The Political Her-story
As gay liberation changed from resistance against police raids into a full-fledged movement, it was time for Drag to be seen as a political movement. As we researched the late 20th century, we can see drag queens as a more visible element of art and culture. From watching Wig, In the 80s and 90s in New York City drag was a dominant phenomenon owing mostly to the explosively experimental East Village stage scenery and the clubs and Wigstock's annual drag festival, so I wanted to research San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Chicago a since all three cities are full of pride in the present day.
SAN FRANCISCO
From Iowa, Ken Bunch moved to San Francisco (1977) and brought those habits to the streets of the Castro district in California to create The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, a “ leading-edge order of queer and trans nuns” believe all people have a right to express their unique joy and beauty.
Their first appearance in San Francisco on Easter Sunday, 1979, the Sisters have devoted themselves to community service, ministry, and outreach to those on the edges, and to promoting human rights, respect for diversity, and spiritual enlightenment. They use humor and irreverent wit to expose the forces of bigotry, complacency, and guilt.
The Sisters' distinctive style of cultural advocacy continues to exist in 42 nations, nine countries, and four continents. It is a non-profit national organization of over 1000 nuns from every race, sex, and sexual identity.
Sister Roma from San Francisco has since been the most visible and explicit founder of the association. As long as HIV and its internal divisions have decreased to just five sisters, it entered the San Francisco order in 1987. Sister Roma has contributed over 1 million dollars to many causes from LGBTQ during her tenure and had the opportunity to participate in several non-LGBTQ local activities and fundraisers. The sisters are still active through the pandemic, they were able to host The Sisters’ annual Easter In The Park which will be a virtual celebration.
CHICAGO
Terence Smith, a performer, artist, and activist who started performing drag in 1974, is the drag alter ego Joan Jett Blakk.
Joan Jett Blakk declared her presidential candidacy in January 1992 with the message "Lick Bush in '92!" She ran as a member of the Queer Nation Party, having assisted in the founding of the Chicago branch of the advocacy group. She made history by becoming the first drag queen to run for president.
In the previous year, she ran for mayor of Chicago against incumbent Richard Daley, as a member of the Queer Nation Party. Blakk didn't run for either party expecting to succeed, but rather to bring focus to LGBTQ+ rights that were being forgotten by the government at the time. This was at the height of AIDS advocacy, ten years since the disease was first identified, and advocates like Blakk believed that not nearly enough was being done to assist those who were infected. Her campaign was so effective that she and Mayor Daley were featured on the cover of Chicago magazine New City, with the headline "King and Queen of Chicago."
Interviews capture the best of Blakk:
“At Queer Nation we decided we needed some representation, but queer representation, not some gay candidate, but someone who can really scare straight people for no other reason than to scare them. We’re taught from the time we’re children that anyone can be president. We had a bad actor, why not a good drag queen?” - interviewed by Owen Keehnen
Blakk did not win “I'm just going to appoint myself president because I'm tired of waiting,” she said, but that was never the purpose. The goal was to raise awareness about queer matters, which she did in 1992 and again in 1996 when she ran on her own party ticket. She had also secured an Iowa primary at the time. In 1998, she ran for mayor of San Francisco after leaving Chicago. nobody couldn't turn away from Blakk, she was known for her charisma and outrageousness, and with that, from queer topics at a time when they didn't get almost as much or any representation. She drew a fine balance of humor, camp, and critique. She brought to light viewpoints that had been absent from the public eye for all too long. Who knows what a decent pair of seven-inch platforms and a set of fake eyelashes might do in the future for our political candidates?
LOS ANGELES
Dressing in drag has long become a political statement, it's defiance against social expectations as well as an art form that elevates the voices of marginalized groups. Drag has helped her accept her own gender orientation. “It doesn't feel like a mask when I'm in full drag; it just feels like an extension of me,” she said. Maebe identifies as non-binary and uses both the pronouns "she/her" and "they/them."
Maebe A. Girl, a drag queen in Los Angeles known for her comedic sketches of Trump, was newly elected to public office in California. Maebe has been elected to the Silver Lake Neighborhood Council, where she aims to advocate for the needs of the homeless, protect LGBT people, and improve safety.
She was influenced by social revolutionaries including Susan B. Anthony and "other politicians who were ridiculed when they were politically and socially active." Her civic awakening occurred when volunteering as an overnight supervisor at the Lincoln Park community shelter in Chicago. She needs to provide additional support and programs to Silver Lake's large homeless community. Maebe is the latest in a long line of drag performers who have entered politics.
Sources
Blum, Steven. “Meet the First Drag Queen to Be Elected to Public Office in California.” Los Angeles Magazine, 13 Apr. 2019, www.lamag.com/citythinkblog/maebe-a-girl-silver-lake/.
Glbtq >> Special Features >> Joan Jett Blakk, 1992, web.archive.org/web/20080513073135/www.glbtq.com/sfeatures/interviewjjblakk.html.
Goodman, Elyssa. “The Drag Queen Who Ran For President in 1992.” Them., Them., 20 Apr. 2018, www.them.us/story/joan-jett-blakk-drag-queen-president.
Judkis, Maura. “How Drag Queens Have Snatched the Political Spotlight in the Trump Era.” The Washington Post, WP Company, 29 Nov. 2019, www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/how-drag-queens-have-snatched-the-political-spotlight-in-the-trump-era/2019/11/24/0e197464-0712-11ea-ac12-3325d49eacaa_story.html.
“Maebe A. Girl.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 15 Apr. 2021, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maebe_A._Girl.
“The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence.” Thesisters, www.thesisters.org/.
Villarreal, Daniel. “Drag Queens Are More Political than Ever. Can They Lead a Movement?” Vox, Vox, 5 Nov. 2018, www.vox.com/identities/2018/11/5/18056558/drag-queens-politics-activism-lgbtq-rupaul.
Wbur. “Sasha Velour On Why Drag Is A 'Political And Historical Art Form'.” Sasha Velour On Why Drag Is A 'Political And Historical Art Form' | Here & Now, WBUR, 24 July 2017, www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2017/07/24/sasha-velour.
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