Thursday, March 01, 2007

Queer visibility

How good is your gaydar? I used to think I didn't have one, but now I think I can tell. AdRi says I say everyone is gay. (They probably are.) But I **really** like looking at old photos of queer life and people: can you imagine risking your life to go to a secret bar? I think there were certain code words, like "bachelor farmer" or "spinster." I can't imagine living in a place or time like that, where the reality of your life is kept secret. Yet so many people today still do.

A friend sent the following photo to me yesterday...
Ah, the gals. I love this photo. They're smokin' cigars.

And for my readers in the Portland area, there's a great show this month at Q Center, featuring photos from Portland's LGBTQ history. The photos are from David Grant Kohl’s book “A Curious and Peculiar People” subtitled “A History of the Metropolitan Community Church in Portland and the Sexual Minority Communities of Northwest Oregon.” What do you think Portland was like for us 50 years ago? What could it have been like to be a transgender doctor (pictured below)?

I don't know what that would be like, but I like to know my history, my culture and people who came before me. You can read more about the show here.

8 comments:

Syd said...

Oh cool! Thanks Lelo.

WenWhit said...

Awesome photos... and thoughts. :)

Unknown said...

Great pictures and equally great questions!!

Anonymous said...

I'm with you. Everyone is gay. Especially the cute ones.

Kathryn said...

According to Kurt Cobain, everyone IS gay.

I'd love to go see that display.

Kat said...

What very thought provoking questions. That display sounds really interesting.

I wish there were more like it. I get sooooo bent with all the holier-than thou, self-righteous whatevers saying that bad things happen because God is mad that there are homosexuals - like it's some new 'affliction'.

Any well educated person knows, homosexuality has been present in man and in nature since we all came into existence. In some cultures, it was reverred. Take the secret band of Thebes, an elite fighting force consisting of 150 couples as the thought was "lovers will fight more fiercly at each others side."

Perhaps if museums and the like had more displays showcasing things like this, some of the moronic people walking around might learn a thing or two.

SassyFemme said...

What great pictures. Wish I could see all of them!

Patti_Cake said...

How far we have come .... when I was a little girl my Grandma's neighbor Verna had a son named Chris who lived with her. Chris wore make-up and caftans and I always found him SO fascinating. My Grandma never spoke of him being gay, he was "just a bachelor who was so-o-o good to his Mamma".