a&e features
Golden Globes announces diverse slate of nominees
But is it diverse enough to quell controversy?
HOLLYWOOD ā If any doubt remained that the Hollywood Foreign Press Association has fallen spectacularly out of favor, it was summarily erased by the fact that the sole celebrity on hand to help announce the list of nominations for its 2021 Golden Globe Awards was Snoop Dogg.
Thatās not a dig against Snoop Dogg. The eminently lovable rapper is an icon who manages to float effortlessly between worlds within the entertainment industry, thanks to a reputation for enthusiastic self-parody and a proven tendency to be pretty much game for anything ā and frankly, watching him read the service manual for a vintage sewing machine would likely be more entertaining than sitting through a list of award nominees being recited (with perfunctory reverence, of course) by even the most accomplished of screen thespians.
Still, the glaring absence of any representative from the industry which the HFPA exists to honor is proof that the organization is still a long way from recovering from the scandal that broke in the wake of a Los Angeles Times investigative report earlier this year, which revealed that its nearly 90-person membership included no people of color and provided damning details about its long-alleged unethical practices ā including the influence over its voting process by gifts, paid travel, and other perks from studios and networks behind the potential nominees and winners.
The bombshell report, which was published mere days before the Golden Globes presentation last February, led to an embarrassing award show in which the revelation of the winners was eclipsed by the organizationās scramble to do damage control.
Leaning into a too-little-too-late show of diversity among the ceremonyās performers and presenters, and sending some of the HFPAās high-level representatives to the podium in a desperate effort to spin the situation with a not-quite-apology for its previous shortcomings (followed by an unconvincing promise to do better), the organization seemed only to have dug itself deeper into the hole of bad publicity that threatened to put an end to the awards bodyās 78-year existence, once and for all.
Proposed reforms to the structure and practices of the HFPA were announced, and were promptly dismissed by Timeās Up as āwindow-dressing platitudes.ā Major players in the industry announced intentions to boycott the Golden Globes; more than a hundred PR firms threatened to cut off the HFPA from access to their clients; high-profile talent publicly denounced the organization, with three-time winner Tom Cruise even returning his trophies. Perhaps most disastrous of all, NBC ā the network which had been home to the Golden Globes broadcast ā announced it would not be airing another one until at least 2023, saying that āchange of this magnitude takes time and workā and that āthe HFPA needs time to do it rightā.
Despite all this, the beleaguered organization declared its intention to continue with its annual awards presentation, and following months of restructuring ā in which the HFPA has attempted to diversify its ranks by adding new members, rewritten its bylaws, forbidden the acceptance of gifts, restricted compensated travel, and undertaken an effort to revamp itself from bottom to top ā has tenaciously clung to relevance by announcing the nominees for this yearās crop of films and television shows in an early morning press conference marked by the non-participation of any of the potential recipients of those honors.
This means, of course, that itās time to start gearing up for another awards season in which the dramatic changes wrought by the Covid pandemic upon the entertainment industry are sure to have a still-unpredictable effect on the outcomes, and to engage in a game of āarmchair quarterbackingā as we attempt to predict how the honors bestowed by other awards bodies will impact the winnersā circle for the most coveted industry prize of all: the Oscars.
Traditionally, the Golden Globes have been seen as a bellwether for Academy Award inclusion, with many of the nominees and winners going on to eventual Oscar glory ā but given the current still-ongoing boycott of the HFPA by so many of the industryās most influential power-players, it remains to be seen if that long-standing assumption will hold true this year.
With that in mind, itās worth taking a look at the nominees ā with an eye to the diversity among the choices, particularly the inclusion of LGBTQ-relevant nominees among the contenders.
For television, Black actors Billy Porter (āPoseā) and Omar Sy (āLupinā), as well as South Korean actor Lee Jung-jae (āSquid Gameā), received nominations as Best Lead Actor in a Drama Series, while the equivalent Lead Actress category included Black actress Uzo Aduba (āIn Treatmentā) and Black/Puerto Rican actress Michaela JaĆ© Rodriguez (āPoseā) ā who also makes history by becoming the first transgender performer to be nominated in this category, a feat she also accomplished at the 2021 Emmys. In the Comedy division, Black actor Anthony Anderson (āBlack-ishā) picked up a nod as Best Lead Actor, with Black actresses Issa Rae (āInsecureā) and Tracee Ellis Ross (āBlack-ishā) included among the nominees for Best Lead Actress.
