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Activist Fiona Dawson — Ian Haddock and the Normal Anomaly — Transgender Unity Banquet

We speak with activist Fiona Dawson about her work in the community, her movie “Transmilitary”, her new book “Are Bisexuals Just Greedy?”, and her podcast “Now with Fiona”. We catch up all things Fiona and her what she has planned next.

Guest: Fiona Dawson
https://www.nowwithfiona.com/

We speak with Ian Haddock founder of the Normal Anomaly. The Normal Anomaly Initiative began in 2016 in Houston as a blog to tell the stories of people at the margins. Throughout the span of 3 years, the Founder, Ian L. Haddock, had the organization working with Huffington Post, Unites States Conference on HIV/ AIDS (USCHA) and Prime Video. As the platform grew, the Founder had amassed a team of nontraditional activists that began to expand the trajectory in which the group was going.

Guest: Ian Haddock
https://www.normalanomaly.org/

Finally we speak with Alexis Melvin about the upcoming Transgender Unity Banquet. The Houston Transgender Unity Banquet was originally established by Peggy Rudd of Tau Chi (Tri-Ess), with assistance from Rene Fenner of the Gulf Coast Transgender Community as a social gathering. Their intention was to bring the two groups together to find common ground, with the understanding that sponsorship of the Unity Banquet would switch between groups from year to year. The first Unity Banquet was held in April, 1992 at Dante’s Restaurant. The Unity Banquet has been held every year since 1992 except 2020 when it was canceled due to the COVID pandemic.

Over the years, the banquet continued to grow to include the other transgender groups in the Houston area. At this point, the Houston Transgender Unity Banquet is one of the largest single-night transgender events in the nation. Since 2005, proceeds from tickets sales have benefited the Peggy Rudd Transgender Scholarship Fund, which provides financial support for trans-identified and other LGBTQI+ students pursuing higher education.  

 The 2022 Banquet will be ​Saturday September 24, 2022. Doors Open at 6:30pm

Location:
DoubleTree by Hilton
Houston Intercontinental Airport
15747 John F. Kennedy Blvd.

Guest:Alexis Melvin
https://tfahouston.com/events/2022-unity-banquet-550/

Queer Voices airs in Houston Texas on 90.1FM KPFT and is heard as a podcast here.  Queer Voices hopes to entertain as well as illuminate LGBTQ issues in Houston and beyond.  Check out our socials at:

https://www.facebook.com/QueerVoicesKPFT/ and
https://www.instagram.com/queervoices90.1kpft/

Send us Fan Mail

Film Loving Highsmith at MFAH -- Part 2 Phyllis Frye Retrospective

We speak with filmmaker about the film Loving Highsmith. Loving Highsmith is a unique look at the life of celebrated American author Patricia Highsmith based on her diaries and notebooks and the intimate reflections of her lovers, friends and family. Focusing on Highsmith’s quest for love and her troubled identity, the film sheds new light on her life and writing. Most of Highsmith’s novels were adapted for the big screen; the best known of these are Strangers on a Train and The Talented Mr. Ripley. Carol, a partly autobiographic novel, was the first lesbian story with a happy ending to be published in 1950s America. But Highsmith herself was forced to lead a double life and had to hide her vibrant love affairs from her family and the public. Only in her unpublished writings did she reflect on her private life. Excerpts from these notes voiced by Gwendoline Christie (Game of Thrones, Top of the Lake), beautifully interwoven with archive material of her and her most famous novel adaptions, create a vivid, touching portrait of one of the most fascinating female writers.

GUEST: Eva Vitija
https://www.mfah.org/calendar/loving-highsmith

Then we continue our interview with Phyllis Frye about her activism and her beginnings in the community. We continue discussions that are discussed in the book about her, "Phyllis Frye and the Fight for Transgender Rights". The first openly transgender judge to be appointed in the United States, the first attorney to obtain corrected birth certificates for transgender people who had not undergone gender confirmation surgery, a survivor of conversion therapy, and author of a law review article that helped thousands of employers adopt supportive policies for their workers, Phyllis Frye is truly a pioneer in the fight for transgender rights.

