#gonia

[poetry-protest-pornography]

This is incredible.

[waitmyturtles]

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This season’s socially-conscious pop anthem comes from a very different trio than you’re probably imagining: an Indigenous trans musician, an environmentalist drag queen, and cello legend Yo-Yo Ma. “Won’t Give Up,” streaming now on major platforms, is a collaboration between Ma, climate-conscious drag performer Pattie Gonia, and Quinn Christopherson, a transgender singer-songwriter of Ahtna Athabascan and Iñupiaq descent. According to an interview with the three in Broadway World this week, Ma first reached out to Gonia (whose real name is Wyn Wiley) to join his ongoing project, “Our Common Nature,” which Ma describes as a “cultural journey” uniting communities with one another and the planet to promote climate action. Upon discovering she was already working on a song centered around Alaskan glaciers, the two combined their projects and brought on Christopherson, who is native to the region. Gonia sings on the track, backed up by Christopherson, who also rounds out the instrumentation with acoustic guitar.

[faerielate]

There should be a drag king equivalent to the drag queen Pattie Gonia

And they should go by: Smokey The Bear

[lauraepartain]

Mermaid of the Chattahoochee, Pattie Gonia | Sept 2023

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Ryan Adamczeski at The Advocate:

The Smithsonian Institution is disputing reports claiming it has decided not to hold its usual drag events after complaints from Republicans. Institution leader Lonnie Bunch met with the House Administration Committee for a hearing on December 12, during which U.S. Rep. Stephanie Bice, a Republican from Oklahoma, questioned him about the drag shows the Smithsonian annually hosts. “I think it’s not appropriate to expose children to drag shows,” she said, to which Bunch replied, “I’m surprised, and I will look into that.”

An investigation by The New Republic found that there are no drag shows currently scheduled during 2024 at any of the 20 museums and galleries under the Smithsonian, which would make this June the first Pride Month without a drag event at the institution in over five years. However, a spokesperson for the Smithsonian told The Advocate that the organization is currently working to schedule "at least one" drag event during the month — a drag queen story hour event for families, though it has not yet been finalized.

The New Republic also reported that the Smithsonian cancelled drag events that were already scheduled, as drag queen and environmentalist Pattie Gonia told the outlet that after working on a show for the Smithsonian since December, the organization suddenly called off the performance.

[...] The Smithsonian Institution is the largest group of museums, education and research centers in the world, overseeing galleries primarily in Washington, D.C. but also in the neighboring states of Maryland, New York, and Virginia. Its coalition of LGBTQ+ museum workers and allies, the Smithsonian Pride Alliance, has regularly put on drag performances. The group was formed in 1988 in response to the AIDS epidemic “to ensure adequate and appropriate representation” of queer employees in Smithsonian policies and programs. Smithsonian Pride Alliance Leadership sent a letter to Bunch directly after his comments at the December hearing, expressing that the comments not only invalidate drag as a "form of self-expression and an artform," but also that they "hurt the staff who work hard on these programs and the staff who feel as though our bit of culture is being left out of the American story, despite contributing so very much to it."

Bunch responded immediately, explaining why he responded in the way he did while also expressing appreciation for the group's "courageous outreach and willingness to broach this topic." "When the question about drag performances was asked in the hearing setting, it was asked in a suggestive way implying that the Smithsonian was promoting lewd or inappropriate content," Bunch said in an email shared with The Advocate. "My reply and reaction to that implication was swift to immediately stress that the Smithsonian does not expose children to inappropriate content. Unfortunately, as you can imagine, a hearing setting does not give you ample time to expand, elaborate or share the details and impact of all our work and content." "If so, it would have given me the opportunity to speak more broadly about the merits and goals of our programming and content development and how we equip parents to make choices about what content their children experience," he continued.

Smithsonian Institution responds to reports of drag shows disappearing from its calendar, thanks in part to the GOP's faux moral panic campaign against drag.

[catboymafia]

[jemirrose]

An homage to Pattiegonia my favourite queen 👑

[fionastrashheap]

A miss

[scp-basilisk]

Dream blunt rotation

[uhhhhmanda]

It's a whopping 55 x 35 feet!!!! The group that hung it is called Trans Is Natural, among whom is the magnificent Pattie Gonia: drag queen, environmentalist, and National Park ranger.

[lauraepartain]

Pattie Gonia | Sept 2023 Getting to photograph Pattie Gonia this September was such a delight! People like them aren't easy to come by. Drag Queen, Artist, and Activist, Pattie uses their talents to help bring about positive change on our planet, particularly with in regards to inclusivity in the outdoors, and environmental justice.