Charlotte Pride

[Forrest]

I can't judge not having gone yet.....but lots of people head to the mtns or the beach this wkd. That aside, a "scene" as it were never seems to grow large enough to gain traction to sustain many clubs.

Maybe it's Charlotte's transient nature combined with the region's conservative vibe. Or the lack of a gayborhood that could serve as a hub for the community.

[bchris02]

I can't judge not having gone yet.....but lots of people head to the mtns or the beach this wkd. That aside, a "scene" as it were never seems to grow large enough to gain traction to sustain many clubs.

Maybe it's Charlotte's transient nature combined with the region's conservative vibe. Or the lack of a gayborhood that could serve as a hub for the community.

I think Charlotte just might not have a large enough gay population to sustain more than one dance club on any given night. These days, Scorpios is slammed every night its open and the Closet is pretty much always dead. Closet now has the reputation of being a dead club so less and less people are going. Who wants to pay $10 cover and $8 drinks at a club where maybe 10 people are out on the dance floor on a typical Saturday?

Edited July 6, 2010 by bchris02

[Skyybutter]

The gay community when it comes to clubs and bars is very fickle in Charlotte. I go to the shed and central 95% of the time. Not into the club scene anymore. I refuse to pay a 10$ cover...for what?. I go to talk and catch up with friends and if I meet someone great. Scorpio has been Charlottes premier dance club for over 40 years and it just has a loyalty that hasnt been broken. Velocity made a great run for almost 10 years. Ive never been to Closet. It sounds like an issue of advertising and possibly location and parking issues. I still miss Stonewall 300. Wish that would turn back into a gay bar/club. Charlottes gay community will continue to evolve. One of the things that hurts us is out close proximity to Atlanta and the other larger areas in NC.. Greensboro and Raleigh. Its easy to drive up 85 for a change. Just some thoughts.

Edited July 18, 2010 by Skyybutter

[Forrest]

I was walking back home from the Dilworth HT this AM and this guy on his cellphone screams out "hey a guy wearing a Legalize Gay shirt just walked by, this place is cool". And then he pointed it out to his daughter from their SUV. This reaction definitley beats the F bomb that got dropped on me a few months ago.

[caterpillar2]

For newcomers to the area that contend that the lack of gay venues is due to conservatism, religion, or population in Charlotte, I would like to add this. In the 1960s and early 1970s there were tons of gay clubs and sex shows in Charlotte. Charlotte was a forerunner in gay activity in the 1950s and 60s along with Jacksonville. Charlotte was a wide open city as far as sexual oriented venues. It didn't seem to die out until the surge of people moving in from other places. Charlotte had gay venues included the Blue Note Lounge, The Brass Rail, The Anchor Inn, Scorpio and others. If they are not available today, it is because there just isn't a big interest in them or the idea of safety in numbers isn't applicable. I don't believe that gays have just packed up and left. There is nothing stoping anyone from opening gay establishments. It has nothing to do with conservatism. It wasn't an issue 50 years ago, and it isn't an issue today. It is all about supply and demand. I guess that people just blend these days?

Edited July 19, 2010 by caterpillar2

[Sabaidee]

I'm curious why Charlotte has two prides? Black Gay Pride was this past weekend, and the regular Pride is in October. Anyways, if anyone remembers the Myxx, it's reopened or rather relocated by Asian Corner behind the dry cleaner. Hopefully that means the under 21 crowd will migrate back to the Myxx.

[DCMetroRaleigh]

DC, ATL, Houston, Miami, and Chicago have had Black Prides for decades now. IN addition, Latin Prides are popping up in Portland and Kansas City.

[Skyybutter]

I'm curious why Charlotte has two prides? Black Gay Pride was this past weekend, and the regular Pride is in October. Anyways, if anyone remembers the Myxx, it's reopened or rather relocated by Asian Corner behind the dry cleaner. Hopefully that means the under 21 crowd will migrate back to the Myxx.

