.

“I understood that I had to seek my own sexual identity through self-portraiture, to accept myself the way I am, to face my mistakes and face life without fear, and always live with passion and dedication,” he said.

This mixture of passion and compassion led Morales to Charlotte, where he was an artist in residence at the McColl Center. His residency was presented by Bank of America, and supported by the Charlotte Lesbian and Gay Fund, as well as Sandy Berlin.

While here, he continued inquiring about gender expressions and sexual identity within the local LGBTQ community. [Read more about Charlotte Pride’s work with Nelson Morales in the sidebar accompanying this story below.]

Learn more about Morales and his work by watching his entire CreativeMornings talk online at youtube.com/watch?v=dtow_noY6FY. Or listen to this Charlotte is Creative podcast featuring a deeper conversation with Morales: charlotteiscreative.qcpn. libsynpro.com/nelson-morales-compassion. Finally, read this op-ed from Charlotte is Creative’s Matt Olin, inspired by Morales’ story: charlotteobserver.com/opinion/ editorials/article173466396.html.

— This piece was originally published on September 19, 2017 by Charlotte is Creative on CharlotteFive.com. It is reprinted with permission.

exploring the ‘queer city’

Charlotte Pride and its program Charlotte Latinx Pride had the opportunity to work with photographer Nelson Morales during his time as an artist-in-residence at the McColl Center. Funded in part by the Arts & Science Council, Morales worked with members of the Latinx Pride team, as well as other community members, to explore sexuality and gender expression.

Morales’ photography series, “Queer City,” made its debut at the 2018 Charlotte Latinx Pride Expo in December 2018. With Morales present to discuss his work and sign copies of his photobook, community members perused a small photo gallery of local LGBTQ Latinx Charlotteans — each with their own story to tell about their gender, gender expression and sexuality.

Feature photo, page 50: Carlina, featured in Carlina’s Dream, is a Puerto Rican drag queen currently residing in Daytona Beach. Carlina is inspired by the culture and music from her home country of Puerto Rico. She is the Latin Mami Rica from Charlotte.

Top photo, this page: Lara, featured in Metamorphosis, is a trans woman, activist, artist, and photographer.

Middle photo, this page: Lolita, featured in The Party Is Here, is Charlotte’s premier Peruvian and Chilean Plus size Drag Queen! Who wants nothing more to empower those in the world who do not feel beautiful in their own skin.

Bottom photo, this page: Jersey, featured in The Night, is a drag king from WinstonSalem NC, that represented Orgullo as Mr Charlotte Latinx Pride 2017.

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#TeamPregnantDad

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A TRANSGENDER MAN’S JOURNEY FROM PREGNANCY TO FATHERHOOD

T

he texts and phone notifications just kept coming. for hours after Duane wrote, “Well, looks like I’m gonna be a daddy” on Facebook, friends showered Liam and Duane with hundreds of “likes” and “Congratulations!”

“That’s gonna be one gorgeous and beloved baby,” one friend said.

“Children are a blessing! Enjoy,” said another.

But then, someone admitted: “I’m confused.”

“Who exactly is pregnant and how does all that stuff work?”

And below that, a woman asked, “How did this happen?!”

Duane wrote back, explaining how they conceived: “Well the sperm fertilized the egg and now ... Liam is pregnant. He is a transgender man.”

Weeks later, they shared pictures of Liam’s first trimester. One was of Liam on the couch with their cat, Biscuit resting on his growing belly. Another showed Liam holding his phone near his stomach, playing bluegrass music for the baby.

Above all the photos, Duane wrote: #TeamPregnantDad. Their friends were supportive. But at work, Duane was peppered with questions.

“Do you think once Liam has the baby he’ll become a woman again and transition back,” one person asked. Duane, annoyed, told her: “No.” Photo Above: Liam Johns, right, and his husband Duane Danielson, left, at a recent Charlotte Pride Festival and Parade in Uptown Charlotte.