In the supporting categories (which are not divided into comedy and drama division), O Yeong-su (āSquid Gameā) got a nod for Best Supporting Actor, with no nominees of color named within the Supporting Actress slate.
For performances in a Limited Series, Anthology Series, or Motion Picture Made for Television, Latino actor Oscar Isaac (āScenes From a Marriageā) and French-Algerian actor Tahar Rahim (āThe Serpentā) made the cut for Best Actor, while Black actress Cynthia Erivo (āGenius: Arethaā) was nominated for Best Actress.
The big screen acting categories also included several nominees of color. Though there were no performers of color in the running for Best Lead Actress in a Motion Picture Drama, the Lead Actor slate includes three Black actors ā Mahershala Ali (āSwan Songā), Will Smith (āKing Richardā), and Denzel Washington (āThe Tragedy of Macbethā) ā among its contenders. In the Musical or Comedy division, Latino actor Anthony Ramos (āIn the Heightsā) scored a nomination for Lead Actor, with Latino/Polish newcomer Rachel Zegler (āWest Side Storyā) earning a nod for Lead Actress.
In the Supporting categories (which again, are not separated into Drama and Comedy divisions), Black performers Aunjanue Ellis (āKing Richardā) and Ruth Negga (āPassingā) joined Black/Puerto Rican performer Ariana DeBose (āWest Side Storyā) on the list of Actress nominees, and while the Actor category contained no performers of color, deaf actor Troy Kotsur (āCODAā) made the cut, in a rare show of representation for people with disabilities.
When it comes to LGBTQ representation, however, the nominations fall considerably shorter. Among all the acting nominees, the only out members of the community are Porter and Rodriguez (each in their respective Lead Performance categories for āPoseā), Kristen Stewart (āSpencerā) and Lady Gaga (āHouse of Gucciā) for Lead Actress in a Motion Picture Drama, and Hannah Einbender (āHacksā) for Best Performance by a Lead Actress in a Television Comedy. In addition to these, Udo Azuba (nominated for Best Lead Actress in a Television Drama forāIn Treatmentā), Andrew Garfield (nominated for Best Lead Actor in a Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for ātick, tickā¦ Boom!ā) and Erivo are noted for their vocal LGBTQ advocacy as allies.
While nominees Benedict Cumberbatch and Kodi Smit-McPhee (nominated for Lead and Supporting Actor, respectively, in a Motion Picture Drama for āThe Power of the Dogā) play queer characters, both identify as straight in real life. The same is true for Ewan McGregor, nominated as Best Actor in a Limited Series for his star turn as the title character in āHalstonā.
Finally, itās worth mentioning that the Best Director of a Motion Picture category, long dominated exclusively by men, this year includes two women: Jane Campion (āThe Power of the Dogā) and Maggie Gyllenhall (āThe Lost Daughterā)
Whether or not these nominees ā or any of the others, for that matter ā end up following up their recognition today with nods or wins on Oscar night remains to be seen. In the meantime, we can find out who takes home the HFPAās prizes (as well as who actually shows up to claim a prize from an organization now relegated to pariah status by most of Hollywood) on January 9, when the ceremony can be seen on the Golden Globesā You Tube channel.
A complete list of nominations is below.
