It’s hard to say goodbye to the person I once knew. This special person that made me smile, laugh and made me stop feeling blue. Staying up for hours and talking about everything. To drawing and creating our own worlds to escape, to the way we used to sing. I’ll remember all those moments today, when I meet you for our visit. For however long or brief it is, I will cherish every minute. I will feel like I will be meeting you,
Sexual Gentrification
By Garrick Wilhelm
Gentrification is the reshaping of communities through economic forces generally based in racism. How can gentrification be sexual?
Have you ever thought that you weren’t attracted to a group of people based on their race (ex. “I’m not into Asian men”)? Have you ever deselected someone as a partner because they weren’t of a particular race (ex. “I only date white women”).
Race is an unreal reality.
The CURSE of Conservatorship
by Meghan Roadkill Johnson
Over months of politically heated public hearings and rally’s on what direction SB 1045 would be headed in San Francisco, the bill passed on June 4th 2019 by an alarming 10 to 1 vote. Supervisor Shamann Walton, being the only one to oppose the conservatorship legislation, voiced that he was not convinced the city would make any plans to reduce the negative impact on the African American community, people of color and other marginalized groups.
Gay Shame
reprinted from gayshame.org
2019 marks 50 years since Stonewall, a series of riots that kicked off at the Stonewall Inn in New York’s Greenwich Village in opposition to repeated police raids, harassment and overall criminalization of poor and marginalized queer people who patronized the bar, one of the few establishments where they were welcome[. Stonewall is widely considered an inaugural moment for the broader gay/trans liberation movement, its militancy deemed commensurate with the indignities that sparked it.
HUD Rule Would Target Trans People in Shelters
by Jesse Dekel
On May 22, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, led by Secretary Ben Carson, formally proposed a rule that would allow all federally funded homeless shelters in the United States to discriminate based on religious philosophy. This proposal would negate the 2016 and 2012 Equal Access laws that protect shelters from discriminating against transgender clients.
I talked to Ben Baczkówski, the Shelter Client Advocate for the Eviction Defence Collaborative about HUD’s rule proposal,
my pride
by Tommi Avicolli Mecca
© 2019
my pride is defiant and raw
it’s not polite
it isn’t marketable
it won’t show up
in the Dow Jones averages
it’s not running for office
or joining the police force
the military
the church
it won’t cooperate with the FBI
CIA or Homeland Security
it doesn’t put kids in cages
tear gas asylum seekers
or criminalize the homeless
it knows that changing laws
and electing politicians
isn’t enough
it’s not a ribbon
a flag
a beer
or a hashtag
it isn’t trending or being tweeted
it’s not a Russian bot
or a meme
it’s not going shopping
or something I ordered online
it doesn’t stay in an AIRbnb
or call a Lyft
it doesn’t have a buffed body
a designer wardrobe
or a supply of party drugs
it doesn’t let me forget
all the murdered gay men
and trans women of color
the years that gay sex
and drag were illegal
or how this nation stood by
and let my friends die
it understands that no matter how
much things seem to change
I’m still not safe
my pride
is ever on guard
and always in your face
to a fagbasher
by Tommi Avicolli Mecca
© 2018
From Loss to Profit
by Anonymous
I had lost everything. My peace of mind, my dignity and strength … everything was gone. Every ounce of care and motivation that I had was gone. I didnʼt know how to pick myself back up from such a dark place. But life had to go on, right? Rent was due. My car note was due. My insurance lapsed. Bill collectors were calling, and I had no source of income.
Crucified Working Girl: Past Life Trauma
lady briyani
CW Very graphic crucifixion descriptions of a sex worker woman who was crucified by Roman authorities- but it ends on how it inspires me today.
by lady briyani
Pull out the ruins of my teeth: we’ll make joyous love as cop cars and stars burn out around us
Dreams like these always beckon me after a night’s labour-
Dreams like this,
St. James Infirmary
St. James Infirmary is a peer-based occupational health and safety clinic for sex workers of all genders. They work to increase access to primary healthcare and social services for Sex Workers throughout the San Francisco Bay Area, formalize communication and collaboration among individuals and agencies who serve Sex Workers to better serve our community and promote peer-based public health initiatives on behalf of Sex Workers, which may be used as a model for improving occupational health and safety standards and developing comprehensive medical and social services for Sex Workers around the world.
Waves of Identity
by Ronoldi Valencia
Identity
Puddles
Identity
Kept
Identity
Calling
Identity
Meet
Dreams that wait
Dreamer
Dreamer
Long time wait
Sunrising on
The East
My dream
came late
Dreamer
Dreamer
No time
To waste
Sing along
With the song
That made the
sun wait
Dreamer
Dreamer
My dream
Came late