Photo Credit: Diedra Laird/Charlotte Observer.

Then another asked more pointed, personal questions — prompting Duane to write angrily on Facebook: “Just FYI it’s rude to ask me what genitals my spouse has.” continued on page 56 >>> 55 55

Charlotte Pride

MAGAZINE

<<< continued from page 55

Poisoned with estrogen By the midpoint of his pregnancy, Liam doesn’t leave home very often. It’s partly because people stare and he feels unsafe and partly because he doesn’t feel like himself without testosterone.

“My whole life has been a hormonal roller coaster,” Liam says. “I feel like I’m being poisoned with estrogen … People underestimate the power of hormones — they’ll make or break you.”

Duane tries to comfort him and, when Liam can’t bear to be seen in public, Duane goes out for groceries or to pick up take-out for dinner. Most nights, after Duane gets home from a late-night shift at the hospital, he sits with Liam on their couch and rubs his feet until they drift off in front of “Grey’s Anatomy.”

charlotte transgender community resources: Carolina Transgender Society carolinatransgendersociety.com Campaign for Southern Equality Trans in the South southernequality.org/resources/ transinthesouth/

It helps, Liam says. But lately, he is inconsolable.

Charlotte Transgender Healthcare Group cthcg.org

On the worst days, emotions boil over. Sometimes Liam screams or cries.

Sometimes, both.

Freedom Center for Social Justice fcsj.org

They knew there would be sacrifices to have a family but Liam says it was hard to predict exactly how pregnancy would affect him.

Genderlines genderlines.org

“We’re getting the family we always wanted. But what I have put my body through … If anybody wanted family as much as we did,” he says, “I think they would do it.”

Liam says he’ll feel better when he restarts testosterone six to eight weeks after the baby is born.

“It will be beneficial to both of us,” he says. Then he looks to Duane and adds: “And you can have your husband back.”

Taking his hand, Duane says, “You never left.”

Editor’s Note: This is an excerpt from #TeamPregnantDad, originally published by the Charlotte Observer in May 2019.

The full six-part news series and mini-documentary about Liam Johns and his husband Duane Danielson is available at charlotteobserver.com/pregnantdad.

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PFLAG Charlotte pflagcharlotte.org Transcend Charlotte transcendcharlotte.org

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Charlotte Pride

MAGAZINE

Love & Harmony <<< continued from page 33

been singing since before I can remember. It’s just something that I grew up loving. I feel safe on the stage, which sounds really weird to a lot of people, but to me it feels like home to be up there and doing my thing.

From your hometowns to L.A., then on to Phoenix — how did you two land in Charlotte?

Quinn: It just kind of fell into place. We came to Charlotte as a short step to get on our feet. The plan was to go to Nashville.

We visited there and talked to some folks and we realized it might be more beneficial as artists and for our careers to stay in a smaller community where we could actually be seen and grow and develop our sound into what we want it to be as a band.

Nashville was great, but Charlotte has been good too. We’re close to the beach and the Wilmington area, where Quinn is from.

Things just kind of fell into place here in a really natural way. I think we both took it as a sign that this was a good place for us to grow.

Courtney: Beyond that, we also just like the community here. A lot of people hate on the Charlotte music scene because maybe there’s not as much opportunity here as some might like, but we haven’t found that. The people who are here are so supportive and have given us opportunities. It just works. When we moved here, we realized we weren’t just making career connections.

We were making friends and family, so we just didn’t want to leave.

About that Charlotte music scene — you’re right that a lot of people bash on the local music scene, but talk to us more about that and your experience here.

Quinn: There are certainly times as a band and as artists that we’ve been frustrated with the Charlotte scene. But, a lot of it goes back to the city’s history. Sure, it’s “corporate Charlotte.” I understand that some people say the city has no soul, but I do see this evolving growth in the artistic and music community here. It is growing very, very quickly and there’s been a turning point where the pendulum is swinging back to building the community and building the soul of Charlotte.

