Dr. Blackwell's BLOG

Sunday, June 24, 2018

Commemorating the 45th Anniversary of the Up Stairs Lounge Fire

Filed under: GLBT Social Issues and Civil Rights — Dr. Christopher Blackwell @ 02:21

Before same-sex couples could marry, before the AIDS epidemic devastated the gay community, and before American society began to change its perception of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people, a devastating act of violence was committed against the LGBT community in New Orleans, LA that lead to the deaths of 32 people. On Gay Pride Weekend, Sunday, June 24th, 1973, an arsonist set fire to the Up Stairs Lounge, a small gay bar in the French Quarter that served as not only a local watering hole for gay men, but a sanctuary where they could be themselves in a world that did nothing but denounce them.

The Upstairs Lounge, was, at the time, one of New Orleans’ only social outlets for its LGBT residents. And on the night of the fire, it was packed with gay men who were members of the New Orleans Chapter of the Metropolitan Community Church, who were holding a “Beer Bust” event to raise money for a local children’s hospital. One patron named Roger Dale Nunez, who was known as a trouble maker, started a fight with the bar’s main bartender and manager, Buddy Rasmussen. After Buddy forcefully ejected Nunez from the bar, he threatened revenge by fire, a threat heard by several survivors of the tragedy. Around 20 minutes later, a patron was directed by Buddy to respond to an incessant ringing of the doorbell downstairs. Once the door opened, a backdraft from the engulfed staircase leading up to the lounge shot a massive flame through the bar, instantly setting it ablaze.

31 men and 1 woman (who was at the bar with her two gay sons, who also lost their lives) horrifically burned to their deaths trying to escape from the bar, which had an endless number of draperies, wooden furniture, and other materials that served as accelerants which made that attempt nearly impossible. Although questioned by police and marked as the lead suspect, due to a lack of evidence, Nunez was never formally charged with the crime and would commit suicide shortly thereafter. The local reaction from the police, fire department, and community were deemed despicable to many. “Let the faggots burn” one fireman was heard saying after realizing the fire ladders weren’t long enough to reach the windows to save victims. The local Catholic Archdiocese refused to acknowledge those who perished. Local leaders did everything they could to sweep the incident under the rug as to not harm New Orleans’ precious tourism industry. And radio personalities mocked the incident, saying the dead should be buried in “fruit jars.”

But simultaneously, a community was waking up to their oppression. The violent act triggered many gay men and lesbians to come out and no longer hide their identities, despite the financial and personal consequences such an act could provide in 1973. Out of the ashes rose the New Orleans LGBT Community’s liberation movement, which rippled across the United States and beyond.

Below are some photographs from the Up Stairs Lounge during the tragedy and today. Please take a moment today to say a prayer for the 32 lives lost that horrific night. And remember, the fight for freedom and equality is one that was paved by the souls of many LGBT persons who came before you.

 

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The side exterior of the site of the Upstairs Lounge today. Scars from the fire remain visible under the building’s painted surface.

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Compare the first photo to this horrendous photo of the aftermath, which serves only for comparison. One victim, Reverend Bill Larson of the New Orleans parish of the Metropolitan Community Church, can be seen clinging to the middle of the second window in his failed attempt to flee. Larson had just performed a service for the bar’s patrons a few hours before the fire (being gay, the men were otherwise shunned from any of New Orleans’ churches and had to hold their worship services at the Upstairs Lounge).

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A shot of the front exterior of the site of the Upstairs Lounge today. Scars from the fire remain visible under the building’s painted surface

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The entrance door to the Upstairs Lounge today. Patrons would ring a doorbell for access, which would be granted by the bartender upstairs. On the night of the fire, the arsonist lit the wooden stairs of the stairwell on fire with an accelerant and rang the doorbell incessantly. Thinking it was a taxi driver picking up a patron, the door was opened. The resulting oxygen drift that entered the bar caused an explosion which quickly engulfed the entire bar.

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The Upstairs Lounge memorial plaque, which is set in the sidewalk directly in-front of the entrance to what once was the Upstairs Lounge. The names of the victims along with three unidentified males are etched into the plaque.