Best Television Series, Musical or Comedy
āThe Greatā (Hulu)
āHacksā (HBO/HBO Max)
āOnly Murders in the Buildingā (Hulu)
āReservation Dogsā (FX on Hulu)
āTed Lassoā (Apple TV Plus)
Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series, Drama
Brian Cox (āSuccessionā)
Lee Jung-jae (āSquid Gameā)
Billy Porter (āPoseā)
Jeremy Strong (āSuccessionā)
Omar Sy (āLupin)
Best Performance by an Actress, Limited Series, Anthology Series or a Motion Picture made for Television
Jessica Chastain (āScenes From a Marriageā)
Cynthia Erivo (āGenius: Arethaā)
Elizabeth Olsen (āWandaVisionā)
Margaret Qualley (āMaidā)
Kate Winslet (āMare of Easttownā)
Best Director, Motion Picture
Kenneth Branagh (āBelfastā)
Jane Campion (āThe Power of the Dogā)
Maggie Gyllenhaal (āThe Lost Daughterā)
Steven Spielberg (āWest Side Storyā)
Denis Villeneuve (āDuneā)
Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture, Musical or Comedy
Marion Cotillard (āAnnetteā)
Alana Haim (āLicorice Pizzaā)
Jennifer Lawrence (āDonāt Look Upā)
Emma Stone (āCruellaā)
Rachel Zegler (āWest Side Storyā)
Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture, Drama
Mahershala Ali (āSwan Songā)
Javier Bardem (āBeing the Ricardosā)
Benedict Cumberbatch (āThe Power of the Dogā)
Will Smith (āKing Richardā)
Denzel Washington (āThe Tragedy of Macbethā)
Best Television Series, Drama
āLupinā (Netflix)
āThe Morning Showā (Apple TV Plus)
āPoseā (FX)
āSquid Gameā (Netflix)
āSuccessionā (HBO/HBO Max)
Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series, Drama
Uzo Aduba (āIn Treatmentā)
Jennifer Aniston (āThe Morning Showā)
Christine Baranski (āThe Good Fight)
Elisabeth Moss (āThe Handmaidās Taleā)
Michaela JaĆ© Rodriguez (āPoseā)
Best Performance by an Actor, Limited Series, Anthology Series or Motion Picture made for Television
Paul Bettany (āWandaVisionā)
Oscar Isaac (āScenes From a Marriageā)
Michael Keaton (āDopesickā)
Ewan McGregor (āHalstonā)
Tahar Rahim (āThe Serpentā)
Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture, Musical or Comedy
Leonardo DiCaprio (āDonāt Look Upā)
Peter Dinklage (āCyranoā)
Andrew Garfield (āTick, Tick ā¦ Boom!ā)
Cooper Hoffman (āLicorice Pizzaā)
Anthony Ramos (āIn the Heightsā)
Best Supporting Actor ā Motion Picture
Ben Affleck (āThe Tender Barā)
Jamie Dornan (āBelfastā)
CiarĆ”n Hinds (āBelfastā)
Troy Kotsur (āCODAā)
Kodi Smit-McPhee (āThe Power of the Dogā)
Best Original Score, Motion Picture
āThe French Dispatchā (Searchlight Pictures) ā Alexandre Desplat
āEncantoā (Walt Disney Pictures) ā Germaine Franco
āThe Power of the Dogā (Netflix) ā Jonny Greenwood
āParallel Mothersā (Sony Pictures Classic) ā Alberto Iglesias
āDuneā (Warner Bros.) ā Hans Zimmer
Best Actress in a TV Series, Musical or Comedy
Hannah Einbinder (āHacksā)
Elle Fanning (āThe Greatā)
Issa Rae (āInsecureā)
Tracee Ellis Ross (āBlack-ishā)
Jean Smart (āHacksā)
Best Limited Series, Anthology Series or a Motion Picture made for Television
āDopesickā (Hulu)
āImpeachment: American Crime Storyā (FX)
āMaidā (Netflix)
āMare of Easttownā (HBO/HBO Max)
āThe Underground Railroadā (Amazon Prime Video)
Best Supporting Actor, Television
Billy Crudup (āThe Morning Showā)
Kieran Culkin (āSuccessionā)
Mark Duplass (āThe Morning Showā)
Brett Goldstein (āTed Lassoā)
O Yeong-su (āSquid Gameā)
Best Picture, Musical or Comedy
āCyranoā (MGM)
āDonāt Look Upā (Netflix)
āLicorice Pizzaā (MGM)
āTick, Tick ā¦ Boom!ā (Netflix)
āWest Side Storyā (20th Century Studios / Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
