Will a Queer Bomb destroy Austin in 2010?
Hide your women. Lock your doors. There’s a parade of rainbow-loving freaks, geeks, fairies and trannies marching into our fair town, and it’s causing quite a commotion. Nope, I’m not talking about the Phish fans descending on Austin for ACL Fest 2010. I’m talking about the Queer Bomb.
Fear not, Austin, this is a band of welcoming freaks. Queer knows no gender, sexual preference, race or religion. And whether ye be of the heterosexual, homosexual, bisexual, trans or furry set, this parade is a place for you.
Before I tell you WHY, let me tell you a little story. Readers of this blog know that I worked at one of Austin’s largest gay bars for 4 years in college. But did you know that in San Francisco I lived in a house with 7 other people? Kinda like MTV’s Real World minus all the drama, the other tenants of the house included 3 gay dudes (two of whom were dating), a lesbian couple and a heterosexual couple.
With such a smattering of sexualities, we had a HUGE variety of people waltz though our door. On any given night, I’d come home to find a straight chic pornstar or a female-to-male transgender siting in the living room. And even after living in dirty-azz Berlin, my first dinner at the house caught me off guard, blushing as the other tenants casually discussed sex toys, fetishes and other “adult” convos.
Before I’d moved into the house, my idea of the word “queer” was strictly limited to my Texan childhood upbringing. As a young boy, I had a high-pitched voice and didn’t get involved in sports until junior high. Nothing like the rustic vision of masculinity I am today, I was often called “faggot” or “queer” interchangeably. So for me, queer has always meant gay. That changed after living in the house.
Me and my housemates in San Francisco in 2007. Which ones are queer?
First off, Neal (the straight guy) would get pissed if I introduced him as the “the straight guy.” He preferred the term “queer” because it’s more inclusive–and while he may prefer sex with women, he doesn’t align himself with traditional sexual and social morés. Plus, nothing turns the world of sexuality on its head like getting hit on by a totally passable dude who was formerly a beautiful female or meeting a housemate’s tall, blonde male-to-female transgendered father.
Point is: Queer is more than just a term for homosexual identity; it’s about anyone who accepts and celebrates a non-normative lifestyle. And since I find normal to be pretty boring, I suppose my elementary school bullies were right: I’m queer.
Queer Bomb is a parade to ‘Keep Austin Weird,’ y’all!
Here’s their mission:
QueerBomb is a flash Force assembly of LGBTQIA individuals within the community who have found the current strategy and structure of Austin Pride to be non-inclusive, capitalist, heteronormative, safe and unchallenging.
QueerBomb has been assembled with boisterous urgency in organizing a counter ‘Pride’ procession that carries a strong Queer message to the streets of Downtown Austin reclaiming the radical, carnal and transgressive lineage of our ever changing community, while celebrating every facet and form of our people as a unique and vibrant whole.
That mission statement is loaded with a large dose of vitriol aimed at Austin’s Official Pride Foundation. If you can’t read between the lines, check out Michael Barnes’s article in the Statesman addressing the “non-inclusive” element of pride. For the “capitalist” aspect of pride, check out Andy Campbell’s article “The Cost of Pride” from this week’s Chronicle. And when folks in Dallas report that there’s more drama in Austin [this one's gotta a LOT of gossip], you know something’s up.
My thoughts: Every family has a black sheep, but a family sticks together. Based on this year’s outcry, Austin Pride Foundation needs to examine who they let participate in the official parade and festival next year, particularly focusing on the hang-ups that make them want to hide different segments of the gay community from mainstream eyes. Until gays can accept all members of the community, how can they expect others to do so?
Politics aside, Queer Bomb looks like it’s gonna be a great couple of nights of parading, dancing and partying on the East Side. So put on your freakum dress, your furry costume, your wig, high-heeled shoes, corsets, assless chaps and glitter, and come celebrate diversity.
FRIDAY DEETS: “Queer Bomb Rally and Procession” (Friday, 06.04.10); ND at Independent Studios (501 IH-35 at corner of Brushy and E 5th, 78702); Procession starts at 8.30P and winds through the streets of DT. Party w/ DJ starts at 10.30P; FREE Facebook Event
SATURDAY DEETS: “Queer Bomb Party” (Saturday, 06.05.10); Cheer Up Charlie’s (1104 E. 6th at Waller, 78702); Party starts at 3PM and goes through the night (see line-up below); FREE Facebook Event
Saturday’s Queer Bomb Party Line-up
DJ’s:
3-6pm dj Love Cat
6-9pm Dj Faith Gay
9-12 Bill Converse
12-2am Chicken KievPerformers:
6:30 Daniel Webb
7:15 Skate Night
8:00 Amy Cook
8:45 Baby Mama
9:30 Queertastics
9:45 Nakia
10:30 LZ Love & Friends
11:15 Super Special Guest Headliner Acoustic set
Stanley Roy of Little Stolen Moments shall host and play
in between sets
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NEW POST: Will a Queer Bomb destroy Austin in 2010? [link to post]
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RT @ATX4U NEW POST: Will a Queer Bomb destroy Austin in 2010? [link to post]
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RT @ATX4U NEW POST: Will a Queer Bomb destroy Austin in 2010? [link to post] < ---very personal post.