A great book about the tragedy is Let The Faggots Burn (2011) by Johnny Townsend. The title comes from a fireman who made that shocking quote (above) when a horrified onlooker realized their ladders weren’t long enough to reach the bars’ windows and that they weren’t going to be able bring any of the victims to safety.

Thursday, September 29, 2016

Will & Grace Encourage You to “Vote Honey.”

Filed under: Film and Entertainment,GLBT Social Issues and Civil Rights — Dr. Christopher Blackwell @ 01:06

WILL & GRACE -- NBC Series -- Pictured: (l-r) Megan Mullally as Karen Walker, Eric McCormack as Will Truman, Debra Messing as Grace Adler, Sean Hayes as Jack McFarland -- NBC Photo: George Lange

The cast of Will & Grace, perhaps the best sitcom series to ever air on television, reunited this week to encourage you to get out and VOTE! The adorable, hilarious, and nostalgic 10-minute skit takes swipes at both Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton and Republican nominee Donald Trump. Take a look at the incredibly well-done scene below and relive some of the comedic magic of Will & Grace:

 

Saturday, June 13, 2015

A Visit to the Upstairs Lounge Memorial Site

Filed under: GLBT Social Issues and Civil Rights,Tragic News and Events — Dr. Christopher Blackwell @ 23:06

I was able to break away from the AANP Conference to visit a very historical site of the GLBT civil rights movement in the heart of New Orleans’ French Quarter. On June 24, 1973, an arsonist set fire to a packed gay bar known as the Upstairs Lounge, which at the time was one of New Orleans’ only social outlets for its GLBT residents. 31 men and 1 woman (who was at the bar with her two gay sons, who also lost their lives) horrifically burned to their deaths trying to escape from the bar, which had an endless number of draperies, wooden furniture, and other materials that served as accelerants which made that attempt nearly impossible.

The photos are from the site today, which has remained essentially unused since the tragedy. Scars from the fire remain visible under the building’s paint. The horrendous photo of the aftermath serves only for comparison. One victim, Reverend Bill Larson of the New Orleans parish of the Metropolitan Community Church, can be seen clinging to the window in his failed attempt to flee. Larson had just performed a service for the bar’s patrons a few hours before the fire (being gay, the men were otherwise shunned from any of New Orleans’ churches and had to hold their worship services at the Upstairs Lounge).

The perpetrator was never brought to justice. And the event was underreported and even mocked by the media because of the victims’ sexual orientations. Consequently, it served as a catalyst in awakening New Orleans’ gay citizens, who had reached their pinnacle of tolerance of the hatred and discrimination being shown against them. A great book about the tragedy is Let The Faggots Burn (2011) by Johnny Townsend. The title comes from a fireman who made that shocking quote when a horrified onlooker realized their ladders weren’t long enough to reach the bars’ windows and that they weren’t going to be able bring any of the victims to safety. Below are photos from the site, taken by myself today:

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The side exterior of the site of the Upstairs Lounge today. Scars from the fire remain visible under the building’s painted surface.

18902_10104251363974362_107031116164763394_n

Compare the first photo to this horrendous photo of the aftermath, which serves only for comparison. One victim, Reverend Bill Larson of the New Orleans parish of the Metropolitan Community Church, can be seen clinging to the middle of the second window in his failed attempt to flee. Larson had just performed a service for the bar’s patrons a few hours before the fire (being gay, the men were otherwise shunned from any of New Orleans’ churches and had to hold their worship services at the Upstairs Lounge).

11061284_10104251364253802_6902780401901123797_n

A shot of the front exterior of the site of the Upstairs Lounge today. Scars from the fire remain visible under the building’s painted surface

11430160_10104251364198912_3534335188870484999_n

The entrance door to the Upstairs Lounge today. Patrons would ring a doorbell for access, which would be granted by the bartender upstairs. On the night of the fire, the arsonist lit the wooden stairs of the stairwell on fire with an accelerant and rang the doorbell incessantly. Thinking it was a taxi driver picking up a patron, the door was opened. The resulting oxygen drift that entered the bar caused an explosion which quickly engulfed the entire bar.

