Huelga L.A. Activist

Thank you Huelga L.A. Activist for your support. Educating the next generation is vital and cannot be compromised. Together, we can ensure our public schools are a more welcoming and equitable space. We're excited to be in this fight alongside you.

Hugo Soto Martinez is the real deal. He backs community schools and we love him for it! Thank you for fighting for our communities Hugo! Hugo For CD13

Yes we can! 🍎✊🏽

Imagine being a black, gay drag queen in the 1800s after being born into enslavement and having the resilience to be true to yourself. William Dorsey Swann did so. Here is his story of resistance…

From The Very Black Project Page- William Dorsey Swann was a gay liberation activist. Born into slavery in 1858, he was the first person in the United States to lead a q***r resistance group and the first known person to self-identify as a "queen of drag". Imagine the queenery of this icon.

He was a slave in Hancock, Maryland and was freed by Union soldiers after the Emancipation Proclamation went into effect. During the 1880s and 1890s, he organized a series of balls in Washington, D.C. He called himself the "queen of drag". Most of the attendees his gatherings were men who were former slaves, and were gathering to dance in their satin and silk dresses.
William was arrested in police raids numerous times, including in the first documented case of arrests for female impersonation in the United States, on April 12, 1888. In 1896, he was falsely convicted and sentenced to 10 months in jail for "keeping a disorderly house" (running a brothel). After his sentencing, he requested a pardon from President Grover Cleveland. This request was denied, but he was the first American on record who pursued legal and political action to defend the LGBTQ community's right to gather.

He was known to have been close with Pierce Lafayette and Felix Hall, two men who had also both been slaves and who formed the first known male same-sex relationship between enslaved Americans.

When William stopped organizing and participating in drag events, his brother continued to make costumes for the drag community. Two of his brothers had also been active participants in his drag balls.

William Dorsey Swann is the original queen, the original drag mother, the original activist. Tell his story!

Made some 3D fog resistant 😷 As educators are returning to school in LAUSD I wonder what we as a community can do to help? 💕 ideas always welcomed 😍

Stop Violence Against AAPI!

https://gofund.me/8609c7ae One of my former students passed. Gilbert was a kind and funny soul. He made me laugh everyday. ✨I’m so sad and sending all my prayers to his lovely family❤️. If you can help, please donate or share.

The end game is always to go back to school, SAFELY!