One of the more enduring images of the lead-up to World War 2 is of a book burning in May of 1933. A brownshirt is hurling books into a fire. Generally left unsaid about this event is an important fact: many of these texts were those of Dr. Magnus Hirschfeld, a famous pioneer of studies …
Continue reading “Queer Wrath Month V: Destroying Queer History”
Health and fitness have long been associated with Queer men, acting as a reaction to the “sissy” stereotype. The desire of Queer folk to transcend the assumed butch/femme dynamic led to health club membership and a love of sport in the community. These fads didn’t owe their livelihoods to just a sports kick: like many …
It was 1978, and the issue was carding. Black Lesbians in the 1970s had long contended with racism in the white queer community, but one of the most underhanded manifestations of this racism was also the most underhanded. It involved what is known as carding, the requirement that bars place at their doors demanding identification, …
Black liberation requires several things, but two of those things are extremely pertinent today: a place to be free, and an end to state oppression. It is often the case that losing the former means meeting the cause of the latter call. Such was the case at Blues in New York City in 1982. Escaping …
Continue reading “Queer Wrath Month II: Hey Hey, Ho Ho, Police Brutality Has Got to Go”
In 1983, Portland’s annual Pride celebration made waves with a shocking and seemingly intentional racist act. During that year’s parade, a man appeared dressed up as Aunt Jemima, pancakes and syrup and all. A white man. In response, activists in Portland’s Black community approached the man and attempted to get him to remove the costume …