10156175_10104251364293722_8392773936115143878_n

The Upstairs Lounge memorial plaque, which is set in the sidewalk directly in-front of the entrance to what once was the Upstairs Lounge. The names of the victims along with three unidentified males are etched into the plaque.

Monday, January 12, 2015

Book Review: The Book of Matt: Hidden Truths About the Murder of Matthew Shepard

Filed under: GLBT Social Issues and Civil Rights — Dr. Christopher Blackwell @ 02:40

 

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There’s been a lot of recent controversy over Stephen Jiminez’s new book The Book of Matt: Hidden Truths About the Murder of Matthew Shepard. Everyone knows the horrific events that occurred on October 6, 1998 in the small college town of Laramie, Wyoming. For those who don’t, the story we’ve all been told is that Matthew Shepard, an innocent college student at the University, was targeted for being homosexual by two predators at the local Fireside Lounge by the names of Aaron McKinney and Russell Henderson. The two convinced Shepard they too were gay and the three of them left the bar and got into McKinney’s truck, where Matthew was brutally pistol-whipped before being driven to a desolate farm (on the edge of an already very rural town) where he was tied to a fence post and robbed of his shoes and what little money he had before his viscous beatings resumed; he was eventually left for dead. Matthew was discovered the next day barely breathing and with a skull so badly fractured that actual cranial fragments herniated into Matthew’s brainstem. Just a few short days later, he succumbed to his injuries in hospital. McKinney and Henderson were both convicted of the murder and are serving two consecutive life terms in state prison. The horrendous nature of the killing coupled with the supposed deliberate focus on Shepard’s sexuality by his perpetrators sparked a national outcry for hate crimes legislation and added fuel to the GLBT civil rights movement in the United States.

But Jiminez’s thesis differs significantly with those events, more specifically, the motivations and true etiologic forces of Matthew’s murder, which he asserts was essentially a crime rooted in the methamphetamine trade plaguing Laramie at the time, in which Shepard was supposedly entrenched. According to Jiminez, McKinney personally knew Matthew way before the night of the murder, had on several occasions had sex with him, and believed he was in the possession of a large sum of cash resulting from a drug run Matt was originally planned to make earlier that day. The series of events Jiminez proposes just might be true. He provides quite a bit of well-researched data that seem to corroborate much of his assertions. He provides countless interviews from mutual acquaintances who claimed to have been with McKinney and Shepard concurrently numerous times; and he gives a multitude of examples of official (and unofficial) evidence that can be gleamed from legal documents and first-hand accounts from the lead prosecutor and law enforcement officers involved in the initial investigation. But what seems to be lacking somewhat from Jiminez’s work is at least a consideration that many of the persons he uses as informants on the case are either current or reformed addicts, convicted criminals, and other persons whose credibility should be seriously questioned. That along with the gushing support Jiminez provides to Henderson towards the end of the book suggesting he was treated unfairly by his legal team and deserves a reconsideration (which I found wincingly disturbing) threatens to infuse bias into what amounts to his years of dedicated investigative journalism on the case.

But regardless of that, The Book of Matt is a convincing read. And if the points Jiminez makes are just partial facts, then certainly at the very least, we should all question what we’ve long considered to be the historical truth of what happened to Matthew Shepard that night. Matthew’s murder helped to solidify the rationale for badly needed federal hate crimes legislation that would eventually include sexual orientation and gender identity. The sacrifice that Matthew made unwillingly has tremendously contributed to ensuring protections for an entire community of people. That is why so many in the GLBT community fear to tarnish his legacy. And I am certainly one of those people. While Jiminez has written a fascinating book that should definitely be read and pondered, no one should conclude based on it alone that it is a conclusive account of Matthew Shepard’s truth. But to consider that his death might not have been based in martyrdom as we’ve all believed doesn’t erase the amazing spirit Matt had and the impact his life and tragic murder continue to have.  The Book of Matt is something I definitely recommend to everyone to read. I hope that doing so invites you to be inquisitive about Matthew Shepard’s life and murder and to question the only version of the story we’ve ever been told. But I also hope you don’t close the book and conclude the story you’ve just read is the factual version of what really happened. That, unfortunately, is something we most likely will never know.