Best Supporting Actress, Motion Picture
CaitrĆona Balfe (āBelfastā)
Ariana DeBose (āWest Side Storyā)
Kirsten Dunst (āThe Power of the Dogā)
Aunjanue Ellis (āKing Richardā)
Ruth Negga (āPassingā)
Best Picture, Foreign Language
āCompartment No. 6ā (Sony Pictures Classics) ā Finland, Russia, Germany
āDrive My Carā (Janus Films) ā Japan
āThe Hand of Godā (Netflix) ā Italy
āA Heroā (Amazon Studios) ā France, Iran
āParallel Mothersā (Sony Pictures Classics) ā Spain
Best Screenplay, Motion Picture
Paul Thomas Anderson ā āLicorice Pizzaā (MGM/United Artists Releasing)
Kenneth Branagh ā āBelfastā (Focus Features)
Jane Campion ā āThe Power of the Dogā (Netflix)
Adam McKay ā āDonāt Look Upā (Netflix)
Aaron Sorkin ā āBeing the Ricardosā (Amazon Studios)
Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture, Drama
Jessica Chastain (āThe Eyes of Tammy Fayeā)
Olivia Colman (āThe Lost Daughterā)
Nicole Kidman (āBeing the Ricardosā)
Lady Gaga (āHouse of Gucciā)
Kristen Stewart (āSpencerā)
Best Motion Picture, Drama
āBelfastā (Focus Features)
āCODAā (Apple)
āDuneā (Warner Bros.)
āKing Richardā (Warner Bros.)
āThe Power of the Dogā (Netflix)
Best Television Actor, Musical / Comedy Series
Anthony Anderson (āBlack-ishā)
Nicholas Hoult (āThe Greatā)
Steve Martin (āOnly Murders in the Buildingā)
Martin Short (āOnly Murders in the Buildingā)
Jason Sudeikis (āTed Lassoā)
Best Supporting Actress, Television
Jennifer Coolidge (āWhite Lotusā)
Kaitlyn Dever (āDopesickā)
Andie MacDowell (āMaidā)
Sarah Snook (āSuccessionā)
Hannah Waddingham (āTed Lassoā)
Best Original Song, Motion Picture
āBe Aliveā from āKing Richardā (Warner Bros.) ā BeyoncĆ© Knowles-Carter, Dixson
āDos Orugitasā from āEncantoā (Walt Disney Pictures) ā Lin-Manuel Miranda
āDown to Joyā from āBelfastā (Focus Features) ā Van Morrison
āHere I Am (Singing My Way Home)ā from āRespectā (MGM/United Artists Releasing) ā Jamie Hartman, Jennifer Hudson, Carole King
āNo Time to Dieā from āNo Time to Dieā (MGM/United Artists Releasing) ā Billie Eilish, Finneas OāConnell
Best Motion Picture, Animated
āEncantoā (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
āFleeā (Neon)
āLucaā (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
āMy Sunny Maadā (Totem Films)
āRaya and the Last Dragonā (Walt Disney Studios)
a&e features
Queer TV anchors in Md. use their platform āto fight for whatās rightā
Salisburyās Hannah Cechini, Rob Petree are out and proud in Delmarva
Identity can be a tricky thing for journalists to navigate. The goal of the job is to inform the public with no bias, but this is difficult, if not impossible, to do in practice. Everything from your upbringing to the books you read can impact how you view and cover the world. But sometimes these factors can help shine a light on an underrepresented community or issue.
Two broadcast journalists in Salisbury, Md., are using the subtle, yet impactful choice of sharing their queer identities to strengthen their reporting and connection to the community.
Hannah Cechini, who is non-binary, and Rob Petree, who is gay, co-host the 5:30-6:30 p.m. newscast for WMDT 47. They are the only known anchor team that are not only both queer, but also open out about their identities on air and, as Petree put it, āalways use [their] platform and power that [we] have to fight for what’s right.ā
Cechiniās passion for journalism played an important role in the discovery of their gender identity. They knew they were meant to be in the newsroom before they figured out they were non-binary.
