Tag: LGBTQ Community
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Cherry Blossoms, Queer Community, and a City in Flux: Notes from the Road in D.C.
Exploring D.C.’s queer communities through cherry blossoms, political complexity, and grassroots activism. A personal journey uncovering the city’s contradictions—invisibility under power and influence, history and resilience, fleeting beauty and enduring community ties in America’s 51st state.
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Painting a Life: An Appalachian Artist’s Journey Toward Trans with no Boundaries
Sassa, a 43-year-old trans artist from Huntington, West Virginia, embraces his identity through art while actively participating in the local queer community. He focuses on personal acceptance regardless of specific assumptions and definitions of being trans. One of his notable projects, “100 Bad Ass Women,” deepened his understanding of himself and his journey towards embracing…
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Giving Voices to the Voiceless: A Trans and Intersex Experience in Chinatown, Seattle
Celene, a hafu Japanese American and intersex transgender civil rights activist, highlights the importance of community in Seattle’s Chinatown. Despite facing extreme adversity, including losing their voice box and past violence, Celene actively fights for the rights of marginalized groups, promoting unity among diverse communities. Celene takes great pride in being a Maui otokonoko.
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Why Alaska to Start an LGBTQ Project Celebrating Gender?
More than once, I’ve been told that Alaska is where you go to get away from the rest of the world’s noise—its politics, its hustle, its expectations. It’s a place where people carve out space to live on their own terms. That’s exactly what drew me back here for a second time, not just for…
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Inside Fairbanks, Alaska: Queer Histories, Off-Grid Living, and a Moose/Car Collision
Fairbanks is a city of contradictions—military and tourism-driven, yet brimming with underground art and Native culture; a hub of environmental research with some of the worst air quality in the country; home to burlesque fire dancers and centuries-old queer identities reclaimed by Alaska Native people. In this post, I reflect on the wild beauty, culture…
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Being Queer in the Mat-Su Valley: “Be Careful Up There”
Just north of Anchorage, Alaska’s Mat-Su Valley and Eagle River are known for stunning landscapes—and a reputation for being less welcoming to LGBTQ+ folks. In this post, I share a tense encounter with a neighbor that reflects some of the hostility queer people still face in these regions. From rainbow flyers being torn down to…
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Queer Joy in the Wild: Rainbows over Resurrection Bay, Rainforest BBQs, and a Drag Lumberjack Queen
On a Pride-themed boat cruise through Seward’s Resurrection Bay, a man in shimmering mermaid pants glided gracefully down the cabin, trying to keep his drink steady as sea lions howled in the distance and dance music rose to meet the glacial air. The joy of queerness in all its forms—mermaids, drag lumberjacks, pride fairies, elders,…
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The Fairies Guarding Soldotna Pride: LGBTQ+ Visibility, Protest, and Community
Pride in small-town Alaska is never just a celebration—it’s also a protest and a powerful act of visibility. In the small town of Soldotna, I joined hundreds of LGBTQ+ people and allies for a joyful 1.7-mile march through town. It was beautiful—and at times tense. A local business owner attempted to antagonize Pride attendees, hoping…
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Homer, Alaska: A Queer Haven at the End of the Road
Alaska often feels like the biggest small town in the world—and nowhere is that more true than in Homer, a breathtaking coastal village at the southern tip of Alaska’s central road system. On my very first visit, I met a warm-hearted queer ally who became my first friend in Alaska. From that moment, Homer’s incredible…