Courtney: If people are on the outside and looking in and they’re asking where our music scene is, where our arts scene is — they just need to look. Where there are people, there is music. Where there are people, there is art. It’s just human nature.

Where to find it might sometimes be challenging, but it’s there. Even if you think it’s a small movement, look for it. Get involved.

Support it. We want to contribute to what Charlotte has to offer, not just take from it.

Have either of you ever performed at a Pride festival before or will this be your first time?

Courtney: We’re definitely excited. This will be our first time!

What are you hoping audience members and event attendees take away from either your performance or the event as a whole?

Courtney: Oh, gosh. I feel like I could say a hundred and fifty different things for that question. I remember my first Pride festival.

I wasn’t out yet. I wasn’t out to my friends or my family. Nobody. It was the first time I had ever gone and I was totally wrapped up in the love and the support. Looking back, now being in a happy marriage, I think if there’s anything that I hope people get, it’s hope. We’ve come a long way as a community. There’s still, obviously, a lot to be done. But events like these are a nice moment to stop, to hope, to enjoy love and enjoy each other and feel supported.

Quinn: I hope that what we bring is a message from our music that shows the love that we have for one another as openly as we do. But not just that — also that we can show a younger generation that just because sometimes you can feel lost or alone in a world that can be scary, there are still people who will wrap you up in love and support. We want young people to know that it’s okay to be who you are and it’s okay to love who you love. It’s okay to be open with yourself.

— This interview was conducted by Matt Comer and transcribed by Wes McNeely.

“We can show a younger generation ... there are still people who will wrap you up in love and support. It’s okay to be who you are and love who you love.”

QUINN HENDERSON

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charlotte’s lgbtq-friendly neighborhoods

You might be familiar with some of the more famous, historic “gayborhoods” of cities larger than Charlotte — Greenwich Village in New York City, Dupont Circle in Washington, D.C., the Castro in San Francisco or Midtown in Atlanta may come to mind. Charlotte doesn’t necessarily have the same kind of LGBTQ hot spot as larger cities, but what we lack in a centralized LGBTQ neighborhood, we more than make up with a variety of LGBTQ-friendly areas spread across the city. Here’s a snapshot of just a few of the more welcoming and affirming “queer neighborhoods” of Charlotte.

UPTOWN

NODA

Encompassing all of the area within the I-277 loop, Uptown Charlotte is the artistic, cultural, nightlife, dining, business and government center of Charlotte.

Five-star restaurants, swanky hotels, the city’s premier nightlife venues and more are wedged into the city’s burgeoning Center City district. Home to a growing number of LGBTQ residents and businesses, Uptown also plays host to each year’s Charlotte Pride Festival & Parade, the single largest gathering of LGBTQ people in the Carolinas and the largest LGBTQ Pride event between Atlanta and Washington, D.C.

Praised as Charlotte’s eclectic arts district, NoDa encompasses a a stretch of N. Davidson St. lined with art galleries, coffee shops, restaurants, bars, performance and concert venues, apartments, condos and business offices.

Home to the Neighborhood Theatre, NoDa also boasts other event and music venues like Evening Muse and Wine Up. With its historic charm, walkability, LGBTQ-friendly nature and diverse crowds NoDa is the perfect place to shop, wine, dine or party! Top LGBTQ and friendly destinations in NoDa include Chasers and the 24-hour coffee and pastry shop, Amelies.

PLAZA MIDWOOD Centered at the bustling intersection of The Plaza and Central Ave., Plaza Midwood is a growing commercial and residential district with both established and up-and-coming restaurants, antique shops and galleries, retail, nightlife and more. The neighborhood’s large residential areas feed into the commercial district’s lively center — increasingly finding itself more populated with denser and newer apartment developments. The neighborhood also includes a variety of LGBTQ-owned and -friendly dining, nightlife and retail establishments, as well as a plethora of other bars, shops and restaurants known for their friendly, mixed and diverse crowds. The nearby NoDa and Elizabeth neighborhoods also offer a fun mix of restaurants, bars and other attractions. Top LGBTQ and friendly destinations in Plaza Midwood include Petra’s Piano Bar, Snug Harbor, Dish, and Common Market.