āI was doing this job before I started to identify as non-binary,ā Cechini told the Blade. āI’d always watch the evening news with my dad growing up and thought it was the coolest thing. And throughout high school, I worked on the school paper.ā
After graduating from Suffolk University in Boston, Cechiniās passion for journalism only grew as they began to work in the world of news media, eventually ending up in Salisbury. As they honed their writing, editing, and anchoring skills at WMDT, Cechini also started to take an introspective look into their gender identity.
A little more than two years ago Cechini came out as non-binary to their coworkers in the newsroom and was met with support all around. āIt was definitely smoother than I anticipated,ā they said.
āIt is very freeing to be able to do this job as a non-binary person because I haven’t really seen much of that representation myself.ā
Petree, on the other hand, knew he was gay right around the same time he became interested in news media, at age 14. He started working for his high school news show and used it as a way to be open about his sexuality rather than hide it.
āI broke into broadcasting doing the morning announcements,ā he said. āI did the weather and started doing a segment called issues and insights,ā Petree said, explaining his introduction to the news. Eventually, students would ask him questions about his sexuality after seeing him on the school TV. āIt had gotten to the point in school, that if you’re going to come up and ask me if I’m gay, well shit, I’m going to tell you!ā
To him, this was the exact reason he had come out. Petree wanted to motivate others to live honestly.
āThere are a lot of people who will spend most of their lives not being out so if they can see someone like me, who’s out and proud doing his thing, so to speak, then maybe that’s the inspiration for them,ā Petree said. āTo search their own soul, find out who they are, and live their full life.ā
Petree explained that he got his start in a space that was not always welcoming to his queerness. This tested the delicate balance between being a journalist and holding your identity close.
āI’ve always been out and it was a challenge because I got my start in conservative talk radio,ā Petree said. āI’m going to be honest, some of the things I heard from people I’ve worked with, from the callers to the radio stations were absolutely abhorrent. But I never let it discourage me. It made me work that much harder.ā
Cechini highlighted the same sentiment when explaining why itās important to have out LGBTQ figures in news media. They want to show everyone that it is possible to be openly queer and successful.
āI just think that representation matters because if āJoe,ā who’s never seen a transgender person before, sees a transgender person or a non-binary person, doing a job that they’ve only ever seen straight cis people doing before, it kind of creates that understanding or bridges that gap,ā Cechini said. āIt’s like, āOK, maybe they’re not that different from me.ā And that facilitates being able to connect among different communities.ā
Both Cechini and Petree agree that having a queer coworker has made their bond stronger.
āIt’s great to have someone else next to me who I can relate to and work alongside,ā Petree said. āAnd they’re a joy to work with, they really are. There is a tremendous amount of things that we relate to together ā like we both share and have the same affinity for Lady Gaga,ā he said laughing. āAlthough they’re more of a Lady Gaga fan than I am.ā
āHannah is a tremendous journalist who really goes out of their way to make sure that the stories that they do are on point 100% of the time,ā he added. āThey’ve been great to work with and to learn from and to grow alongside. I’m very happy to have them as my co-anchor.ā
Cechini explained that the relationship between two co-anchors can make or break a newscast, and having Petree as their partner on air is a major part of the showās success.
āCo-anchoring is not just the relationship that you have on camera,ā Cechini said. āIt’s really, really important to have a good relationship with your co-anchor off-camera as well because you have to have a level of trust between you.ā
Cechini continued, saying that this relationship is crucial to working together, especially when things donāt go as planned.
āNot everything always goes to script,ā they said. āSometimes you have to be able to work together without even really talking to each other and just kind of know what to do. When you have a relationship like that with someone who identifies similarly to you or has had similar life experience, I think that just only strengthens that [relationship].ā
Although they have had similar experiences being from the LGBTQ community, Petree said it was a change for him to use āthey/themā pronouns on air.
āPrior to working with Hannah, I’ve never worked with a non-binary individual who went by the pronouns āthey/them,āā Petree said. āIt was new for me to not use traditional pronouns on air, but I can say that I have never misgendered them on air and never will. You get conditioned to using traditional pronouns and it’s easy to make that mistake, but I never have.ā
At the end of the day, they both explained, it is about doing the job right. For the duo, a part of that is understanding the diversity of people and issues in the community.