Among her many accomplishments, Frye founded the first national organization devoted to shaping transgender law—the International Conference on Transgender Law and Employment Policy, which has since created a body of work that includes the International Bill of Gender Rights—trained a cadre of future trans activists, and built the first national movement for transgender legal and political rights.

Based on interviews with Frye, Phyllis Frye and the Fight for Transgender Rights covers her early life, the discrimination she faced while struggling with her identity—including being discharged from the army and fired from a subsequent job at her alma mater, Texas A&M—her transition in 1976, her many years of activism, and her current position as an associate judge for the municipal courts of Houston.

This gripping account of Frye’s efforts to establish and protect the constitutional rights of transgender individuals not only fills a gap in existing histories of LGBTQ+ activism but will also inform and instruct contemporary trans activists.

GUEST: Phyllis Frye
https://www.amazon.com/Transgender-Centennial-Association-Students-University/dp/1623499844

Queer Voices airs in Houston Texas on 90.1FM KPFT and is heard as a podcast here.  Queer Voices hopes to entertain as well as illuminate LGBTQ issues in Houston and beyond.  Check out our socials at:

https://www.facebook.com/QueerVoicesKPFT/ and
https://www.instagram.com/queervoices90.1kpft/

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Peter Von Kant film at MAFH -- Victory Fund President CEO Annise Parker -- Author/Influencer Jenny Block

We speak with Marcus Hu, a producer of the film Peter Von Kant now playing at the Museum of Fine Arts. Peter Von Kant—a retelling of Rainer Werner Fassbinder’s classic melodrama The Bitter Tears of Petra Von Kant—stars Denis Ménochet in the lead role and Isabelle Adjani as his actress muse, Sidonie. Peter Von Kant is a famous director (based on Fassbinder) who lives with and mistreats his assistant, Karl (Stefan Crepon). Through Sidonie, Von Kant meets and falls in love with Amir (Khalil Gharbia), a handsome young man of modest means, and offers to help Amir break into cinema. Hanna Schygulla, one of Fassbinder’s real-life muses, also appears in the film.

GUEST: Marcus Hu
https://www.mfah.org/calendar/peter-von-kant

Then we speak with Annise Parker, CEO and President of the LGBTQ Victory Fund. We talk about the work being done to elect openly LGBTQ candidates into office. LGBTQ Victory Fund works to achieve and sustain equality by increasing the number of openly LGBTQ elected officials at all levels of government while ensuring they reflect the diversity of those they serve.

GUEST: Annise Parker
https://victoryfund.org/

Finally we speak with author/influencer Jenny Block about her writing including her latest book, "Being That Unicorn".  Being That Unicorn means being the magnetic person that everyone in the room is drawn to. It means being honest and true to yourself every day, no matter what. When you are really, really good at being yourself, you’ll make other people feel really, really good about themselves, too. In Be That Unicorn, Jenny Block, author of several best sellers for women, shows you how to stop putting yourself down and start finding your magic.

GUEST: Jenny Block
https://bethatunicorn.com

Queer Voices airs in Houston Texas on 90.1FM KPFT and is heard as a podcast here.  Queer Voices hopes to entertain as well as illuminate LGBTQ issues in Houston and beyond.  Check out our socials at:

https://www.facebook.com/QueerVoicesKPFT/ and
https://www.instagram.com/queervoices90.1kpft/

Send us Fan Mail

Brandon Woodruff Documentary -- OUTWORDS Project -- Galveston Pride

We speak with folks about the movie, "Texas Justice: Brandon Woodruff Big State, Small Town, No Justice". In October 2005 Texas prosecutors charged Brandon Dale Woodruff — then a 19-year-old freshman at Abilene Christian University — with murdering his parents Dennis and Norma. Unable to make the $1 million bail he sat in Hunt County Jail for more than three years awaiting trial. When the case finally was presented to a Greenville jury in northeast Texas the prosecution essentially posited during the 12-day trial that Brandon Woodruff was living a double life based on lies who ditched classes at ACU for gay adventures in wild Dallas. Faced with flunking out and returning home to a hick town the prosecutors argued that Brandon killed his disappointed parents for their life insurance so he would be free to pursue his gay life with carefree abandon. On March 20, 2009 the jury convicted Brandon Woodruff after only five hours of deliberation. The state earlier had waived the death penalty, and he automatically was sentenced to a life term behind bars.

