Dear Xzyzst, july 15th 2020 I hope this message finds you well! I am just coming accross this on fb:
Pride History
William Dorsey Swann was a gay liberation activist. Born into slavery in 1858, he was the first person in the United States to lead a queer resistance group and the first known person to self-identify as a "queen of drag". Imagine the queenery of this icon. He was a slave in Hancock, Maryland and was freed by Union soldiers after the Emancipation Proclamation went into effect. During the 1880s and 1890s, he organized a series of balls in Washington, D.C. He called himself the "queen of drag". Most of the attendees his gatherings were men who were former slaves, and were gathering to dance in their satin and silk dresses. William was arrested in police raids numerous times, including in the first documented case of arrests for female impersonation in the United States, on April 12, 1888. In 1896, he was falsely convicted and sentenced to 10 months in jail for "keeping a disorderly house" (running a brothel). After his sentencing, he requested a pardon from President Grover Cleveland. This request was denied, but he was the first American on record who pursued legal and political action to defend the LGBTQ community's right to gather. He was known to have been close with Pierce Lafayette and Felix Hall, two men who had also both been slaves and who formed the first known male same-sex relationship between enslaved Americans. When William stopped organizing and participating in drag events, his brother continued to make costumes for the drag community. Two of his brothers had also been active participants in his drag balls. Imagine how intelligent and ambitious this man had to be to come up with drag balls in the 1800s! Imagine how many terrible concepts he had to unlearn by himself to be a confident gay black man who does drag in the 1800s! Imagine how courageous he had to be to fight for lgbt people as a former slave in America in the 1800s! William Dorsey Swann is the original queen, the original drag mother, the original activist. Tell his story!
Thanks for writing! I finished the transcription for your post. I enjoyed reading your daily logs on our blog. You are a GREAT writer and wish you luck w/ your new writing job!! I hope he works out for you now and when you get out!!
Thanks for writing! I finished the transcription for your post.
Fascinating. You bring a good point. Saying that you can't breathe doesn't mean you "can't breathe" at all. Under the circumstances, you just can't breathe to function properly. But what happened to George Floyd, as far as I know, was horrible.
We need to correct the system. It's getting out of hand and history will repeat itself again.
Hello Maurice. I saw the film Just Mercy just before the lockdown happened. It beggars belief, the scene where they are all sitting around the table with the lawyer and he asks them who saw the defendant at the barbecue, and about twenty people raised their hands. Also the testimony of the jail house informant. Shocking. Texas is another state, Alabama too who hate being called out on their professional liars and will will work hard to defend them. That’s one of the main problems in life, you cannot defend yourself against an accomplished liar. Jamie Fox is a fantastic actor, gets better with age. He chooses great projects, doesn’t chase the money. America doesn’t seem to be embarrassed by what the world knows about it’s judicial system. Even has the audacity to challenge other nations. It’s penitentiary system is medieval. And if you treat and house humans in a medieval system, they will respond in a brutal manner, how could they not? I loved the collage of you, so clever and thoughtful. Something that will exist long after we are just other people’s memories. All the best T
RSS
I hope this message finds you well! I am just coming accross this on fb:
Pride History
William Dorsey Swann was a gay liberation activist. Born into slavery in 1858, he was the first person in the United States to lead a queer resistance group and the first known person to self-identify as a "queen of drag". Imagine the queenery of this icon.
He was a slave in Hancock, Maryland and was freed by Union soldiers after the Emancipation Proclamation went into effect. During the 1880s and 1890s, he organized a series of balls in Washington, D.C. He called himself the "queen of drag". Most of the attendees his gatherings were men who were former slaves, and were gathering to dance in their satin and silk dresses.
William was arrested in police raids numerous times, including in the first documented case of arrests for female impersonation in the United States, on April 12, 1888. In 1896, he was falsely convicted and sentenced to 10 months in jail for "keeping a disorderly house" (running a brothel). After his sentencing, he requested a pardon from President Grover Cleveland. This request was denied, but he was the first American on record who pursued legal and political action to defend the LGBTQ community's right to gather.
He was known to have been close with Pierce Lafayette and Felix Hall, two men who had also both been slaves and who formed the first known male same-sex relationship between enslaved Americans.
When William stopped organizing and participating in drag events, his brother continued to make costumes for the drag community. Two of his brothers had also been active participants in his drag balls.
Imagine how intelligent and ambitious this man had to be to come up with drag balls in the 1800s! Imagine how many terrible concepts he had to unlearn by himself to be a confident gay black man who does drag in the 1800s! Imagine how courageous he had to be to fight for lgbt people as a former slave in America in the 1800s!
William Dorsey Swann is the original queen, the original drag mother, the original activist. Tell his story!
Can't wait.
Stay safe and healthy.
There you go.
Stay safe and healthy.
A lot of good points. These words should be heard.
Stay safe and healthy.
I'm sure Mimi would be delighted.
Stay safe and healthy.
Fascinating. You bring a good point. Saying that you can't breathe doesn't mean you "can't breathe" at all. Under the circumstances, you just can't breathe to function properly. But what happened to George Floyd, as far as I know, was horrible.
We need to correct the system. It's getting out of hand and history will repeat itself again.
Stay safe and healthy.
Fascinating presentation. Some really good points.
Stay safe and healthy.
I saw the film Just Mercy just before the lockdown happened. It beggars belief, the scene where they are all sitting around the table with the lawyer and he asks them who saw the defendant at the barbecue, and about twenty people raised their hands. Also the testimony of the jail house informant. Shocking. Texas is another state, Alabama too who hate being called out on their professional liars and will will work hard to defend them. That’s one of the main problems in life, you cannot defend yourself against an accomplished liar. Jamie Fox is a fantastic actor, gets better with age. He chooses great projects, doesn’t chase the money. America doesn’t seem to be embarrassed by what the world knows about it’s judicial system. Even has the audacity to challenge other nations. It’s penitentiary system is medieval. And if you treat and house humans in a medieval system, they will respond in a brutal manner, how could they not?
I loved the collage of you, so clever and thoughtful. Something that will exist long after we are just other people’s memories.
All the best
T