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SOUTH END/DILWORTH Stretching south from Uptown along South Blvd. and extending eastward on East Blvd., South End and Dilworth offer a New South mix of urban sophistication, small town hospitality and historic charm. Tree-lined streets are dotted by a mix of new condos, mid-rises and historic homes and bungalows. Fun and popular restaurants, shops, galleries and nightlife make a trip south of town worth it. Within a short walking distance or LYNX Light Rail line of all points in Uptown, South End and Dilworth continue to experience extraordinary growth. Top LGBTQ and friendly destinations in South End include The Bar at 316, the long LGBTQowned Paper Skyscraper, and — further down South Blvd., Bar Argon and Sidelines Sports Bar. — compiled by Matt Comer

donate!

The successes of Charlotte Pride depend on the generous support of our sponsors, partners, and donors, just like you!

You can support Charlotte Pride with a one-time or ongoing donation today.

Your generous gift will go toward supporting the important work of Charlotte Pride programs throughout the year, including Charlotte Latinx Pride, Charlotte Trans Pride, and Reel Out Charlotte, the Queen Cityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Annual LGBTQ Film Festival.

learn more and donate today: charlottepride.org/donate/

Discover thousands of LGBT-supportive businesses, places and events near you.

Charlotte Pride

MAGAZINE

COMMUNITY RESOURCE DIRECTORY

annual community events JANUARY

MAY

Martin Luther King Jr. Parade charlottenc.gov/crc/MLKevents/ Charlotte’s annual celebration of the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Events include a wide variety of community activities, as well as the annual parade down Tryon St.

The Happening fftc.org/clgf The Charlotte Gay and Lesbian Fund’s luncheon, hosted annually as a local fundraiser. The event also features the announcement of each year’s grant recipients.

FEBRUARY HRC Carolina Gala hrccarolina.org An annual formal fundraising affair for the Human Rights Campaign, the nation’s largest LGBTQ advocacy organization.

MARCH St. Patrick’s Day www.charlottestpatsday.com An annual festival and parade celebrating everything green! The morning parade gives way to an afternoon festival and pub crawl.

APRIL Reel Out Charlotte reelout.org A program of Charlotte Pride, Reel Out Charlotte is the Queen City’s AnnualLGBTQ Film Festival.

House of Mercy AIDS Walk thehouseofmercy.org/ This fundraiser contributes financial support to House of Mercy’s clients. Held annually in Downtown Belmont.

AIDS Walk Charlotte aidswalkcharlotte.org Taking place in Uptown Charlotte, this HIV/AIDS awareness and fundraising event is the largest of its kind in the Carolinas region.

Speed Street/600 Festival 600festival.com Center City Charlotte is taken over by this celebration of NASCAR.

JUNE Taste of Charlotte tasteofcharlotte.com You’d better come hungry! Taste of Charlotte is the city’s annual toast to some of the best culinary offerings Charlotte has to offer.

includes a town hall discussion, social events, a Jazz Brunch and a Saturday Expo with community vendors and entertainment.

AUGUST Charlotte Pride Festival & Parade charlottepride.org Charlotte’s annual Pride festival and parade colorfully takes over Uptown Charlotte. Latinx Pride and Trans Pride (both programs of Charlotte Pride) are also part of the event — the single largest gathering of LGBTQ people in the Carolinas!

Flourish: A Celebration of LGBTQ Arts and Culture charlottepride.org A miniature arts festival within the larger Charlotte Pride Festival hosted at the Bechtler Museum of Modern Art, Flourish showcases the talents of the Queen City’s LGBTQ artists, including choral and dance groups, spoken word artists, visual artists and more!

