Browsing Tag

queer

Houston-based ‘Paradox Moth’ is the Queer, Black-owned Streetwear Brand Breaking Stereotypes

A photo of Paradox Moth co-founder Chuck Ohamara.

The COVID-19 pandemic forced us to get creative—in the ways we work, the hobbies we adopt, and the art we make. For queer Houstonian Chuck Ohamara, that creativity birthed Paradox Moth, a fully inclusive, LGBTQ-focused, minimalist streetwear brand. Along with fellow co-creator and queer model Alex Sundstrom, Ohamara set out with a simple mission: to build a fashion brand for everybody and every body. “It started as a side hustle,” Ohamara explains. “We wanted to test how to run…

Continue Reading

AFAF 9: Sex Education in Black Southern Communities with Jasmine Phillips

On this episode of the Asking for a Friend podcast, host Dr. Laura McGuire sits down with sex educator, Ph.D. candidate, and disease intervention specialist Jasmine Phillips to discuss being a Black LGBTQ researcher, sexual satisfaction and communication among partners, healing generational trauma, and how to meet communities where they're at when it comes to sex education.…

Continue Reading

On Containing Multitudes: Discovering My Jewish Roots

A photo of a menorah, a part of Dr. Laura McGuire's Jewish faith.

When I was seven years old, I asked for a rather unusual gift—a menorah. Now, if I had been growing up in a Jewish household, this might not have seemed so out of place; but, as a second-grader who was raised between two Baptist and Catholic families—and attended a Methodist church—this was an odd request. Nevertheless, my mom took me to a craft store and we picked out a paint-it-yourself clay menorah with beautiful Stars of David all across it.…

Continue Reading

Holding Space and Creating Magic: The Wanderoo Lodge is a Queer Haven for Travelers and Locals Alike

A photo of the owners of the Wanderoo Lodge.

By Barrett White The land where Eureka Springs, Arkansas, sits is Osage land. Though the Osage people protected their land from neighboring tribes, they allowed people from any tribe—hostile neighbors or not—to bring their ill onto the land to visit the natural springs, believed to have healing properties. This historic, benevolent gesture of goodwill is well-remembered in present-day Eureka Springs. Just ask locals David and Ethan Avanzino, who jointly run the Wanderoo Lodge—an LGBTQ-owned and -operated outdoor adventure lodge in…

Continue Reading

A Tale of Two Flags: A Letter to Queer Kids Growing Up in the South

A photo of queer kids Christian necklace.

On a recent drive through a rural community in the South, I stopped for a bite to eat at a local restaurant. A few months ago, I started an online business making rainbow crosses and other queer, Christian, and ChristoPagan items on Etsy. I try to wear the cross I made for myself as much as I can, and the exchanges I have had because of it have been deeply moving.…

Continue Reading

Queer Film Summer: MFAH’s Virtual Cinema Streams Three LGBTQ Masterpieces

A photo from queer film Truman & Tennessee.

While Pride month may be over, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston (MFAH), is keeping the queer vibes alive all summer long. As part of their virtual cinema program, MFAH is streaming three queer films: Against The Current and Truman & Tennessee: An Intimate Conversation (which the Museum premiered in June), and Can You Bring It: Bill T. Jones and D-Man in the Waters, which debuted on July 16. Although these films vary greatly, each tells a beautiful and deeply…

Continue Reading

Journals of a Leo and a Virgo: Pandemic Passion Projects

A photo of new queer literary journals.

The start of 2021 was rife with big events—on the macro scale, the nation watched in shock as a riot stormed the Capitol of the United States, and only a few weeks later, we witnessed our first female vice president step into her role. After a year under varying states of lockdown and social isolation, we rejoiced at the rollout of the long-awaited COVID-19 vaccine. At the micro scale, families around the nation saw their broods expand with the births…

Continue Reading