Friday, February 21, 2014

Out Gay Faculty Less Comfortable Than Closeted Peers

Filed under: GLBT Social Issues and Civil Rights — Dr. Christopher Blackwell @ 03:46

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A study published in this month’s issue of the Journal of Women and Minorities in Science and Engineering highlights the effects of being out in the workplace on university Faculty. The study, authored by Patridge, Barthelemy, and Rankin (2014) showed that just 11% of gay and lesbian Faculty members are open and honest about their sexuality in the workplace and that those who are experience higher levels of stress compared to colleagues who remain closeted. The findings suggest a strong need for nondiscrimination policies in university-settings and creation of more welcoming work environments that embrace diversity among Faculty. The abstract for the study appears below:

There is limited information available regarding factors that contribute to the academic advancement of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and queer (LGBQ) communities. In this project, we employ data from the 2010 State of Higher Education for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender People, and our aim was to assess the experiences of LGBQ faculty from science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines. Survey responses from 279 LGBQ faculty members across multiple departments were analyzed through chi-square and binary logistic regression. Our findings from this national study identify several factors influencing the academic climate and subsequent career consequences of LGBQ faculty, and department-level analyses suggest these climate factors may be particularly relevant to the STEM fields. We propose that the comfort of LGBQ faculty members is a valuable measure for advancing the retention of LGBQ STEM faculty members, and we show that both exclusionary behavior and being “out” are factors that negatively impact this measure. We provide potential best practices to improve the academic climate for STEM faculty members, thereby advancing both their persistence and their influence on mentoring prospective LGBQ STEM students.

Friday, January 27, 2012

Amazing “It Gets Better” Video Set to Lady GaGa’s “Hair”

Filed under: GLBT Social Issues and Civil Rights,Popular Culture — Dr. Christopher Blackwell @ 00:06

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Colton Boettcher, a gay young-adult in Wisconsin has produced probably the best “It Gets Better” video I’ve seen yet! Set to Lady GaGa’s hit single “Hair” from her album Born This Way, the video touches on many issues relevant to today’s GLBT youth. Bullying, taking a same-sex date to the prom, forgiveness, and redemption are just some of the qualities present in the video. The “It Gets Better” campaign was started in September 2010 by Dan Savage and his partner Terry Miller as a way to promote suicide prevention of gay teens. Research shows that gay teens have the highest suicide rates of any group of people in the United States. The campaign was designed to show gay youth that after the tumultuous and pressure-filled years of adolescence (particularly the high school years where gay teens are often bullied and subjected to teasing and ridicule), life does in fact “get better” for gay men and lesbians. 2010 saw a remarkable number of gay teenage suicides and “It Gets Better” videos have been made by thousands of people, including celebrities, athletes, politicians, and average everyday people who are none of these. Take a look at this AMAZING “It Gets Better” video below. And if you know a gay teen who is suffering from ridicule at school or anywhere else, take a stand for him or her and let the bullies know, THAT is NOT cool!

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Apple Facing Mounting Pressure to Pull Exodus App

Filed under: GLBT Social Issues and Civil Rights,Religion — Dr. Christopher Blackwell @ 01:05

Last week, Exodus International launched an App on Apple’s iPhone and iPad systems to promote its agenda of “curing” homosexuality. Exodus is a religious-based organization that supports conversion-type therapies to those with “unwanted same-sex attractions.” The App links users to biblical scriptures along with “resources” that can assist him or her in their fight to change their same-sex attractions. Research and rigorous scientific inquiries have over-whelmingly indicated the dangers of these types of “therapies” and every major medical association (including the American Psychiatric Association and the American Psychological Association) have branded them as completely unethical and unsupported by peer-review and science. After gay civil rights organizations caught news of the App, they immediately began collecting signatures to encourage Apple to pull it. As of today, over 100,000 signatures have been collected. In addition, one of the psychologists (Dr. Gary Remafedi) quoted in the App has indicated his work has been perverted by the group and has alerted Apple to the misuse of his name and research. At this point, it is essential that Apple do the right thing and pull the App. For more information on “Conversion Therapies,” longitudinal research on their efficacy, their dangerous psychological effects on GLBT persons, and the unethical nature of their use, see my 2008 Issues in Mental Health Nursing article “Nursing Implications in the Application of Conversion Therapies on Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Clients” under the “Research” Tab.