āWhen you come from a more marginalized community, I think that kind of helps to inform you a little better as a journalist because you have a better understanding of what it’s like to be āthe other guy,āā Cechini said.
āOur talent and our drive for journalism speaks for itself,ā Petree said. āAnd that resonates with people. Have we shown ourselves to be an inspiration to the LGBTQ+ community here in Delmarva? Yes, we have. And that’s something that I’m proud of.ā
The primetime nightly newscast with Hannah Cechini and Rob Petree airs weeknights from 5:30-6:30 p.m. on ABC affiliate WMDT 47.
a&e features
āQueering Rehoboth Beachā features love, loss, murder, and more
An interview with gay writer and historian James T. Sears
James T. Sears book talk
Saturday, June 29, 5 p.m.
Politics & Prose
5015 Connecticut Ave., N.W.
When it comes to LGBTQ summer destinations in the Eastern time zone, almost everyone knows about Provincetown, Mass., Fire Island, N.Y., and Key West, Fla. There are also slightly lesser known, but no less wonderful places, such as Ogunquit, Maine, Saugatuck, Mich., and New Hope, Pa. Sandwiched in between is Rehoboth Beach, Del., a location that is popular with queer folks from D.C., Maryland, Virginia, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey. The dramatic and inspiring story of how Rehoboth Beach came to be what it is today can be found in gay historian James T. Searsās revealing new book āQueering Rehoboth Beach: Beyond the Boardwalkā (Temple University Press, 2024). As educational as it is dishy, āQueering Rehoboth Beachā provides readers with everything they need to know (and possibly didnāt realize they needed to know) about this fabulous locality. Sears was kind enough to make time to answer a few questions about the book.
WASHINGTON BLADE: James, itās been a few years since Iāve interviewed you. The last time was in 1997 about your book āFrom Lonely Hunters to Lonely Hearts: An Oral History of Lesbian and Gay Southern Life.ā At the time, you were living in Columbia, S.C. Where are you currently based, and how long have you been there?
JAMES T. SEARS: It has been great reconnecting with you. After that book, we moved to Charleston, S.C. There I wrote several more books. One was about the Mattachine group, focusing on one largely misunderstood leader, Hal Call. Another book shared reminisces of a 90-year-old gentleman, the late John Zeigler, interweaving his diaries, letters, and poetry to chronicle growing up gay in the South at the turn of the last century. From there I moved to Central America where I chronicled everyday queer life and learned Spanish. We returned several years ago and then washed up on Rehoboth Beach.
BLADE: In the introduction to your new book āQueering Rehoboth Beach: Beyond the Boardwalkā (Temple University Press, 2024), you write about how a ārestaurant incidentā in Rehoboth, which you describe in detail in the prologue, became a kind of inspiration for the book project. Please say something about how as a historian, the personal can also be political and motivational.
SEARS: I want to capture readerās interest by personalizing this book more than I have others. The restaurant anecdote is the bookās backstory. It explains, in part, my motivation for writing it, and more crucially, introduces one meaning of āqueering Rehoboth.ā That is, in order to judge this āincidentāāand the book itselfāwe need to engage in multiple readings of history, or at least be comfortable with this approach. I underscore that what is accepted as āhistoryāāabout an individual, a community, or a societyāis simply a reflection of that eraās accepted view. Queering history challenges that consensus.
BLADE: Who do you see as the target audience for āQueering Rehoboth Beach?ā
SEARS: Well, certainly if you have been to Rehoboth or reside there, this book provides a history of the townāand its queeringāgiving details that I doubt even locals know! Also, for those interested in the evolution of other East Coast queer resorts (Ptown, Fire Island, Key West) this book adds to that set of histories. My book will also be of interest to students of social change and community organizing. Most importantly, though, it is just a good summer read.
BLADE: āQueering Rehoboth Beachā features numerous interviews. What was involved in the selection process of interview subjects?
