LGBTQ+ in Atlanta

RICHARD WADE MORGAN
Richard Wade Morgan took offense — like so many others — to Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump's "Make America Great Again" campaign slogan and associated, heinous ball caps. Then, the queer Atlanta artist took action, designing a parody project dubbed, "Make America Gay Again." The Big Stitch Embroidery's Shon...

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With 4.2 percent of the population reportedly identifying as gay or lesbian, Atlanta has one of the largest queer populations in the nation. Gay bars, shopping, and publications provide intentional and safe spaces for LGBT culture. Yet the establishment of normative LGBT spaces sometimes lack an essential queer element. Queer here is an umbrella term, covering all iterations of gender...

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When Everett Arthur, 24, put on a bespoke suit, he says it was the first time he ever fully saw himself. As a transgender man currently in his rising third year at the Emory University School of Law, what to wear in the courtroom (especially those in the conservative South) became a point of contention for him — he didn’t want his choice of dress to affect his employment, but he also...

image-1The unnecessary brouhaha seen in other states over transgender people using restrooms appears to have arrived in Georgia. More than 300 people last week packed a Fannin County school cafeteria to make wild claims and offensive statements about transgender students using bathrooms that match their gender identity. 

A pilot from Augusta died after the stunt plane he was flying on Sunday...

image-1Christmas is indeed a time of miracles. A rainbow-striped Festivus Pole celebrating Gay Pride was installed in the Georgia Capitol today. The six-foot shrine to the inner curmudgeon in all of us — it's really a cheeky effort to raise awareness about freedom of expression and the separation of church and state — was placed on the second floor of the Gold Dome around 2:30 p.m.
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image-1A group called the Humanity Fund, which aims to "combat social injustice with humor," has applied to install a 6-foot Gay Pride Festivus Pole in the Gold Dome rotunda. God only knows if they'll get the opportunity to do so, but let's just enjoy the artist's rendering for a moment. 

image-1An unintended clash over the state of feminist inclusion took place when the AJC Decatur Book Fest paired writers Roxane Gay and Erica Jong together last Friday evening for the festival's keynote conversation. 
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?The Guardian wrote all about how "awkward" the exchange got in a piece that fleshes out the culturally divided terrain emerging as second-wave feminism gives way to a younger...

• Joeff Davis/CL File

"I believe Jesus would. I don’t have any verse in scripture…I believe Jesus would approve gay marriage, but that’s just my own personal belief. I think Jesus would encourage any love affair if it was honest and sincere and was not damaging to anyone else, and I don’t see that gay marriage damages anyone else."

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Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter talks about same-sex...

The owner of a AlphaGraphics franchise in Suwanee refused to print wedding invitations for a lesbian couple. The company's corporate officials quickly issued an apology and promised to print the cards.

Does Georgia have a gerrymandering problem? The Washington Post says there's no question.

Despite threats of a potential protest, embattled comic Bill Cosby, who has faced accusations of sexual...

• Joeff Davis/CL File
• Georgia Attorney General Sam Olens

Georgia Attorney General Sam Olens says he doesn't plan to fight gay marriage if the U.S. Supreme Court rules against the state in an upcoming case. "When the U.S. Supreme Court rules, it’s not time for criticism," he said this week. It’s not time for banter. It’s time for the lawyer to play lawyer, and to ensure that everyone follows...

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The juxtaposition of queer and southern identity is unique and challenging to articulate. Theatre director and development artist Amber Bradshaw and contemporary choreographer and performance artist Corian Ellisor have collaborated to present Identified: A Queer Variety Show!, a special project about...

• CL File

Religious supporters of former Atlanta Fire and Rescue Chief Kelvin Cochran, who was recently fired for reasons stemming from an investigation into anti-gay remarks he published in a 2013 self-help book, will march from the Gold Dome to City Hall in protest of the decision.

How much did Georgia officials give Mercedes Benz to move its U.S. headquarters from New Jersey to Atlanta?...

• Jeff Baker/CL File
• Kelvin Cochran

The city and Atlanta's fire chief are "parting ways" after over controversial book published that contains discriminatory remarks against the LGBT community.

