Thrills & chills
Oct. 29 — We’re putting the finishing touches on the November issue of Georgia Voice, which will be online Friday and in racks next week. Meanwhile, Halloween is on Friday, and we’ve got some spooky fun in our Best Bets calendar below, plus an interview with stars of the new horror flick, “Queens of the Dead.”
But first, a few headlines:
🤬 The Trump administration once again scapegoated the transgender community, stating it would not use emergency funds to pay out SNAP benefits during the government shutdown, blaming Democrats for holding out for “healthcare for illegal aliens and gender mutilation procedures.”
👓 Atlanta City Councilman Alex Wan, the first gay Asian American council member who is up for reelection on Nov. 4, was profiled in the Bay Area Reporter.
🗳️ Speaking of elections, early voting for municipal elections and the crucial Georgia Public Service Commission seats ends on Friday. Find your early voting locations here.
🗣️ A presentation on the results of the Atlanta LGBTQ+ Community Center Feasibility Study will be given on Tuesday, Nov. 4, at 7 p.m. at Out Front Theatre Company.
🎗️ In the UK, King Charles unveiled a memorial for LGBTQ+ soldiers who were forced to serve in silence until 2000.
🗑️ Irish avant-garde pop star Róisín Murphy is off my playlist after exposing herself as a transphobe. She’s already been kicked out of a music festival for her social media posts.
I was empty as a grave and ghostless was the air…
Collin
Kennesaw Pride Alliance to form nonprofit following DEI cuts
🏳️🌈🏳️⚧️ Following the closure of Kennesaw State University’s LGBTQ+ Resource Center, the student organization Kennesaw Pride Alliance is forming a nonprofit to maintain its support of LGBTQ+ students and expand its reach to other universities in Georgia.
The closure of the resource center came after the Trump Department of Education’s new civil rights guidance targeting DEI practices.
Partnering with local First United Lutheran Church, KPA opened the Kennesaw Pride Center in August at a space located in the church for students to engage with community support groups, movie nights, game nights, a queer library, a community closet, and mental health counseling – all built entirely by students without support from the university.
The student organization is currently filing for 501(c)(3) status to create Georgia Pride Alliance, a parent organization for the group that would formalize the structure of KPA and potentially expand its reach to students at other schools.
➡ Read Katie Burkholder’s full story here.
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SCOTUS to consider marriage equality challenge
⚖️ The U.S. Supreme Court will consider whether to hear a challenge to marriage equality during a private meeting on Nov. 7, according to a report from The Advocate.
The challenge comes from Kim Davis, the former Kentucky county clerk who defied a federal court order to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples after the 2015 SCOTUS ruling on Obergefell v. Hodges.
Davis was fined $100,000 and briefly jailed after refusing to issue a license to a gay couple, stating it was against her religious beliefs. She has asked the court not only to reverse the judgment against her, but also to overturn the ruling on marriage equality.
Stars talk queer zombie apocalypse in ‘Queens of the Dead’
🧟 It didn’t take Nina West long to decide she wanted to be part of the new movie “Queens of the Dead.” When she heard it was a Tina Romero queer zombie film, that was basically enough.
In theaters now, “Queens of the Dead” is a zombie apocalypse comedy thriller where club kids and drag queens in Brooklyn have to save themselves and the city. Romero, the daughter of legendary horror filmmaker George A. Romero (“Night of the Living Dead,” “Dawn of the Dead”) has rounded up a huge queer cast, including Katy O’Brian, Margaret Cho, Cheyenne Jackson, Dominique Jackson, Tomas Matos, and West.
➡ West, who starred in Season 11 of “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” and Matos, from Andrew Ahn’s “Fire Island,” spoke to contributor Jim Farmer about the project.
Halloween Best Bets
🎂 Ts Madison is hosting her birthday bash and Halloween party on Oct. 30 from 9 p.m. to 3 a.m. at Cirque in Midtown.
🍦 Athens Pride and Queer Collective is hosting a Halloween Ice Cream Social on Oct. 30 from 3 to 6 p.m. at Jeni’s on Lumpkin Street. A portion of the sales benefits the organization’s gender-affirming care grant.
👹 Mary’s in East Atlanta is hosting Night of the Demons on Oct. 31 with a costume contest and disco seance with DJ Headmaster and Party Hearst.
🧌 Lore is hosting Freakshow: A Queer Carnivale on Edgewood starting at 9 p.m. on Oct. 31 with a fortune teller, photo ops, freaky clown Go-Gos, a special drink menu, and drag queens galore.
😱 Underground Atlanta is hosting Fear Festival, billed as the city’s biggest costume party, on Upper Alabama Street. You can then dance the night away at MJQ Concourse and The Masquerade.
💃 The Atlanta Eagle is hosting The Crypt Keeper’s Ball on Oct. 31 with a midnight costume contest, DJ Mike Bradley, drag shows, and dancing all night.
🪩 Heretic Halloween will feature DJ Mike Pope and a costume contest. Doors open at 10 p.m.
🎃 Colgay Pride in Columbus is hosting its annual Halloween Festival Party on Oct. 31 from 5 to 11 p.m. at 4214 16th Ave.
👻 The annual Halloween Club One Cabaret Spook-tacular is Oct. 31 at the historic Savannah nightspot with drag shows, dancing, and karaoke.