Friday, February 18, 2011

Zach Wahls, Brave College Student who Testified for Equality in Iowa Talks to Ellen

Filed under: GLBT Social Issues and Civil Rights — Dr. Christopher Blackwell @ 01:30

An initiative to repeal marriage equality in Iowa, spear-headed by Republicans in Iowa’s House of Representatives, has been underway for the past few weeks. Democrats have vowed they will do whatever is in their power to make sure the Republicans are unsuccessful. Last week, Zach Wahls, a 19 year-old University of Iowa engineering major who was raised by two lesbian moms, provided testimony against the bigoted effort. Today, he appeared on Ellen and gave an incredible and inspiring interview. Take a look below:

Monday, December 20, 2010

Democrats (and very few Republicans) Overturn DADT

Filed under: GLBT Social Issues and Civil Rights,Politics — Dr. Christopher Blackwell @ 00:52

A disgraceful and discriminatory chapter in American history came to a close Saturday afternoon as civil rights took a major step forward. The United States Senate voted to repeal the Military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, Don’t Pursue” Policy, which prohibited gay men and women in uniform from serving openly. The vote was largely among party lines as all but one Democrat and only 8 Republicans voted in favor of repeal. Florida’s Senators Nelson (D) voted yay while Republican LaMieux voted nay. President Obama pledged to end the ban on the campaign trail and sided with top military officials who overwhelmingly took the position that the ban was damaging military readiness. Republicans used fear-mongering to stall the repeal, spewing data that were not based in fact but instead based in bias. Nonetheless, their efforts, spear-headed by John McCain (R-Arizona) failed.
Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell was a policy passed by President Bill Clinton during his first term. Prior to the policy, gay men and lesbians who acknowledged their sexuality were deemed ineligible to serve. Clinton fought hard against Republican-lead opposition and Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell was made policy out of compromise. Gays and lesbians could serve, but only if their sexual orientation remained hidden. Tens of thousands of well-qualified personnel were discharged under the policy, which came under increasing scrutiny between 2004-2005, when a group of gay Arabic linguists were discharged under the policy. A subsequent report indicated a critical shortage of Arabic linguists needed to interpret intelligence and suggested the discharges posed a major threat to national security. After taking Office, President Obama charged Congress with repealing the ban. A comprehensive study conducted this Summer by the Pentagon found the vast majority of America’s troops didn’t think repealing the ban would cause a major disruption. They also indicated most knew of gay soldiers within their unit and that sexuality had no impact on how they interacted with comrades.

This historic victory was a LONG-WAY coming! God knows this vote could NEVER have happened with the slew of incoming Republican Congressmen and Senators. 
So, THANK-YOU to the Democrats (and the 8 Republicans) who voted to repeal DADT! No serviceman or woman willing to sacrifice his or her life for our country should ever have to fear losing his or her military career due to sexual orientation. It is time to put inequality and discrimination in our Armed Forces behind us. God bless our troops.

Friday, October 15, 2010

Last Known Survivor of Pink Triangle Gives Interview

Filed under: GLBT Social Issues and Civil Rights — Dr. Christopher Blackwell @ 15:45

While discussions and portrayals of the horrors that occurred during the Holocaust most often focus on the atrocities inflicted on Jewish prisoners, many are unaware that between 15,000-50,000 gay men were also imprisoned and slaughtered by the Nazi regime in the concentration camps under Paragraph 175 of the German Criminal Code. While Jews were forced to wear the yellow Star of David to identify themselves, gay men were forced to wear a pink triangle, designed to bring them shame by degrading their identity as men by reinforcing the feminine stereotypes of male homosexuality in society. Below is a video of a recent interview with the last known survivor of the Pink Triangle. His words are startling and serve as a reminder that the persecution of minority groups represents the worst of humanity.

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