Flanked by nearly two-dozen cabinet members, Mayor Kasim Reed this afternoon announced the termination of Atlanta Fire and Rescue Chief Kelvin Cochran. Deputy AFR Chief Joel Baker will replace Cochran...

• Joeff Davis/CL File

Atlanta Police want help finding a person who allegedly assaulted a gay man walking in Midtown last year.

On March 7, 2014, a male suspect reportedly wearing a red shirt and Atlanta Braves hat approached James Reed, yelled anti-gay slurs, and punched him in the back of his head near the intersection of 11th and Juniper streets. Reed, a gay male who was walking with his...

• Jeff Baker/CL File
• Atlanta Fire Rescue Chief Kelvin Cochran

Atlanta's fire chief is usually tasked with making sure that his firefighters are extinguishing blazing infernos all around the city. But now Kelvin Cochran has found himself in the middle of a firestorm.

Cochran today was hit with a one-month suspension without pay for making disparaging remarks about gay people in a religious...

The Atlanta Police Department recently joined a small number of law enforcement agencies nationwide when it unveiled procedures outlining how officers should interact with the city's transgender and gender-nonconforming residents.

In new four-page document released last week, APD specifies new guidelines for officer to exhibit professionalism and courtesy during interactions with the public...

Atlanta Pride 2014 was a day of celebration — a day to truly celebrate who you are however you come. Whether you’re gay, straight, bisexual, transgender, Asian, African-American, White, Christian, or atheist, it was all about being who you are.

All photos by Kate Lamb

President Barack Obama's lengthy push to get a judicial nominee with a controversial legislative voting record appointed to a federal court bench in Georgia appears all but dead.

Michael Boggs - a state judge and former Georgia state lawmaker who has opposed abortion, stood against gay marriage, and voted to keep the confederate battle flag in the state's flag - will not have enough votes in...

• Joeff Davis/CL File

Jason Carter's support for gay marriage in Georgia has come into question over the past week. The Atlanta state senator had reportedly failed to say the words "gay" or "LGBT" at a recent fundraising event with local LGBT supporters. In an editorial yesterday, the Georgia Voice called for the Candler Park attorney, who's in the midst of a heated gubernatorial race against...

• Tara-Lynne Pixley/CL File

Georgia Attorney General Sam Olens has called for the dismissal of a lawsuit contesting the state's constitutional ban on gay marriage.

Last April, several gay couples filed a class-action lawsuit challenging the same-sex marriage ban that's been on Georgia's books for nearly a decade. The lawsuit included Michael Bishop and Shane Thomas of Midtown; Rayshawn...

A video that circulated on social media last night showing a man push and stomp on an apparent transgender woman in Little Five Points has people calling for action and Atlanta Police looking for more information.

The short video is one of several of an apparent altercation that took place outside Stratosphere Skateboards and Aurora Coffee on Moreland Avenue. The clips were posted on Tuesday...

• Courtesy of Legendary Children Atlanta and Out On Film

What do "queer, Southern, and crazy" all have in common? (This isn't a trick question.)

The answer can be found in the return of the Out On Film Festival, running Oct. 2-9 at the Midtown Art Cinema. The festival is collaborating with Legendary Children Atlanta to present a night dedicated to experimental cinema that is all of the...

• Maggie Lee
• "I think there is a stereotype, there's prejudice around folks that don't fit within a box or who don't look the way society says," says Everette Thompson, an activist for transgender equality.

In the wake of a MARTA attack that left one transgender woman naked and the unwilling star of a viral video, a group of activists that seeks a safe environment and good policing for all...

• Christopher Martin/Atlanta Beltline Inc.

Atlanta resident Quinn Alexander Chrzan was allegedly assaulted and called anti-gay slurs while riding his bicycle on the Atlanta Beltline's Eastside Trail. Chrzan, who says he isn't gay, tried snapping a photo of the man making those derogatory remarks. "He ended up stopping jogging and saw me and confronted me. He kept calling me faggot. I asked...

• Joeff Davis/CL File

MARTA Police have made a second arrest in the May 20 attack on two transgender women riding a train. Frederick L. Missick and Luther L. Thomas were both charged with disorderly conduct in the incident and were last reported to be in Fulton County Jail.