Has it already opened? I was under the impression it would be opening in the old theater building. Ive noticed some activity in that building but nothing that looks finished...Can you provide any firm details?... And for those that attended, how was Black gay pride in Charlotte this week??

[Sabaidee]

It was opened for Black Pride, and yes it's the old theater. I didn't go, my friends and I saw the lines and it was too many fish so we went to Scorpio's instead. But that parking lot is horrible though, just like Asian Corner's. I went to the Expo/Ball at the Grady Cole's Center, it was a lot of people there but I didn't stay too long knowing that there will be long lines at the clubs.

[Forrest]

Not a club guy but it's good news in general for the nightlife here. I don't see any problems with black prides or any other minority specific events. It's not Charlotte Black only Pride. I have been before and had a great time and encountered no bad attitudes. African Americans are still severely underrepresented in GLBT life for a variety of reasons we have all discussed before so why not have an event that brings them more visibility?

Others on here have also posted thatt Charlotte's gay golden age was in the late 70s and 80s. This does not seem to be that much different from other cities experiences. But unilike other metros the community did not transition into more visibility or acceptance in city life. There are no openly gay officials in any public capacity. Our elected city council "supporters' go to gay events and take donations but don't publicly advocate for us because of their political homophobia and fear of the conservative backlash. . No wonder they don't work faster on our issues....the expectation bar in this town is so low because we have been treated like crap for decades. As a result, sweet talk speeches and no action results in pathetic and groveling adulation. And donations from too many gays here. Not this one.. When they finally get around to even saying the word "gay" on council and pass something then I will say thank you.

Mayor Foxx's recent speech to the Charlotte Gay and Lesbian Fund was the first time anyone can remember an elected offiical speaking to our community. My roots are not here butt my impression seems to be the local gay equal movement stalled out and went nowhere for decades. It's only been in the last few years that the Couny Commission passed employment protections and DP benefits.

Through pressure from MECKPAC and individual citizens the City Charter has been changed to include sexual orientation non-discrimination. But it's not codified and can be changed on a whim.

So the " everything is great here" line does not fly with me. If we lived in a city that did provide full parity that but one thing, we certainly don't. Ignoring this reality and not pushing harder just gives our lazy and cowardly City Council "supporters" more cover and time to delay and do nothing and gives the bigots on there more power.

[Urbanity]

I don't think it has been linked already, but the Pride committee has launched a new website for this year's events. I'm impressed with the site so far as it is much slicker and detailed compared to previous years (that I have seen). Hopefully this foreshadows better Pride itself.

http://www.pridecharlotte.com/

[Forrest]

I am just glad not to bake n broil this summer. That got old quick and takes away from the enjoyment of the day. It will interesting to see what vantage point the Christian fundamentalists will choose to pray for us this year.

If we do win the DNC it' will be an excellent opportunity for the local GLBT community to pitch in and make our presence known during the event before a national audience.

[Urbanity]

If we do win the DNC it' will be an excellent opportunity for the local GLBT community to pitch in and make our presence known during the event before a national audience.

I've got real mixed feelings on that.

[Forrest]

I don't see why.....if DADT and ENDA are not history by then there will be protests as there should be. I know our issues are not going to be front and center but we should have a presence along with labor, enviro,pro choice and other advocacy groups.

[Urbanity]

I may not have been clear on the part of your post that I had mixed feelings on. It was the "an excellent opportunity for the local GLBT community to pitch in and make our presence known" part.

Bear with me as my thoughts may not be fully formulated on this, but I'm having a big problem with Charlotte to a degree right now and the idea of making our presence known through pitching in. Matt Comer of Qnotes recently wrote a great piece highlighting the four DNC 2012 candidate cities and where they stand on lgbt equality and protections. Guess who was dead last? And of the only one of four items Charlotte offers its LGBT citizens (employment discrimination for lesbian and gay (but not transgender) city employees) it is not codified into law - meaning that it can be changed with whim of a new council and mayor with a lot more ease than a law.