SEARS: I interviewed dozens of people. They are listed in the book as the āCast of Narrators.ā Before these interviews, I engaged in a systematic review of local and state newspapers, going back to Rehobothās founding as a Methodist Church Camp in 1873. I also read anecdotal stories penned by lesbians and gay men. These appeared in local or regional queer publications, such as Letters from CAMP Rehoboth and the Washington Blade. Within a year, I had compiled a list of key individuals to interview. However, I also interviewed lesbians, gay men, transgender individuals, and heterosexuals who lived or worked in Rehoboth sometime during the bookās main timeframe (1970s-2000s). I sought diversity in background and perspective. To facilitate their memories, I provided a set of questions before we met. I often had photos, letters, or other memorabilia to prime their memories during our conversation.
BLADE: Under the heading of the more things change, the more they stay the same, the act of making homosexuality an issue in politics continues to this day. What do you think it will take for that to change?
SEARS: You pose a key question. Those who effectuated change in Rehoboth ā queers and progressive straights ā sought common ground. Their goal was to integrate into the town. As such, rather than primarily focus on sexual and gender differences, they stressed values held in common. Rather than proselytize or agitate, they opened up businesses, restored houses, joined houses of worship, and engaged in the townās civic life.
To foster and sustain change, however, those in power and those who supported them also had to have a willingness to listen, to bracket their presuppositions, and to engage in genuine dialogue. Violent incidents, especially one on the boardwalk, and the multi-year imbroglio of The Strand nightclub, gradually caused people to seek common ground.
That did not, however, come without its costs. For some ā long separated from straight society ā and for others ā unchallenged in their heteronormativity ā it was too great of a cost to bear. Further, minorities within the queer ācommunity,ā such as people of color, those with limited income, and transgender individuals, never entered or were never invited into this enlarging public square.
The troubles chronicled in my book occurred during the era of the āMoral Majorityā and āGay Cancer.ā Nevertheless, it didnāt approach the degree of polarization, acrimony, fake news, and demagoguery of today. So, whether this approach would even be viable as a strategy for social change is debatable.
BLADE: In recent years, there has been a proliferation of books about LGBTQ bars, a subject that is prominent in āQueering Rehoboth Beach.ā Was this something of which you were aware while writing the book, and how do you see your bookās place on the shelf alongside these other books?
SEARS: Queering heterosexual space has been a survival strategy for generations of queer folks. These spaces ā under-used softball fields, desolate beaches, darkened parks, and out-of-the-way bars ā are detailed in many LGBTQ+ books, from the classic, āBoots of Leather, Slippers of Gold,ā to the recently published āA Place of Our Ownā and āThe Bars Are Ours.ā Of course, these spaces did not encompass the kaleidoscope of queer life, but they provide us a historical gateway into various segments of a queer community and culture.
This was certainly true for my book. Unsurprisingly, until The Strand controversy, which began in 1988, all of Rehobothās queer bars were beyond the town limits. There were, however, homosexual watering holes in the liminal sexual space. For instance, you had the Pink Pony on the boardwalk during the 1950s and the Back Porch CafĆ© during the 1970s. So, in this sense, I think āQueering Rehoboth Beachā fits well in this ever-enlarging canon of queer history.
BLADE: As one of the most pro-LGBTQ presidents in U.S. history, how much, if it all, did the Biden Delaware connection have to do with your desire to write āQueering Rehoboth Beach?ā
SEARS: It is just a coincidence. Interestingly, as I was researching this book, I came across a 1973 news story about Sen. Joe Biden speaking at a civic association meeting. One of the 30 or so residents attending was James Robert Vane. The paper reported the senator being āstartledā when Vane questioned him about the ban on homosexuals serving in the U.S. civil service and military. Uttering the familiar trope about being āsecurity risks,ā he then added, āI admit I havenāt given it much thought.ā In Bidenesque manner, he paused and then exclaimed, āIāll be darned!ā
Biden was a frequent diner at the Back Porch CafĆ©, often using the restaurantās kitchen phone for political calls. Like the progressives I spoke about earlier, he had lived in a heteronormative bubbleāa Catholic one at that! Yet, like many in Rehoboth, he eventually changed his view, strongly advocating for queer rights as Vice President during the Obama administration.