GUESTS: Scott Poggensee, Richard Ray and Georges Detiveaux
https://atuaproductions.com/film/brandon-woodruff/

Then, we speak with Mason Funk about the Outwords Project. OUTWORDS captures, preserves, and shares the stories of LGBTQIA2S+* elders, to build community and catalyze social change. OUTWORDS envisions a world where difference and diversity are respected and celebrated,everyone’s story is valued, and traditionally underrepresented stories are given prominence,the transformative power of sexual and gender authenticity is embraced anti-LGBTQIA2S+ fears, phobias, and traumas are acknowledged and healed

GUEST: Mason Funk
https://theoutwordsarchive.org/

And finally we speak with folks from Pride Galveston.  Pride Galveston is a registered nonprofit corporation founded and organized in Galveston, Texas. Pride Galveston incorporated on April 18, 2018. Pride Galveston is operated under the direction of a board of directors that is committed to working for the betterment of the Galveston community.

Pride Galveston began in 2017 as Pride Galveston Beach Bash & Block Party, when Jamie Fuller-Waymire & Terry Fuller-Waymire decided a PRIDE festival would be a wonderful idea, as the island was lacking an event designed for the community. Pride Galveston has since ballooned into a three day celebration.

The purpose of Pride Galveston is to embrace diversity, instill pride, and celebrate unity, as well as recognize the contributions of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender community in the Galveston area. This shall be accomplished by raising visibility and promoting full human and civil rights via education, celebrations, and vast networking to the fullest extent allowed by the nonprofit status of Pride Galveston.

Pride Galveston produces several events during the year to celebrate Pride and to fulfill its purpose. The main event, Pride Galveston Beach Bash Weekend is typically held the first Saturday of September as to not clash with other regional Pride celebrations.

Additional events produced by Pride Galveston include Mister and Miss Pride Galveston Pageant and two pre Pride parties held at intervals during the year. New events will be added in the upcoming years and as dictated by community desire.

GUEST: Terry Fuller-Waymire
http://www.pridegalveston.com

Queer Voices airs in Houston Texas on 90.1FM KPFT and is heard as a podcast here.  Queer Voices hopes to entertain as well as illuminate LGBTQ issues in Houston and beyond.  Check out our socials at:

https://www.facebook.com/QueerVoicesKPFT/ and
https://www.instagram.com/queervoices90.1kpft/

Send us Fan Mail

Transgender Activist Phyllis Frye Book -- Tony's Place for Homeless Youth -- Houston Leather Family Event

We speak with the authors of a new book about Phyllis Frye, longtime Houston transgender activist. The book is entitled, “Phyllis Frye and the Fight for Transgender Rights” covers her early life, the discrimination she faced while struggling with her identity—including being discharged from the army and fired from a subsequent job at her alma mater, Texas A&M—her transition in 1976, her many years of activism, and her current position as an associate judge for the municipal courts of Houston. Then, we speak with subject of the book herself Phyllis Frye about her early activism and becoming Phyllis.

GUESTS: Michael Long, Shea Tuttle and Phyllis Frye
https://www.amazon.com/Transgender-Centennial-Association-Students-University/dp/1623499844

 
Then, we speak with Madonna Land, program director of Tony’s Place. Tony’s Place. Tony—along with his husband, Dr. Bruce Smith — was a pillar of the Houston community and a tireless advocate for numerous LGBTQ+ causes. Tony and Bruce were strong advocates for a drop-in center for LGBTQ+ young people. Tony’s dream became a reality with the opening of Tony’s Place. In 1983, Tony competed his Master’s in Social Work at the University of Houston and soon became one of Houston’s best-known gay psychotherapists. For 14 years, he was voted Houston’s “Gayest and Greatest” therapist by the readers of OutSmart Magazine.