I've tried to be patient with Charlotte and written and lobbied and accepted that it is going to take time and work here. I have accepted living with the slow moving progress that I envision will happen here because of two things. The first is that I just really have come to love this city and know it is full with generally good people who do embrace (or at least not actively discriminate against) its lgbt citizens - though I think that is the crux of why there is such a muted lgbt movement in Charlotte. Secondly, (and perhaps sadly) I think that city leaders just are waiting out the inevitable changes that will be coming federal and state wise (most likely federal) which will save them the trouble of showing courage themselves.

I can almost live with that to a degree (not really, but I'm rationalizing) but what has given me a real stick in my craw is the resistance of the marketing/visitor's agencies for this city to do even superficial things to embrace their gay citizens or the gay tourist dollar without pressure (e.g. I will take personal credit here of getting the city to register with the IGLTA and have the email from the association to prove it), and they are still doing a pretty crappy job to date even after registering (e.g. type gay in Charlotte's Got A Lot) site and you get the Gay Paris Hotel in Vegas )

I do think this is changing to a degree as I was pleased to notice that they did list the black gay pride and upcoming garage sale at the center in their event listings (at least the FYC calendar and weekly email) and I hope that is the first steps in realizing they have a business responsibility to actively network in the gay community for information and promotable events just as they do with other businesses.

I also think it is about time that the city center partners and the visitor's and tourism agency become a sponsor of the annual pride as witnessed in many other cities. This is actually a very small and cosmetic change that can aid in showing support of the community both internally and externally and frankly aid in Charlotte's reputation nationally.

If you're still with me on this long post (which I apologize about but its a combo of my morning coffee kicking in and frustration ) then I'm going to return to the original point of "an excellent opportunity for the local GLBT community to pitch in and make our presence known" .

My previous reply of "mixed feelings" on that is the part regarding us pitching in to help the city's image for this prestige when the city doesn't apparently want to pitch in and do their basic duties in protecting or even acknowledging us most of the time. I think a national political convention host city is suppose to be a city that represents a whole nation. As the Democrats are suppose to be more embracing of the LGBT Americans, the Democrat National Convention host city has a particular burden of being embracing of their lgbt citizen's.

Charlotte fails miserably in that regard particularly in comparison to the other candidate cities. I've seen little to suggest that with so much riding on Charlotte that they are trying to change this even with the magical carrots of $150-200million to be gained plus immeasurable media exposure for the city, which makes me wonder if the city is really the right place for the convention.

I already stated I love this city and I am pretty proud of a lot of things here, but what good are things like developing mass transit, building an impressive skyline and adding new museums if there is still an active pushing away of a whole segment of a population - a segment I might add that most cities embrace and see as integral and vital part of their urban fabric.

I guess in short, I just don't know if my love for Charlotte in general translates into supporting this city as being a symbol for all Americans as would happen in 2012.

Edited July 23, 2010 by Urbanity

[Forrest]

Oh I agree that if LGBT issues are highlighted at all ( in the event we win this thing) they won't be a reflection of the host city's leadership regarding local equality. We still have the same head of the Visitors Bureau that went to Philadelphia for a learning tour and said Charlotte was not "ready" for gay focused advertising, when that city showed one of their LGBT focused ads to him.

The progress does seem glacial to me as well, especially compared to the other metros just in the Carolinas that are far ahead of us on this subject.

On the county level, we have had greater success and the Democrats on the board that unanimously backed DP's this year are up for reelection. Bill James and his cohorts will giddily repeal the benefits if they regain the majority.

It's important to support those that do keep their word and deliver on committments. And I plan doing as much as I can to help ensure they return and keep the Republicans in the minority.

Just wish their City Council Dem counterparts had the same cojones.

.

