Also.Also.Also: Dive Into the Pages of This Southern Black Queer Magazine That Started in 1995

There was a huge storm in Orlando last night, and my WiFi router will no longer turn on as a result! So I’m coming at you live via my hotspot while that gets sorted out. I hope technology is not failing you today the way it is for me.


Queer as in F*ck You

From the Black Queer South to the World. The Atlanta-based queer Black magazine Venus started in 1995 and ran for 12 years, and you can read all about its history and legacy in this fantastic JSTOR Daily feature. Charlene Cothran started the magazine three years after the death of Atlanta’s Black lesbian activist and community organizer Venus Landin, who the magazine was named after. The feature also touches on broader history of Black queer publishing and media, particularly in the South.

Also from JSTOR Daily, which really is an excellent publication: Searching for Queer Spaces.

Here are two good things happening in California: A New California Law Will Soon Block Schools From Banning LGBTQ+ Books.

California Just Became the First State to Declare a Transgender History Month. Would love if more states followed suit, but this should also come with an expansion of protections for trans people and genuine efforts to combat transphobia.

But also, in bad California news: The “Parental Rights” Fanatics Have Descended on LA.

And in bad news from my neck of the woods: It Sounds Like Florida Is About to Lose Abortion Access.

Ending this section on a lighter note, for my Bravo Dykes: This Is What a Real Housewife Looks Like.


Saw This, Thought of You

The Summer of the Black Woman.

History! Of! Pockets! How the Humble Pocket Came to Signify Feminist Liberation.

Feminist Film Theory: An Introductory Reading List.


Political Snacks

Anti-LGBTQ+ Laws Are Pushing More Trans People to Run for Office.


One More Thing

It’s still summer until September 24!

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Kayla Kumari Upadhyaya

Kayla Kumari Upadhyaya is the managing editor of Autostraddle and a lesbian writer of essays, short stories, and pop culture criticism living in Orlando. She is the assistant managing editor of TriQuarterly, and her short stories appear or are forthcoming in McSweeney's Quarterly Concern, Joyland, Catapult, The Offing, and more. Some of her pop culture writing can be found at The A.V. Club, Vulture, The Cut, and others. You can follow her on Twitter or Instagram and learn more about her work on her website.

Kayla has written 885 articles for us.

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