Bill Bolling, the founder and longtime leader of the Atlanta Community Food Bank, is "shifting roles" at the nonprofit...

Local trans activists are demanding MARTA, the city, and the public take action after a group of men attacked two transgender women aboard a MARTA train last week, stripping one woman naked.

Five MARTA cops responded to the May 20 incident, but arrested no one and didn't even take statements, according to the Solutions Not Punishment Coalition, or SNaP Co. The attack gained public attention...

• Joeff Davis/CL File

"That's not only callous, it's lawless. I don't have any fiat over what's the law and what's not the law in this state. And whether I like a bill they pass across the street or not, unless there is a solid legal basis that it is inherently and expressly unconstitutional, I have a duty to enforce it and defend it."

Georgia Attorney General Sam Olens argues why he must...

• BROKENSPHERE/WIKIMEDIA COMMONS/ILLUSTRATION BY WES DUVALL

Coca-Cola is among 10 major Olympic sponsors that are being targeted by gay rights activists. Nevertheless, the Atlanta-based sugar-water empire will remain a key part of the 2014 winter games in Sochi, Russia. "A more positive impact can be made through continued involvement, rather than by sitting on the sidelines," spokeswoman...

http://clatl.com/omnivore/archives/2012/11/16/atlanta-cheftestant-ria-pell-talks-chopped

• Robin Henson
• Chef Ria Pell

Atlanta lost a true icon this weekend. Ria Pell, owner of the Memorial Drive diner Ria's Bluebird, co-founder of the MondoHomo queer music & arts fest., DJ, and 2012 winner on Food Network's reality cooking series Chopped has died.

Pell was a pillar for Atlanta's food and...

The annual parade celebrating the LGBT community marched its colors down Peachtree Street and into Piedmont Park on a sunny Sunday afternoon.

All photos by Dustin Chambers

• Joeff Davis

Roughly 20 PETA members and volunteers this afternoon handed out brochures and collected signatures while protesting Atlanta Pride's kick-off party that will be held tonight at the Georgia Aquarium.

The sold-out event, which bills itself as the "South's largest cocktail party," will feature DJs and is expected to have 4,000 people in attendance.

In a press...

• The Documentarist/National Photo Company (1921)
• Begone, Stoli!

It's a controversial idea, but activists like Dan Savage are urging gay bars and consumers to boycott Russian vodka - in particular the iconic Stolichnaya. The boycott, underway in some bars in West Hollywood and Chicago, is in protest to the draconian anti-gay legislation recently adopted by the Russian Parliament and signed...

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• Alyssa Pointer
• The Atlanta Gay Men's Chorus performs at Glenn Memorial Auditorium.

The Atlanta Gay Men's Chorus performed their summer show, Singing out Proud; From ABBA to Gaga at Glenn Memorial Auditorium at Emory University. The summer show was held on the weekend of the 44th Anniversary of the...

• Cliff Bostock's iPhone
• Alex is taken aback by the Colonnade

• Cliff Bostock's iPhone
• Famous fried chicken

For years, I ate almost every Friday night at the Colonnade. It was a ritual dubbed "Gays and Grays" night because the clientele was a blend of gay men and elderly women. (Actually, so was the staff.) The 80-year-old restaurant quit serving lunch some years back and the dinnertime...

• Joeff Davis/CL File
• Former Atlanta Hawks center Jason Collins sizes up against Chicago Bulls forward Carlos Boozer during the 2011 NBA Playoffs

"I'm a 34-year-old NBA center. I'm black. And I'm gay."

- Former Atlanta Hawks center Jason Collins announced earlier today that he is gay, becoming the first active athlete in any of the four major professional sports to do so. (via Sports...

Apparently, that old saying about diamonds being a girl's best friend is ripe for some serious gender-fucking in Atlanta.

Not to be confused with Diamonds of ATL, the hetero gentleman's club where rappers such as Ludacris have been known to make it rain, Black Diamond Atlanta is the name of a new weekly showcase due to feature transgender strippers at XS Ultra Lounge in Midtown.

It's being...