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Great post, Chris. RT @ATX4U NEW POST: Will a Queer Bomb destroy Austin in 2010? [link to post] < ---very personal post.
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Toinight is @queerbomb people!! Be @ 501 Studios at 8:30pm SHARP start the march. [link to post]
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RT @CheerUpCharlies: Toinight is @queerbomb people!! Be @ 501 Studios at 8:30pm SHARP start the march. [link to post]
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Hey y’all:
There’s some good conversation happening on Facebook. Thought I’d share it with you.
My friend Travis writes:
@travis I understand your point. I think the organizers of Queer Bomb aren’t trying to be cheap, per se. After talking to Queer Bomb founders, there are really two issues at hand here.
First, financial. After talking to several of QB organizers over the last couple of weeks, I think they feel there is a perceived desire by Pride Foundation to turn Pride into a business venture by its founders. For many non-profits (including Project Transitions), the costs were too high to participate when the money could be put towards their own services (like caring for HIV+ peeps). Long-standing fundraiser Texas Swing was not included in pride bc they couldn’t afford to be a part of it. And regarding time, many of these folks already run non-profits (everything from counseling to hospice services) that ARE putting ideas to work for the community–ideas that cost money, too. Not sure I see what societally impacting services Pride is offering to the community.
Again, it’s not about a “free ride”–I think most people will recognize that putting on an event like this is expensive–it’s about determining how much PERCEIVED relevance financial gain has into determining who is included in the event. When do the costs get so high that being gay becomes something only big companies and marketers can afford to be a part of?
Second, inclusion. Among the organizers of QB, there was a feeling of being disenfranchised. A certain segment felt left out so that Pride Foundation could present a “clean” face in order to get potential sponsorship dollars. The question again becomes: Who is pride for?
The gay rights movement was started by a bunch of drag queens at the Stonewall who were sick and tired of being raided by police. At the time, gay “thought leaders” were telling the community to ignore the raids and stay quiet. If those drag queens hadn’t stood up for gay rights, most of the advances in the gay rights movement probably would have taken a lot longer to manifest.
The overall point of my post was to really contrast the perception of “elitism” at the official Gay Pride events with the feeling of inclusion that the Gay Bomb organizers present.
here were at least 3 articles. Kate Messer’s was not all that inflammatory. I believe she even encouraged people to do the “corporate” pride. Richard Whittaker’s article did a little eye-opening on the gossip surrounding Nakia, a little expose on Peevy’s utter bullshit as well as his having his dick in two pies in this whole mess. WHO the fook … See Morewould book Sandra Bernhard and then turn around and say “too vulgar”? That’s some ass hattery BS right there.
The most heinous article, for me, was the Ts and Qs article by Ricky Hill. What kind of dumbass would talk trash about the Ts and the Bs with the press sitting right there?
AGLCC has been catering to the “day queers” for quite some time. I’m not saying that’s wrong. I just don’t happen to like assimilationism,, as a Tejano familiar with such things on an ethnic level, and as a queer.
I do feel it’s disingenuous to hate on corporate sponsorship during Pride, and then come down on those very same corporations when they let down or put down what passes for community. Hello, these are the corporations you should embrace for their diversity!
I suppose I could go on and on but I’ll end with this. I have always enjoyed being a transgressor in the location where you can transgress. Creating a microcosm of transgressive queers is not transgressive at all. Wear your leather chaps to the AGLCC Pride WITH your drag queen husband and your baby. That’s transgressive.
At the very least, this has kept the I was born this way so why should I be Proud people quiet this year.
I agree. The thing I learned in SF (and the whole point of this post) is that Queer Bomb is about transgressive pride. People don’t have to be gay to participate. Anyone who wants to push the norms in that “location where you can transgress” should attend.
I have always said that until we can accept our own, how can we expect anyone to accept us? Of course, I started saying that religiously when I was banned from the same club you used to work at because I was in drag. They would happily take my money when I was in guy clothes the night before, but refused entry to me the next night when I was in drag.
I know that things have changed since then. I mean look—they brought Jackie Beat to town after I brought her to town first. …plus they have brought every drag queen from RuPaul’s Drag Race to town.
It’s good to see a new group of people starting up and doing their own thing. If you don’t like how things are, change it/get involved, but don’t whine about it. Get off your ass and do something! Kudos to the Queerbomb posse and the other off-shoots this weekend!
Good post. We’d be interested to get your take on the movie La Mission. Did you see it? It’s about a teenage gay Latino male and his homophobic father and the two coming to terms with each other. It was shot in San Francisco’s Mission District.
http://www.austinvida.com/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&id=418:bratt-la-mission-interview
The film The Mission inspired an Austin queer artist of color collective to name thier Queer Bomb Pride party Low and Slow. Amazing film.
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Some good discussion in the comments. Will a Queer Bomb destroy Austin in 2010? [link to post]
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