Features
“She liked her own sex — and they liked her.”
In September 1906, Constable Donnelly of Brisbane arrested William Edwards on a warrant from Victoria for burglary. The policeman already knew Edwards, a popular and personable barman at a city pub. Donnelly made the acquaintance of the short, slightly built Bill Edwards 14 months before. However, in all that time, he never suspected, until informed …
No hurry to claim Alan Jones as our own
Alan Jones is, many people believe, a misogynist. Yet the most common word used for him by online detractors is arguably the most misogynist in the English language. Similarly, people usually scathing of homophobia don’t hesitate to call Jones a ‘bitter old queen’. What do we do about a man who brings out the worst …
Voyager disaster survivor dreamed of owning a Roller
As a kid, Royce Dunbar collected Matchbox Rolls Royce’s – toy cars – and dreamed of owning a real one. Perhaps a childish notion but dreams can come true and after an eventful life, including surviving the Voyager disaster, Royce ultimately owned a Roller. Born in Western Australia during World War II, he enlisted in …
The lesbian love letters of an American First Lady
Rose Cleveland served as First Lady for her unmarried brother for fourteen months in the 1880s. Although history remembers her as First Lady to President Grover Cleveland, she deserves recognition in her own right and for her great relationship with the love of her life, Evangeline Whipple. A new book Precious and Adored: The Love …
Jesus never mentioned homosexuality, nor Paul hell
Martyn Iles of the Australian Christian Lobby and Israel Folau like to discuss the Bible. Although neither is a minister of religion, they are two of the most prominent Christians in Australia today. When they discuss the Bible or the teachings of Jesus Christ, they both invariably mention homosexuality. So one might assume a preoccupation …
Laurie Deane: Living Treasure of Queensland
Most readers will not know the name Laurie Deane. However, most over 25 years of age, know of Dame Sybil von Thorndyke, legendary founder, hostess and director for forty years of Brisbane’s Annual Queens Birthday Ball, now the longest running gay event in the world. A sensationalist tabloid once breathlessly reported that Laurie Deane lived …
Friends of Dorothy: Judy died 50 years ago today
Judy Garland, the gay icon once called the ‘The Elvis of Homosexuals’, died on this day in 1969. Gay mythology long connected her funeral with the Stonewall riots and therefore the birth of the Pride movement. Gay historians however, dismiss the connection. One explained the rioters “were not the type to moon over Judy Garland …
Pearl of the Outback and fashion beyond the black stump
Pearl of the Outback, our regional correspondent, takes us back to Bullamakanka and a colourful local identity. Mr Humphries is the doyen of women’s fashion out in the never never, beyond the black stump. Avid readers will recall the gent I previously christened Mr Humphries. For the uninitiated, he is a VERY gay blade who …
‘Renewal begins with us’: The way forward under re-elected Coalition government
Rodney Croome is a long-time LGBTI equality advocate. As a strategist in numerous campaigns for equality, Rodney says our community can still make change and meet threats under the re-elected coalition government. I won’t sugar coat the election result: Australia has the most socially and religious conservative government in a generation. Many leading Liberal moderates …
Gay Erasure: F***, Fight or Fluke: Gayme of Thrones Pt 2
The history of monarchs often reveals stark evidence of gay erasure. In Part One of this series we looked at earlier English kings. In this instalment of Gayme of Thrones we hark back to the Greek poet Sappho and then examine Edward II of England. Despite the earnest propaganda of monarchists, divine right has SFA …