A Slice of African-American Transgender History

An exhibit entitled Carryin' On concluded yesterday at the Warhol Musuem in Pittsburgh, PA that I wish I'd known about sooner.

I was perusing Frank Leon Roberts' blog (don't know as of yet if we're related) and it mentioned a photo exhibit of GLBT themed work from Warhol, African photographer Samuel Fosso and Charles 'Teenie' Harris.

Andy Warhol in 1975 created a series of paintings, prints and collage studies titled Ladies and Gentlemen utilizing a number of New York City drag queens. Warhol sent assistants to the Gilded Grape, a bar on West 45th Street often frequented by Black and Hispanic transpeople to recruit models for the series.

Charles 'Teenie' Harris (1909-1998) was a photographer for the highly influential Pittsburgh Courier, one of the largest African-American newspapers at the time. This particular series of Harris’ work showcased in the just concluded exhibit celebrates Black GLBT life in Pittsburgh’s Hill District from the 1930’s through 1950’s.

During Harris' 40-year career with the Pittsburgh Courier he produced an estimated collection of 80,000 images. He earned the nickname 'One Shot Harris' based on his legendary reputation he gained for his ability to snap the picture and leave, requiring just one take to capture the essence of his subject. This archive represents the largest single collection of photographic images of any Black community in the US. This series along with the entire Harris collection is part of the Carnegie Museum of Arts collection

Scholar Frank Leon Roberts is carrying on the tradition with his photos of the ballroom community that he posts on his blog. If you saw Paris Is Burning and wondered if the community still exists, the answer after perusing his blog is an emphatic yes.

I was aware that the ball houses have spread up and down the East coast, into the Midwest and LA has chapters, but I was shocked to discover after I moved here that Louisville has ball houses. I was dismayed to find out after I moved from my beloved hometown that an active ballroom community has sprung up there and in Dallas.

Chicago had their own legendary Finnie's Ball that started in 1935. It was an eagerly anticipated event on Chicago's South Side that took place until the 80's. The balls were even covered by the Chicago Defender, Jet and Ebony (until 1953) magazines.

The just concluded exhibit helps drive home two points that I've been making for several years now. The African-American GLBT community just didn't spring up out of thin air. We've always been part of the African-American family and we have a history. The ballroom community that Frank documents sprang from the elaborate drag balls that were conducted during the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920's.

The other point is that we're here, we've always been part of the African-American family and aren't going away.