Time Out Youth Platinum Gala timeoutyouth.org/gala Time Out Youth’s annual fundraiser — an evening of music, food, fun, and inspiration.

LGBT-Friendly College Fair campuspride.org Campus Pride holds its regional LGBTQ-Friendly National College Fair in the Queen City as a part of the Charlotte Pride Festival.

JULY

SEPTEMBER

Charlotte Black Pride charlotteblackpride.org An annual celebration of the Black LGBTQ community. Each year

Festival in the Park festivalinthepark.org Charlotte’s yearly arts festival engulfs Freedom Park.

Yiasou Greek Festival yiasoufestival.org Celebrate authentic Green culture, history, community, cuisine and entertainment at Charlotte’s annual Greek Festival.

OCTOBER OUTSpoken caps.uncc.edu/outreach-andeducational-programs/outspoken UNC Charlotte’s annual LGBTQ speaker series with the purpose of fostering a positive environment for the LGBTQ community at the university.

NOVEMBER Thanksgiving Day Parade novanthealththanksgivingparade. com More than 70 years of tradition rolls down Tryon St. in celebration of Thanksgiving Day and the start of the annual winter holiday season!

One of the city’s largest parades.

— compiled by Wes McNeely

charlottepride.org

COMMUNITY RESOURCE DIRECTORY

lgbtq and lgbtq-friendly nightlife

Bar Argon 4544 South Blvd Charlotte, NC 28209 barargon.com Charlotte’s newest and most hopping dance bar features a spacious outdoor patio, the most popular beats, and large-scale video screens running music videos along with each night’s musical set from their resident VJ. The Bar at 316 316 Rensselaer Ave Charlotte, NC 28203 bar316.com One of the oldest, continuously operating LGBTQ+ bars in the city (though under differing names since the late 1980s), The Bar at 316 is a favorite among locals for its second-floor deck, weekly karaoke, drag shows and special events.

Chasers 3217 The Plaza Charlotte, NC 28205 facebook.com/ chaserscharlottenoda Charlotte’s once-hopping male strip club has transformed itself into a drag showcase bar with visiting and local queens and vying regularly for audience applause. When the drag shows end each night, stick around for dancing and a show from the bar’s male go-go dancers.

Common Market 2007 Commonwealth Ave Charlotte, NC 28205 commonmarketisgood.com An eclectic mix between a deli, convenience store, and bar, Common Market is a popular Plaza Midwood hangout beckoning everyone in the community. Long known for its LGBTQ-inclusive owners and staff, anyone in the community is bound to find a welcome place at Common Market’s outdoor picnic tables.

Hattie’s Tap & Tavern 2918 The Plaza Charlotte, NC 28205 hattiescharlotte.com Teetering on the edge between Plaza Midwood and NoDa, this LGBTQ+ owned bar invites you in with regular concerts and shows, board games, vintage video games, and a spacious outdoor patio with large-scale Jenga!

Petra’s 1919 Commonwealth Ave Charlotte, NC 28205 petrasbar.com What was once an exclusively LGBTQ hangout has blossomed along with the rest of its surrounding Plaza Midwood neighborhood. LGBTQ-inclusive and eclectic to its core, Petra’s hosts a wide variety of cabaret

and piano shows, theatre, special events, dance parties and more!

NoDa Company Store 3221 Yadkin Ave Charlotte, NC 28205 thecompanystorenoda.com Crafted out of the renovated remains of an old mill house, NoDa Company Store aims to offer “a little something for everyone to enjoy.” Owned by local couple Scott Lindsley and Joey Hewell, the bar features a variety of local brews and special events throughout the year.

The Scorpio 2301 Freedom Dr Charlotte, NC 28208 thescorpio.com Charlotte’s longest-running LGBTQ night club, The Scorpio has been serving up strong drinks and sick beats for more than 50 years!