GUESTS: MaDonna Land
https://tonysplace.org/

And finally,  we speak with Mark White, Mr. Houston Leather.  The Houston Leather Family Event, August 27th at Houston Resurection Metropolitan Community Church
Join the 2020-2021 Houston Leather Family as they welcome in your 2022 Mr Houston Leather, 2022 Ms Houston Leather, and 2022 Bayou City Bootblack. Doors open at 5pm for games, food, entertainment, and free admission.

Guest: Mark White
https://happeningnext.com/event/houston-texas-leather-family-contest-eid3a094xq881

Queer Voices airs in Houston Texas on 90.1FM KPFT and is heard as a podcast here.  Queer Voices hopes to entertain as well as illuminate LGBTQ issues in Houston and beyond.  Check out our socials at:

https://www.facebook.com/QueerVoicesKPFT/ and
https://www.instagram.com/queervoices90.1kpft/

Send us Fan Mail

"Shaking the Blue Flamingo"-- Kindred Spirits Fundraiser--Houston Women's Group

We speak with Gwen Flager, writer of “Shakin’ the Blue Flamingo“. This is the story of older women who maneuvered and managed the social stigma and prejudice of their sexual identities.  They once ran naked across golf courses, ate plates of greasy fried chicken and survived whispered sorority scandals. Twenty years later, while organizing the first LGBTQ prom for the local high school seniors, these non-traditional women are spun to the brink when their successful sorority sister returns to town determined to romance the woman she has loved all of her life. Women of all shapes, sizes and flavors are invited to see their own likeness of and similarities to the women of Shakin’ the Blue Flamingo when Dirt Dogs UNLEASHED in association with Sweet Darlin’ Productions present Shakin’ the Blue Flamingo, written by Gwen Flager, directed by Bonnie Hewett at MATCH (Midtown Arts & Theater Center Houston), 3400 Main Street, Houston TX 77002. August 12 – 20, 2022. 

GUEST: Gwen Flager
https://sweetdarlinproductions.com/shakin-the-blue-flamingo/

Finally, we speak with Kennedy Loftin about the Kindred Spirits reunion dance and Decadent Desserts. Kindred Spirits returns With 500+ LGBTQ women and friends Dance the night away to your favorites songs from the 70s & 80s Elegant chandeliers & balconies overlooking Downtown. Kindred Spirits Dance takes place Saturday, August 27  7PM-Midnight VIP Decadent Desserts Reception  6-7PM The Ballroom at Bayou Place  500 Texas St Featuring DJ Lotus Inferno New! VIP Decadent Desserts Reception Like the AssistHers' Decadent Desserts event, the reception will feature delicious desserts from local LGBTQ chefs. A decadent spread of deliciousness, plus hosted wine & beer bar, 6-7PM. 

GUEST: Kennedy Loftin
https://secure.givelively.org/event/the-montrose-center/2022-kindred-spirits-dance-vip-decadent-desserts-reception

We speak with folks from the Houston Women’s group. The Houston Women's Group is a diverse multi-generational feminist group for all women, that has been meeting since 1975. Currently meets every Sunday at 10:30 a.m. via Zoom.  In-person meetings, once they resume, will be at the First Unitarian Universalist Church, 5200 Fannin at Southmore Blvd., 3rd floor, room #302 (elevator accessible). We have a featured presenter and/or general discussion about our lives and current events. Each woman defines her own feminisms. After the group adjourns, those that choose to may gather at a nearby restaurant to enjoy a meal and further conversation.