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• knowyourmeme.com

Facebook has been dotted with equality symbols in support of gay marriage this week. The image was created by the Human Rights Campaign, and rumor is that the organization actually hacked Facebook and Twitter to spread the avatar around. It's good to see Paula Deen...

http://consequenceofsound.net/2013/03/listen-to-the-thermals-new-single-the-sunset/

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• An ear-splitter

>> In case you missed it, Michigan folk-rockers Frontier Ruckus slow-jammed Third Eye Blind's classic ode to crystal meth and Charlize Theron* "Semi-Charmed Life" for AV Club: Undercover. *maybe

>> The American Paul McCartney, Billy Joel, has...

• Joeff Davis/CL File

Last night, President Barack Obama gave his State of the Union address. He discussed a number of key issues facing the country, including the pre-K program he'll promote during his Decatur visit tomorrow. Ultimately, however, he may have been trumped by Florida Sen. Marco Rubio's incredibly awkward glorious water break during the middle of his "Republican Response."...

• Wikimedia Commons/jesario
• The Rev. Louie Giglio

That was quick.

The pastor of a Buckhead church and founder of the Passion Conferences that that have attracted thousands of young Christians has dropped out of President Barack Obama's inauguration after anti-gay comments he made came under scrutiny.

The Rev. Louie Giglio of Passion City Church near Lindbergh City Center was selected on...

1. News person in the news:

2. Politicos with an eye on the Atlanta mayor spot may have their work cut out for them, at least when it comes to fundraising. Mayor Kasim Reed, who says he plans to seek reelection when his seat comes up for a vote later this year, already has more than $1.2 million on hand to finance his campaign.

3. President re-elect Barack Obama is catching heat for...

• Joeff Davis/CL File
• 'Prepare for war, Politifact'

Mayor Kasim Reed has marshaled an army of supporters and followers to push back on Twitter, Facebook, and probably the new and improved MySpace against today's AJC Politifact report giving him a "full flop" - that's Politifact-ese for "flip flopper" - on gay marriage.

For those just now tuning in: On the campaign trail, Reed caught hell from...

Five same-sex couples applied for marriage licenses at the Probate Court at the Dekalb County courthouse in Decatur as part of the WE DO campaign. It happened on the same day that the Supreme Court announced it would hear two gay marriage cases in late March.

The WE DO campaign calls for "for full equality under federal law for LGBT individuals and families."

Beyond just creating awareness...

Wow! Talk about hitting the jackpot! P.J. Yurish of Martinsburg, WV, was recently named that city's "biggest fan" of Chick-fil-A. His prize? A trip to the company's headquarters in Atlanta with his wife:

"It felt like we won the Super Bowl or we were going to Disneyland. They love you from the heart," Yurish said. "I'd go back there before I'd go back to Disney World."

Yurish met and got his...

• Joeff Davis/CL File
• Atlanta City Councilman Alex Wan

The Atlanta City Council on Monday voted 11-2 to pass a resolution endorsing marriage equality.

Atlanta City Councilman Alex Wan, who represents gay friendly Midtown, Virginia-Highland, and Morningside, introduced the legislation after several weeks of consideration and conversations with his colleagues about the resolution.

"For some...

When you publish an essay saying Atlanta's gay bars suck — accompanied with a photo illustration of a waiter serving a platter of feces — you're probably gonna generate some controversy. Especially on the weekend of Pride, when thousands of people will pick up the publication and consider visiting those bars.

The shake-ups at North Atlanta High School continue. Shortly after the popular...

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• Jazzoo, Zoo Atlanta

Wine dinner? Beer tasting? Cooking class? Let us know. Submit Food and Drink events here.

Atlanta Botanical Garden Fri., Oct. 12, 6:30 p.m. Oktoberfest Inspired Dinner with Meehan's Public House. On October 12th from 6:30 until 8:30 p.m.,...

"Nude volleyball."?- Jason, at Tech Square

"Mary Edith Picks doing drag."?- Keisha, at Tech Square

"Avoiding it altogether."?- "...." on clatl.com

"The flamboyant cuties talking about tops and bottoms."?- Coco, at Tech Square

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Every week we ask our friends on Facebook, Twitter, and the comments section below a pressing question, and the best answers appear in print. Make sure you follow us...