Famed for its drag casts and regular drag pageants, The Scorpio is a must-see and a trip back in time. The bar itself predates the Stonewall Riots in 1969!

Sidelines Sports Bar & Billiards 4544 South Blvd Charlotte, NC 28209 thesidelinesbar.com Next door to Bar Argon, cool off and relax at this casual sports bar. with large-screen TVs, four pool tables, darts, and more.

Snug Harbor 1228 Gordon St Charlotte, NC 28205 snugrock.com Plaza Midwood’s edgy venue offering live music, DJs, drag shows, karaoke and more. While not exclusively LGBTQ, Snug Harbor has been rockin’ it out with an intense LGBTQ-inclusive vibe for years, including annual parties in the lead up to Charlotte Pride each year.

The Woodshed Lounge 4000 Queen City Dr Charlotte, NC 28208 woodshedlounge.com Let loose and be free in this judgment free zone that is The Woodshed. Charlotte’s local leather and kink bar, The Woodshed regularly plays host to a wide variety of special events throughout the year and is the home bar of the Charlotte Tradesmen, the Queen City’s local leather club which hosts a club night there on the first Saturday of every month.

— compiled by Wes McNeely & Matt Comer

Charlotte Pride

MAGAZINE

COMMUNITY RESOURCE DIRECTORY

community organizations ADVOCACY

ACLU of North Carolina acluofnorthcarolina.org Charlotte LGBT Chamber of Commerce clgbtcc.org Elder Law Clinic at Wake Forest University elder-clinic.law.wfu.edu Equality North Carolina equalitync.org Human Rights Campaign Carolina hrccarolina.org Mecklenburg LGBTQ Political Action Committee (MeckPAC) meckpac.org North Carolina AIDS Action Network ncaan.org The Freedom Center for Social Justice fcsj.org

ARTS Actorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Theatre of Charlotte atcharlotte.org Charlotte Pride Band charlotteprideband.org Gay Menâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Chorus of Charlotte gmccharlotte.org

One Voice Chorus onevoicechorus.com Reel Out Charlotte reelout.org

MEDIA Charlotte Agenda charlotteagenda.com Charlotte Five charlottefive.com Charlotte Magazine charlottemagazine.com Charlotte Observer charlotteobserver.com QCityMetro qcitymetro.com QNotes goqnotes.com Queen City Nerve qcnerve.com

FAITH Caldwell Presbyterian Church 1609 E. Fifth St. Charlotte, NC 28204 704-334-0825 caldwellpresby.org Charlotte Atheists and Agnostics charlotteatheists.com

- advocacy-arts-media-faith

Charlotte Buddhist Vihara 3423 Stonehaven Dr. Charlotte, NC 28215 charlottebuddhistvihara.org First Christian Church 1200 East Blvd.

Charlotte, NC 28203 704-334-3771 fcc-charlotte.org First United Methodist Church 501 N. Tryon St. Charlotte, NC 28202 704-333-9081 charlottefirst.org Havurat Tikvah 2821 Park Rd. Charlotte, NC 28209 980-225-5330 havurattikvah.org Holy Covenant United Church of Christ 3501 W. WT Harris Blvd.

Charlotte, NC 28269 704-599-9810 holycovenantucc.org Holy Trinity Lutheran Church 1900 The Plaza Charlotte, NC 28205 704-377-5439 htlccharlotte.org Interfaith Equality Coalition facebook.com/ InterfaithEqualityCoalition

