Out & About
Event celebrates 50 years since iconic speech that changed LGBTQ history
Join us May 12 to commemorate Fryer’s effort to remove homosexuality from APA list of mental disorders
The Washington Blade today announced that tickets are now available for its commemoration of the 50th anniversary of John Fryer’s groundbreaking speech to the American Psychiatric Association urging the group to remove homosexuality from its list of mental health disorders.
The event will be held Thursday, May 12 at The Corner at Whitman-Walker (1701 14th St., N.W.) beginning with a cocktail reception at 6 p.m. followed by a panel discussion at 7 p.m. The American Psychiatric Association is the presenting sponsor. Tickets are FREE and available now at washingtonblade.com/panel.
The panel discussion will feature four experts on the topic: Dr. Saul Levin, CEO and Medical Director of the APA; Dr. Karen Kelly, a friend and mentee of Dr. Fryer; Katherine Ott, Ph.D., a curator in the history of medicine at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History where she documents LGBTQ+ history; and Dr. Amir Ahuja, president of the Association of LGBTQ Psychiatrists (AGLP).
The panel will be moderated by award-winning filmmaker Patrick Sammon, who co-directed “Cured,” a documentary about the activists who fought to convince the APA to remove the diagnosis of homosexuality from its manual of mental illnesses.
Fryer, a closeted gay psychiatrist, addressed the 1972 APA national convention in disguise with his voice altered and urged the organization to remove homosexuality from its Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, which it subsequently did, marking a major turning point in the fight for LGBTQ equality.
“We’re excited to partner with the APA on this event marking 50 years since Dr. Fryer’s immensely important speech that took away the right’s most potent weapon it used against us — that we were mentally ill and unfit for jobs in the government, military, and elsewhere,” said Washington Blade Editor Kevin Naff. “The importance of this moment in our community’s history cannot be overstated.”
“John Fryer’s courageous actions were a watershed moment for psychiatry, the APA, and the LGBTQ community,” said Saul Levin, M.D., M.P.A., CEO & Medical Director of the American Psychiatric Association. “Every day we work to honor the legacy of Dr. Fryer and the activists who fought alongside him to achieve freedom, equality and acceptance for LGBTQ people in America.”
Out & About
Washington Improv Theatre hosts ‘The Queeries’
Event to celebrate queer DMV talent and pop culture camp
The Washington Improv Theatre, along with the Mayor’s Office of LGBTQ Affairs and the Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington DC, will team up to host “The Queeries!” on Friday, April 26 at 9:30 p.m. at Studio Theatre.
The event will celebrate Queer DMV talent and pop culture camp. With a mixture of audience-submitted nominations and blatantly undemocratically declared winners, “The Queeries!” mimics LGBTQ life itself: unfair, but far more fun than the alternative.
The event will be co-hosted by Birdie and Butchie, who have invited some of their favorite bent winos, D.C. “D-listers,” former Senate staffers, and other stars to sashay down the lavender carpet for the selfie-strewn party of the year.
Tickets are just $15 and can be purchased on WITV’s website.
Out & About
Drag Underground returns
Indiana Bones, Bombalicious Eklaver, Shi-Queeta Lee, Cake Pop! to perform
Dupont Underground and the Washington Blade have teamed up to host “Drag Underground” on Friday, April 26 at 7:30 p.m. at Dupont Underground.
Performers include Indiana Bones, Bombalicious Eklaver, Shi-Queeta Lee and Cake Pop.
Tickets start at $15 and can be purchased on Eventbrite.
The annual White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner is set for Saturday, April 27 at the Washington Hilton with Colin Jost serving as emcee.
President Biden is scheduled to speak and numerous celebrities are expected around D.C. all weekend for related parties and events.
The Washington Blade is the only LGBTQ outlet that is a member of the Association and is hosting a table of VIPs, including actor Billy Porter and Congressman Robert Garcia (D-Calif.).
“We look forward to the Dinner each year to celebrate our press freedoms and to thank a range of allies and supporters for their work on behalf of the LGBTQ movement,” said Blade Editor Kevin Naff.
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