BLADE: How do you think Rehoboth residents will respond to your depiction of their town?
SEARS: Well, if recent events are predictive of future ones, then I think it will be generally positive. My first book signing at the locally owned bookstore resulted in it selling out. The manager did tell me that a gentleman stepped to the counter asking, āWhy is this queer book here?āā pointing to the front table of āBeach Reads.ā That singular objection notwithstanding, his plan is to keep multiple boxes in stock throughout the summer.
BLADE: Over the years, many non-fiction and fiction books have been written about places such as Provincetown, Fire Island, and Key West. Is it your hope that more books will be written about Rehoboth Beach?
SEARS: My hope is that writers and researchers continue to queer our stories. Focusing on persons, events, and communities, particularly micro-histories, provides a richer narrative of queer lives. It also allows us to queer the first generation of macro-histories which too often glossed over everyday activists. So, as the saying goes, let a thousand flowers bloom.
BLADE: Do you think that āQueering Rehoboth Beachā would make for a good documentary film subject?
SEARS: Absolutely, although probably not on the Hallmark Channel [laughs]! It would make an incredible film ā a documentary or a drama ā even a mini-series. Because it focuses on people: their lives and dreams, their long-running feuds and abbreviated love affairs, their darker secrets, and lighter moments within a larger context of the countryās social transformation. āQueering Rehoboth Beachā details the townās first gay murder, the transformation of a once homophobic mayor, burned-out bars, and vigilante assaults on queers, the octogenarian lesbian couple, living for decades in Rehoboth never speaking the āL word,ā who die within months of one another. It, too, is a story of how the sinewy arms of Jim Crow affected white Rehoboth ā gay and straight. In short, āQueering Rehoboth Beachā is about a small beach town, transformed generation over generation like shifting sands yet retaining undercurrents of what are the best and worst in American life and culture.
BLADE: Have you started thinking about or working on your next book?
SEARS: The manuscript for this book was submitted to the publisher more than a year ago. During that time, Iāve been working on my first book of fiction. It is a queer novel set in early nineteenth century Wales against the backdrop of the Napoleonic wars and industrialization. I want to transport the reader into an era before the construction of homosexuality and at the inception of the womenās movement. How does one make meaning of sexual feelings toward the same gender or about being in the wrong gender? In the process of this murder mystery, I integrate Celtic culture and mythology and interrogate how todayās choices and those we made in the past (and in past lives) affect our future and those of others.
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a&e features
D.C. Latinx Pride seeks to help heal the community
Much history lost to generations of colonialism
The Latinx History Project will host its 18th annual Latinx Pride with a series of 11 events this year.
Latinx History Project, or LHP, was founded in 2000 to collect, preserve and share Latinx LGBTQ+ History. Six years later, they began hosting DC Latinx Pride.
Board member Dee Tum-Monge said organizers saw a need for the event that centered Latinx community members.
“LHP knows our queer history as Latinx folks has most often been lost to generations of colonialism and imperialism,ā they said. āWhich is why we focus on documenting and highlighting the impact our community has in D.C. and beyond.ā
According to UCLA School of Law, there are more than two million Latinx LGBTQ adults that live in the U.S.
āEvents specifically for the Latinx community are important not only to make our experience visible but also to create spaces where we can grow closer with other groups and each other,ā said Tum-Monge.
This year they kicked off DC Latinx Pride with a crowning ceremony for their royal court on May 31.
Their three-part series, āLa SanaciĆ³nā, is underway with part two planned for June 16.
āSanaciĆ³n in Spanish means āhealingā which is a big part of what we want to bring to Pride,ā said Tum-Monge. āOur communities go through a lot of trauma and hate, but we know thereās more to us. Our goal is to foster connection with ourselves, nature, community, and spirituality.ā
In conjunction with the series there is a slate of other events; tickets can be purchased at latinxhistoryproject.org/pride.
In addition, Latinx Pride will march in the Capital Pride Parade on Saturday and participate in the festival on Sunday. To stay involved with Latinx History Project after Pride and hear more about future events visit latinxhistoryproject.org.
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