Guest: Sharon Prince
https://firstuu.org/2022/03/02/houstonwomensgroup/

Queer Voices airs in Houston Texas on 90.1FM KPFT and is heard as a podcast here.  Queer Voices hopes to entertain as well as illuminate LGBTQ issues in Houston and beyond.  Check out our socials at:

https://www.facebook.com/QueerVoicesKPFT/ and
https://www.instagram.com/queervoices90.1kpft/

Send us Fan Mail

Houston Chronicle Music Critic -- Women's Convention 2022 -- Queer Improv Jam (Station Theater)

We speak with Houston Chronicle Music Critic, Joey Guerra about the recently released album from Beyonce, "Renaissance". Joey Guerra is the music critic for the Houston Chronicle. He also covers various aspects of pop culture. He has reviewed hundreds of concerts and interviewed hundreds of celebrities, from Justin Bieber to Dolly Parton to Beyonce. He’s appeared as a regular correspondent on Fox26 and was head judge and director of the Pride Superstar singing competition for a decade. He has been named journalist of the year multiple times by both OutSmart Magazine and the FACE Awards. He also covers various aspects of pop culture, including the local drag scene and "RuPaul's Drag Race."

GUEST: Joey Guerra
https://www.houstonchronicle.com/author/joey-guerra/ 

 We speak with Rachel Carmona, executive director of the Women's March. We discuss the upcoming Women's Convention to be held on August 12-14th at the George R. Brown Convention Center. The Women’s Convention is a weekend of workshops, strategy sessions, inspiring forums, creative expression, and intersectional movement building. It will be a place where cause, community, and creativity intersect. We will provide a space where people can meet, share common interests, and engage on issues of civic engagement, accelerated by pop culture. We will engage activists by melding traditional organizing programming with non-traditional programming, including salons, art spaces, screenings, social programming, and women’s workforce development. This convention will leverage the power of culture shift through skilling up and storytelling to create an empowered space of feminist momentum. This event will mobilize and unite movements for gender justice, racial justice, LGBTQ rights, and environmental justice and bring thousands of participants to combine activism and creative expression among everyday people. 

GUEST:Rachel Carmona
https://www.thewomensconvention.com/

Queer Improv Jam is an LGBTQIA+ improv jam for those who identify as QUEER, TRANS, LESBIAN, GAY, BISEXUAL, GENDERQUEER, and their allies!  This jam is 18+ and free of charge. All experience levels are welcome – no improv experience required. Please come as you are, that’s more than enough.  The Queer Improv Jam is a relaxed and non-intimidating event.
It is a safe space to explore queer identities and relationships onstage. They want this to be a fun place to meet new people, create, and explore together.
They’ll have a quick introduction to improv followed by some scenes onstage and a discussion at the end of the event.

GUESTS: Jessica Brown and Aaron Michaels
https://www.stationtheater.com

Queer Voices airs in Houston Texas on 90.1FM KPFT and is heard as a podcast here.  Queer Voices hopes to entertain as well as illuminate LGBTQ issues in Houston and beyond.  Check out our socials at:

https://www.facebook.com/QueerVoicesKPFT/ and
https://www.instagram.com/queervoices90.1kpft/

Send us Fan Mail

LGBT film "Albatross" -- Reproductive Justice in Texas

We speak with Myles Yaksich, writer/director of the film "Albatross". A dark, dramatic thriller, "Albatross" examines the concept of self (identity, ethnicity and sexual-orientation) in the context of society, while illustrating the compromises individuals are willing to make to feel as though they belong. Two seemingly separate narratives, spanning some 30 years converge at a dinner party between two newly introduced couples in 1959 New England, revealing that the attendees know much more about one another than they first thought.

GUEST: Myles Yaksich
https://www.albatrossthefilm.com/

Then we speak with Sam Romero about the state of reproductive justice in Texas. We talk her healthcare experience and what can be done going forward. We discuss her work with the West Fund and Abortion Funds. The National Network of Abortion Funds builds power with members to remove financial and logistical barriers to abortion access by centering people who have abortions and organizing at the intersections of racial, economic, and reproductive justice.