• Joeff Davis/CL File

1. The man behind the controversial “Innocence of Muslims” YouTube trailer that inflamed parts of the Middle East and let to several deaths over the past few weeks is heading back to jail. Federal court officials in Los Angeles yesterday found the 55-year-old had violated terms of his probation stemming from a check fraud conviction in 2010.

2. It looks like Atlanta...

• Atlanta Braves
• This guy ^ is gon' fishing

1. A death row inmate who claimed he did not receive a fair trial because a juror sent raunchy shaped chocolates to the judge and bailiff during the proceedings has lost his appeal in federal court. The judge was reportedly handed penis-shaped goodies, while the bailiff got women’s breasts near the end of the sentencing phase of Marcus Wellon’s...

Too much news, not enough time. A quick look at what's been sitting in the queue, staring at us, laughing at us:

• Atlanta City Councilman Alex Wan, City Hall's only openly gay elected official, tells our friends at the Georgia Voice that he's none too pleased with College Park-based Chick-fil-a after the CEO's recent comments about gay marriage. From the Voice:

"Of course, as a proud member...

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• http://clatl.com/atlanta/ImageArchives?by=1223504
• Hilah Johnson offers an alternative to Chick-fil-A

Hilah Cooking is a weekly cooking show hosted by Austin-based singer/actor/comedian Hilah Johnson. In this episode, Johnson must reconcile...

This vending machine will give you free snacks — as long as you bow down and praise it as the "Almighty One," first.

President Obama reveals his favorite Girl Scout cookie — and gets booed for it.

In An Open Letter From Pizza by Dave Schilling, we learn that pizza's got a few bones to pick with us. We need to reevaluate some things. First of all, you can’t eat me for every meal. It’s not...

• Joeff Davis/CL File
• Baton Bob

1. Baton Bob, Atlanta's most flamboyant street character and unofficial grand marshall in the parade of life, says he was physically threatened and called a "damn faggot" earlier this week while strutting on Cheshire Bridge Road. This is not acceptable.

2. More than half the local governments who will receive nearly $1 billion over 10 years from the regional...

• Joeff Davis
• The Pittsburgh convenience store where Brandon White was attacked

On February 4, 20-year-old Brandon White was brutally attacked as exited a convenience store in southwest Atlanta's Pittsburgh neighborhood. Three men punched him, pushed him to the ground, and kicked him once he was down. The entire thing was caught on video - video that was subsequently posted to the...

1. The AJC looks at the July 31 sales tax referendum. The story focuses on what sort of traffic reduction folks in the 'burbs can expect, instead of taking my preferred approach which is to tell them, hey, you're the ones who moved to another city, so suck it. When it finally gets to the mass transit measures — which in my admittedly biased worldview are the elements of the plan most crucial...

• Joeff Davis/CL File
• Mayor Kasim Reed

The AJC's Jim Galloway passes along the following statement Mayor Kasim Reed, who's earned criticism from LGBT advocates since the 2009 mayoral campaign for not supporting gay marriage (he supports civil unions). The mayor says that, unlike President Barack Obama, he's 'still wrestling with my own personal beliefs' on the issue:

“I respect President...

• CL FILE
• Carter signs his book about Palestine in Atlanta in 2008

To publicize the release of his newest book "NIV Lessons from Life Bible: Personal Reflections with Jimmy Carter," former president Jimmy Carter granted a phone interview to the Huffington Post about his approach to reading and abiding by the Bible in a logical way. (NIV stands for New International Version — I'm not sure if...

On February 23, pastor Tony Byrd of Zebulon Baptist Church in Toccoa demonstrated to the Georgia House of Representatives — and with gusto! — how much he loves America, Jesus, and the dulcet tones of his own voice.

Byrd was apparently invited by Rep. Michael Harden (R-Toccoa) to say a brief, non-denominational invocation. Byrd had other plans, and instead launched into a 12-minute tirade...

• Joeff Davis

Another officer disciplined — in this case, fired — for his participation in and conduct following the 2009 raid of the Atlanta Eagle went before the city's Civil Service Board to attempt to have his punishment overturned.

These hearings are snoozy (thanks for sitting through it, Jim Burress!), but this is entertaining.

See, the officer in question, Jeremy Edwards, was issued...