queerhistory

Guest: Ed Jackson, community historian

Hanlan’s Point is known as Toronto’s clothing-optional beach, but it has deeper significance as a historically queer space and has recently been recognized for its place in city history. The beach in the Toronto Islands was the site of Canada’s first Pride celebration in 1971 and a place, just outside of the spotlight, that was quietly known for decades as a safe gathering spot when it was not safe to be out elsewhere. It has some ugly history too, including homophobic violence and police harassment, that has flared up all too recently. Ed Jackson is a community historian and co-editor of the book “Any Other Way: How Toronto Got Queer.” He joins “This Matters” to talk about this significance.

This episode was produced by Julia De Laurentiis Johnston, Sean Pattendon and Brian Bradley.

Audio Sources: Friends of Hanlan’s

On October 14, 1977, gay rights activist Thom Higgins reserved his place in history when he threw a pie in the face of anti-gay crusader Anita Bryant during a Des Moines, Iowa press conference. When Bryant made her way to Indiana less than two weeks later for a rally, gay activists welcomed her not with a pie in the face, but with Hoosier kindness. In this episode, we examine Hoosier’s reactions to Bryant’s appearances in the state during the early years of the fight for gay rights.  

When Rae Garringer set out to gather rural and small town LGBTQIA+ histories in 2013, they had no formal training in oral history or audio recording. They were motivated by a deep frustration that it was so hard to find rural queer stories, and an intense personal need to connect with other rural queers. In this episode you'll learn more about Rae and the history of the ongoing multimedia oral history project: Country Queers.

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Learn more at www.countryqueers.com

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Host, Producer, and Lead Editor: Rae Garringer

Assistant Editor & Musical Magic: Tommie Anderson

Editorial Advisory Dream Team: Hermelinda Cortés, Lewis Raven Wallace, and Sharon P. Holland

Theme Song: Composed and performed on banjo by Sam Gleaves, performed on pedal steel by Rebecca Branson Jones

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Special Thanks to:

Laura Starecheski and AIR Media's mentorship program, Hideo Higashibaba, Riley Cockrell, Abby Huggins, Deya Terrafranca, Annie Terrafranca, Sam Gleaves, Benny Becker, Sam Hamlin, Beth White, Yasmine Farhang, Lynn Creamer, Jai Arun Ravine, Theresa Smith-Garringer, and Brandon Jent. 

One of the least interesting things about the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence is their name, but it's a damn good name.

In this podcast, Sister Mary Media tells the story of how a few young gay men decided to form a group based around performance, politics, charity, and spirituality. They came up with the memorable name, and the rest is history. Mary Media goes on to tell much of that history, a time spanning the last 40 years, including how she got her drag nun name.

If you missed Part 1 with Mary Media, please go back and listen. And for an even more in-depth history of the Sisters, go to their website.

Author Heather Jacks is publishing a book to commemorate the Sisters' 40th anniversary. The launch party for Sister Stories will be at Spark Arts in the Castro April 19–21. Check out the event page for more details.

And the Sisters will be back at Dolores Park on Easter (April 21) to celebrate their anniversary, bringing their annual Hunky Jesus contest back to where it started. This is something you do not wanna miss!

​We recorded this podcast at Sister Mary Media's house in Upper Haight in March 2019.

Film photography by Michelle Kilfeather

The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, like any good spiritual group, have an origin story. There are some minor quibbles, but Sister Mary Media was there.

In this podcast, Mary Media describes the political and social climate from which the Sisters came to life in 1979. She goes on to talk about how the work they did back then evolved over time to include educating the public on the dangers of STDs and AIDS before it was known as that.

Check back Thursday for Part 2, when Mary Media will take us through the nearly 40 years (it will be 40 on Easter Sunday next month) of the wonderful work that the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence do.

We recorded this podcast at Sister Mary Media's house in Upper Haight in March 2019.

Film photography by Michelle Kilfeather