M2M: Matters to Mission The Evening Muse (Meeting Location) 3227 North Davidson St. Charlotte, NC 28205 m2mcharlotte.org MeckMin 3900 Park Rd. Charlotte, NC 28209 704-565-5455 meckmin.org MCC Charlotte 7121 Orr Rd. Charlotte, NC 28213 704-563-5810 mymcccharlotte.org Missiongathering Charlotte 420 E. 15th St. Charlotte, NC 28206 704-412-4028 mgclt.com Myers Park Baptist Church 1900 Queens Rd. Charlotte, NC 28207 704-334-7232 mpbconline.org New Life Metropolitan Community Church 1201 S. New Hope Rd. Gastonia, NC 28054 704-334-0350 newlifemccnc.org continued on next page >>>

charlottepride.org

COMMUNITY RESOURCE DIRECTORY

community organizations

- faith

Park Road Baptist Church 3900 Park Rd. Charlotte, NC 28209 704-523-5717 parkroadbaptist.org

St. Luke Missionary Baptist Church 1600 Norris Ave. Charlotte, NC 28206 704-375-9650 stlukembc.org

South Park Christian Church 6650 Park South Dr. Charlotte, NC 28210 704-554-1066 southparkchristian.net

Trinity United Church of Christ 38 Church St. N.E. Concord, NC 28025 704-782-1024 commachurch.com

Piedmont Unitarian Universalist Church 9704 Mallard Creek Rd. Charlotte, NC 28262 704-510-0008 puuc.org

St. Martin’s Episcopal Church 1510 E. 7th St. Charlotte, NC 28204 704-376-8441 stmartins-charlotte.org

Temple Beth El 5101 Providence Rd. Charlotte, NC 28226 704-366-1948 templebethel.org

St. Peter’s Catholic Church 507 S. Tryon St. Charlotte, NC 28202 704-332-2901 stpeterscatholic.org/index.php/ community-outreach/gaylesbianministry

The Avenue Presbyterian Church 100 Beatties Ford Rd. Charlotte, NC 28216 980-201-8955 theavenueclt.org

Unitarian Universalist Church of Charlotte 234 N. Sharon Amity Rd. Charlotte, NC 28211 704-366-8623 uuccharlotte.org

ReBirth Cathedral 2229 Village Lake Dr. Charlotte, NC 28212 980-819-2636 rebirthcathedral.org St. John’s Baptist Church 300 Hawthorne Ln. Charlotte, NC 28204 704-333-5428 stjohnsbaptistchurch.org

St. Peter’s Episcopal Church 115 W. 7th St. Charlotte, NC 28202 704-332-7746 st-peters.org

Temple Or Olam 5300 Poplar Tent Rd. Concord, NC 28027 704-720-7577 or-olam.org

Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Lake Norman 484 Presbyterian Rd Mooresville, NC 28115 704-765-6088 uulakenorman.org Unity Fellowship Church 4800 Wedgewood Drive (Fellowship Hall) Charlotte, NC 28210 704-567-5007 ufccharlotte.org continued on next page >>>

Happy Pride!

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Frank Summers

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6733 A Fairview Road Charlotte, NC 28210 704-366-5811

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Charlotte Pride

MAGAZINE

COMMUNITY RESOURCE DIRECTORY

community organizations Watershed Charlotte 2101 Shenandoah Ave. Charlotte, NC 28205 704-644-0919 watershedcharlotte.com

Amity Medical Group 6010 East W.T. Harris Blvd.

Charlotte, NC 28215 704-208-4134 ballantynefamilymedicine.com

Wedgewood Church 4800 Wedgewood Dr. Charlotte, NC 28210 704-604-0556 wedgewoodchurch.com

Anuvia Prevention & Recovery Center 100 Billingsley Rd. Charlotte, NC 28211 704-376-7447 anuvia.org

PHILANTHROPY Charlotte Lesbian and Gay Fund fftc.org/clgf Hearts Beat as One Foundation heartsbeatone.org

HEALTH & HIV Affinity Health Center 455 Lakeshore Pkwy.

