Chi sigma iota8/13/2023 To me, a normal acting gay person is a person who is himself and doesn’t run around forcing him or her lifestyle’ on others.’ ‘We are told that we are wrong everyday by straights and others so is it necessary for this kind of behavior to go on within the community?’ Furthermore, ‘Could you please tell me what your idea of a normal acting gay person is? Is it an overweight, big mouth who runs a male wh*re house or is it someone who dresses in leather from head to toe?. The author noted that while Chaffin likely had good intentions, it is the “individuals’ business and no one else’s,” that: ![]() In the following issue, Roy Pershing, also known as LaNora Takie, fired back at Chaffin’s narrow view of queerness and Chaffin’s insistence that masculine gay men live publicly. Couching his criticism in masculine rhetoric, Chaffin alleged of those who kept their identities private: “you guys don’t have the b*lls to just go ahead and say what you are.” He implied that because society considered gay individuals too effeminate “more ‘normal’ acting gays” needed to come out. In a 1984 Works article, Jim Chaffin-a gay, cisgender man-chastised the “drag queen” mentality among Indiana’s LGBTQ community. By the mid-1980s, however, The Works reported that the queer community had been gatekeeping gender non-conforming or gender-questioning individuals, approximately 20,000 of whom lived in Indianapolis. ![]() Articles in 1982 remarked on the resurgence in popularity of impersonators, noting that the Alley Cat Lounge and Disco had begun hosting weekly shows. The Works newsletter provides a bit of insight into early Hoosier female impersonators (at least in predominantly-white areas of Indianapolis), who performed at bars along Virginia Avenue from the early 1900s until World War II. The group also challenged instances of discrimination within and outside of the LGBTQ community. ![]() Beginning in 1987, the Indiana Crossdresser Society (IXE) served these Hoosiers by providing social forums and offering resources to individuals struggling with gender identity. Before the connectivity of the internet and the advocacy of organizations like Indiana Youth Group and GenderNexus, many were bereft of social opportunities and emotional support. This includes those who identified as “cross-dressers ,” male/female “impersonators,” “transvestites ,” “transsexuals ,” and, in modern terminology, “transgender.” When unsure about how individuals identified or what pronouns they preferred, they will be referred to as the name that appears in relevant publications.įor gender non-conforming Hoosiers, the pursuit of kinship and shared identity was often fruitless, if not outright dangerous. Members of IXE, Courtesy of The New Works News (August 1989): 7, accessed Chris Gonzalez GLBT Archives, IUPUI Library.Ī note on terminology: This post examines gender non-conforming or gender-questioning individuals.
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