[Urbanity]

Well, I just wrote the DNC, the host selection committee and Gov. Kaine (DNC Party Chair) about my concerns with Charlotte's bid in regards to being the least embracing of its lgbt citizens out of the four candidates. Asked for them to discuss with the Charlotte committee on Tuesday as a concern for choosing Charlotte and for a response.

I realize that CLT tourism and marketing officials read this forum so hopefully they can get their ducks in a row and be prepared to respond because I'm not going to just accept a superficial "we love the gays" response.

Edited July 24, 2010 by Urbanity

[caterpillar2]

I am an outsider I suppose since I am not gay, but a supporter. I am wondering about the Black Pride activity. I thought the whole purpose of gay exhibitions was to gain the acceptance from others and to fight descrimination that has been an issue. Doesn't putting a "color" label on an event seem to present a feeling of exclusion to others that don't fit the description? Is there such thing as "White" Pride or "Asian" Pride. Please don't take this question as being an argumentive issue. I am just curious and don't quite understand.

[Urbanity]

^^^

Speaking as a white gay man with friends who are black and gay I'll tell you what I know and my take.

An issue in the gay community is one found in the larger society in that non-white people often feel marginalized. Being a person of color and gay can be a double stigma as they are dealing with issues of homophobia and racism both from society in general and within each of the communities (black and gay separately) that they identify.

Black Pride is a chance for gay black people to celebrate their numbers and sense of community and their unique struggles and achievements. The Charlotte Gay Black Pride that just past for instance was a weekend of events. There were discussion groups, an expo of orgs and businesses, and individual parties.

Black Pride is not meant to preclude a gay black person from participating in the general gay pride event, nor would a white gay person be unwelcome at Black Pride.

I hope this helps.

And btw as opposed to seeing anything from your question as argumentative as your feared, I'm personally appreciative of caring enough to ask!

Edited July 27, 2010 by Urbanity

[Forrest]

In relation to what we were discussing previously Matt Comer has discussed Charlotte's shortcomings on LGBT equality in the context of bidding for the DNC. It ain't pretty but in the end he says that hosting the event what be more of a plus than a minus for our community.

One would hope that the imminent spotlight would inspire our pols to speed up on our agenda but that is highly unlikely IMHO.

[Urbanity]

Yeah - I saw Matt's article and compilation of pieces about the state of LGBT and think it is brilliant. If anyone is interested I linked it below.

He and I have slightly different takes about the convention. He hopes we get it as it will/could aid in LGBT acceptance here. My take is that there is no guarantees of that and that if CLT wants it bad enough and truly is willing to accept the gay community here then there is a host of things they can do pronto and with ease to change the perception.

But Matt's piece again is a pretty extensive resource:: http://www.interstateq.com/archives/4192/

[Forrest]

What I found most instructive in the report was the behind closed door nature of the city's halfmeasure regarding employee protections. Instead of taking an opportunity to highlight this change it was hidden because of political homophobia. I am inclined to believe that the only reason sexual orientation got included at all is because Council did not have to talk about the "gay" and could ignore the whole thing. The press were not told of it and the Mayor has not gone public only talking about the change to the Gay and Lesbian fund because that is "safe". So it's a little hard for me to buy the "diversity" and inclusive line the boosters for the convention are pushing.

Well, if the City DP "study" ever ends the Council is not going to be able to hide from holding a vote. And win or lose at least we will finally see who really supports and who does not.

[southslider]

As someone currently living without a car, I'm rather disappointed that Pride is moving to a location not served by transit. It was bad enough when the Community Center moved to a hidden, long-walk locale. But now Pride?

[Urbanity]

^ I agree about the location issue. I live Uptown and am within walking distance of NCMF but I can appreciate your concern. However I will suggest that lots of people may be walking that day from Uptown so you will be in good company.

[southslider]

^How do you walk from Uptown? Up Graham then back on Seaboard? I thought 9th and 10th were now closed at the RR tracks or soon will be for the grade-separation project (of railroads, NS and CSX lines, not streets).