Rock Hill, SC 29730 803-909-6363 affinityhealthcenter.org

Carolinas Care Partnership 5855 Executive Center Dr. Suite 102 Charlotte, NC 28212 704-531-2467 carolinascare.org Charlotte Transgender Healthcare Group cthcg.org House of Mercy 100 McAuley Cir. Belmont, NC 28012

Free, Confidential, Walk-in HIV / HepC / STD Testing M-Th 8:30 am - 6 pm, F 8:30 am - 4 pm PrEP & PEP Primary Care HIV Specialty Care Hep C Treatment Onsite Dental Onsite Pharmacy

Appointments

803-909-6363 455 LAKESHORE PKWY. | ROCK HILL, SC 29730 AFFINITYHEALTHCENTER.ORG/GET-TESTED

- faith-philanthropy-health-HIV

704-825-4711 thehouseofmercy.org Infectious Disease (ID) Consultants & Infusion Care Specialists 4539 Hedgemore Dr Charlotte, NC 28209 704-331-9669 atriumhealth.org/locations/idconsultants Lake Norman Community Health Clinic 14230 Hunters Rd. Huntersville, NC 28078 704-316-6611 lnchc.org Mecklenburg County Health Department, Southeast Campus 249 Billingsley Rd. Charlotte, NC 28211 704-336-6500 mecknc.gov/HealthDepartment/ ClinicServices

Mecklenburg County Health Department, Northwest Campus 2845 Beatties Ford Rd. Charlotte, NC 28216 704-336-6500 mecknc.gov/HealthDepartment/ ClinicServices Planned Parenthood Charlotte Health Center 700 S. Torrence St. Charlotte, NC 28204 plannedparenthood.org/ health-center/north-carolina/ charlotte/28205/charlotte-healthcenter-2703-90860 PowerHouse Project 1420 Beatties Ford Rd. Charlotte, North Carolina 28216 980-999-5295 facebook.com/ ThePowerhouseProject

continued on next page >>>

charlottepride.org

COMMUNITY RESOURCE DIRECTORY

community organizations

- health-social-sports-youth

RAIN 601 E. 5th St. Suite 470 Charlotte, NC 28202 704-372-7246 carolinarain.org

Charlotte LGBTQ Elders charlottelgbtqelders.org

Charlotte Roller Girls charlotterollergirls.com

Charlotte Pride charlottepride.org

Charlotte Royals Rugby charlotteroyalsrugby.com

Rosedale Medical 103 Commerce Centre Dr. Suite 103 Huntersville, NC 28078 704-948-8582 rosedaleid.com

Charlotte Tradesmen charlottetradesmen.org

Queen City Tennis Club qctc.org

Genderlines genderlines.org

Stonewall Sports stonewallcharlotte.leagueapps.com

PFLAG Charlotte pflagcharlotte.org

YOUTH

SOCIAL & SUPPORT Alpha Psi Kappa Fraternity alphapsikappa.org

Prime Timers of Charlotte primetimersww.com/charlotte

Carolina Bear Lodge carolinabears.org

Southern Country Charlotte southerncountrycharlotte.com

Carolina Transgender Society carolinatransgendersociety.com

Transcend Charlotte transcendcharlotte.org

Charlotte Black Pride charlotteblackpride.org

SPORTS Charlotte Rainbowlers charlotterainbowlers.com

Cargo Transporters is the only truckload carrier to receive a 100 ranking in the 2019 HRC CEI

Campus Pride campuspride.org GLoBAL Winthrop University https://www.winthrop.edu/ studentorgs/global.aspx Pride Alliance Club Central Piedmont Community College facebook.com/groups/ CPCCPrideAlliance/

Queers & Allies Davidson College davidsonqanda.weebly.com Time Out Youth Center 3800 Monroe Rd. Charlotte, NC 28205 704-344-8335 timeoutyouth.org UNC Charlotte Office of Identity, Equity and Engagement Popp Martin Student Union 210 & King 210 704-687-7121 identity.uncc.edu â&#x20AC;&#x201D; compiled by Wes McNeely

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