GUESTS: Sam Romero
https://abortionfunds.org/

Queer Voices airs in Houston Texas on 90.1FM KPFT and is heard as a podcast here.  Queer Voices hopes to entertain as well as illuminate LGBTQ issues in Houston and beyond.  Check out our socials at:

https://www.facebook.com/QueerVoicesKPFT/ and
https://www.instagram.com/queervoices90.1kpft/

Send us Fan Mail

Monkey Pox -- Gun Violence -- Off Broadway "Titanique"

We speak with the Houston Health Department about the rise of Monkeypox in the community. Monkeypox is a rare disease caused by infection with the monkeypox virus. Monkeypox virus belongs to the Orthopoxvirus genus in the family Poxviridae. The Orthopoxvirus genus also includes variola virus (which causes smallpox), vaccinia virus (used in the smallpox vaccine), and cowpox virus. Monkeypox is not related to chickenpox.

GUEST: Janine White
https://www.houstonhealth.org/services/disease-prevention/monkeypox/about-monkeypox 

We speak with Aimee Mobley Turney with the League of Women Voters anti-gun violence committee. This is part of the movement of Americans fighting for public safety measures that can protect people from gun violence. They work to educate regarding stronger gun laws.

GUESTS: Aimee Mobley Turney
www.lwvhouston.org

Finally, we speak with former Houstonian Tye Blue about his show "Titanique".  When the music of Céline Dion makes sweet Canadian love with the eleven-time Oscar®-winning film Titanic, you get TITANIQUE, a musical celebration that turns one of the greatest love stories of all time into a hysterical and joyful slay-fest.

Want to find out what really happened to Jack and Rose on that fateful night?

The story begins when Céline Dion hijacks a Titanic Museum tour and enchants the audience with her totally wild take, recharting the course of Titanic’s beloved moments and characters with her iconic song catalog.

Guest: Tye Blue
https://titaniquemusical.com/

Queer Voices airs in Houston Texas on 90.1FM KPFT and is heard as a podcast here.  Queer Voices hopes to entertain as well as illuminate LGBTQ issues in Houston and beyond.  Check out our socials at:

https://www.facebook.com/QueerVoicesKPFT/ and
https://www.instagram.com/queervoices90.1kpft/

Send us Fan Mail

LGBT rights with Equality Rights Advocates -- Legacy's HIV Fundraiser Mint Julep

We speak with folks from the Equal Rights Advocates about the threat to LGBT rights coming from the Supreme Court. Equality Rights Advocates works to solve our country’s most pressing challenges — poverty, violence, discrimination —by transforming our communities into places where every woman and girl can lead. They envision a world where work and school are guaranteed places of safety and promise; where every student can grow to their fullest potential; where all women have the economic security they need to care for themselves, their families, and their communities. Together, they’re building a world of true gender justice, where everyone has equal opportunity to thrive.

GUEST: Kel O'Hara
https://www.equalrights.org/

Then, we speak with Timmy Martinez about the 20th annual Mint Julep, an HIV/AIDS fundraiser for Legacy Community Health. It takes place on July 17, 2022 at the White Oak Music Hall They’re celebrating 20 years of Mint Julep and its mission to raise funding for Legacy’s HIV/AIDS awareness, prevention, and treatment programs. Mint Julep will honor former CEO Katy Caldwell,Domenic Cusano,Felicia aka Scarlett St. John Co-Chairs Tony Bravo Cyndy Garza Roberts Ray Purser Honorary Co-Chairs Sonna Alton – Mint Julep co-founder & Ms. Mint Julep 2012 Robert Harwood – Mr. Mint Julep 2012 Keith Nappier aka Shy Anne – Mint Julep co-founder & Miss Mint Julep 2012 Emceed by Domenic Cusano & Ginger Grant / DJ’ed by DJ Chad Guidry Doors open at 2:30 p.m. and the show begins at 3 p.m.  In the tradition of Mint Julep, the show is free to attend.

GUESTS: Timmy Martinez
https://www.legacycommunityhealth.org/mintjulep/

Queer Voices airs in Houston Texas on 90.1FM KPFT and is heard as a podcast here.  Queer Voices hopes to entertain as well as illuminate LGBTQ issues in Houston and beyond.  Check out our socials at:

https://www.facebook.com/QueerVoicesKPFT/ and
https://www.instagram.com/queervoices90.1kpft/