Tag: louie a. ortiz-fonseca
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The (Mis)Education of AIDS Storylines on TV Shows: The Hogan Family
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the hogan family, originally titled “valerie” before the title character was killed off at the start of its third season in 1988, was an american sitcom starring jason bateman that revolved around three teenage brothers who were being raised in oak park, illinois by their airline pilot father and their…
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MAGIC.: a mixtape
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we love playlists! especially on fridays! we partnered with Familia: Trans & Queer Liberation Movement to create a series of spotify playlists. here is the second of four playlists. curated by louie, “magic.” is a playlists that invites listeners to take some time today, even if just a few moments, to…
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House of Love: Songs That Soundtracked the AIDS Crisis of the 80’s & 90’s
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this past october marked the 35th anniversary of the release of dionne warrick’s cultural milestone single “that’s what friends are for.” the one-off collaboration with the equally iconic gladys knight, elton john and stevie wonder, “that’s what friends are for” was released as a charity single in 1985 to support AIDS research and prevention. originally released as a very schmaltzy and forgettable…
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JOCELYN ENRIQUEZ
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my love for jocelyn began on a hot summer night in 1994. my friend oscar and i were on our way to check out the then just released disney movie “the lion king.” as we drove down hunting park avenue, we chatted as we listened to FM radio. remember terrestrial…
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The Songs I Loved: En Vogue’s “You Don’t Have To Worry”
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there are some songs from 1990 that i love but seldom listen to because they put me in space of melancholy. en vogue’s uptempo funk/pop gem “you don’t have to worry” is one of those songs. the third single from their iconic debut album “born to sing,” which celebrated its…
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The Songs I Loved: Neneh Cherry’s “I’ve Got You Under My Skin”
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almost 10 years into the AIDS epidemic, and only 4 years removed from the first time president reagan uttered the mentioned AIDS in a public address, the imagination of most americans and mainstream news media, AIDS was just a “gay disease” that was “killing all the right people.” it was…
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The Black History of Freestyle Music
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the late great and house music pioneer, dj frankie knuckles, once said that house was disco’s revenge. and he wasn’t lying. but in the years between the racists- and homophobic-driven disco backlash in 1979 and the rise of house music in the late 1980’s, black, latinx and lgbtq club goers…
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THROWBACK: MY 25th ANNIVERSARY
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in 1995 i was a at a crossroads. i was an 18 year old high school drop out with a 8th grade education. my mother had moved out of the dilapidated house we called home leaving me and my brother younger brother nicholas to fend ourselves. i was still holding…
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LARRY LEVAN
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there once existed a black queer man who used the art of mixing songs to transform a converted parking garage into an oasis for black, brown and queer folks who were committed to surviving together – on the dance floor. the paradise garage, located on 84 king street in manhattan,…
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WHEN HOUSE MUSIC WAS BLACK & GAY
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happy pride, y’all! this weekend marks the 50th anniversary of the first pride events throughout the country. june 28, 1970, queer and trans folks marched to commemorate the one-year anniversary of the stonewall riots. pride events grew out of the anti-police protests led by Black and brown trans and queer…
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Puerto Rican Day Parade 1990
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in september 1990, the first queer contingent marched in philadelphia’s 26th annual puerto rican day parade. organized and led by primarily latinx gay men, particularly puerto rican gay men living with AIDS, the collective marched holding signs and posters calling out the puerto rican government’s slow response to the epidemic.…
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My Request For My Son (A Poem For My Son)
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oh my sonthey will mock youand try to stop youand block your magicthey will twist your beautybut it is your dutyto do more than laugh and cry awaythe ugly words they will say. oh my sonthey will tell you to obeyas it will keep the bullets awaybecause it won’t. they will…