House Of LaBeija
The Royal House of LaBeija is a prominent drag family founded by Crystal LaBeija and Lottie LaBeija in 1972. Crystal and Lottie established the House of LaBeija in response to the racially oppressive drag pageant system of 1960s America. Their first event was called "Crystal & Lottie LaBeija presents the first annual House of Labeija Ball at Up the Downstairs Case on West 115th Street & 5th Avenue in Harlem, NY." This is thought to be the birth of house culture within the ballroom scene—as it is known today. Houses serve as alternative families, primarily for gay, gender nonconforming and transgender A transgender (often abbreviated as trans) person is someone whose gender identity or gender expression does not correspond with their sex assigned at birth. Many transgender people experience dysphoria, which they seek to alleviate through ... youth and others who feel ostracized from conventional support systems. House of LaBeija Film On April 19, 2022, the Tribeca F ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Drag Queen
A drag queen is a person, usually male, who uses drag clothing and makeup to imitate and often exaggerate female gender signifiers and gender roles for entertainment purposes. Historically, drag queens have usually been gay men, and part of gay culture. People partake in the activity of ''doing drag'' for reasons ranging from self-expression to mainstream performance. Drag shows frequently include lip-syncing, live singing, and dancing. They occur at events like LGBT pride parades, carnivals and drag pageants and in venues such as cabarets and nightclubs. Drag queens vary by type, culture, and dedication, from professionals who star in films and spend a lot of their time in their drag persona, to people who do drag only occasionally. Those who do occasional drag may be from other backgrounds than the LGBT community. There is a long history of folkloric and theatrical crossdressing that involves people of all orientations. Not everyone who does drag at some point in the ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Crystal LaBeija
Crystal LaBeija (born 1930s, died 1990s) was an American drag queen and trans woman who founded the House of LaBeija in 1968. The House is often credited as starting the house system in ball culture. She became a mother figure for homeless LGBTQ youth. Career LaBeija originally worked and competed on the Manhattan drag circuit under the name of Crystal LaAsia, before changing her name to LaBeija as Latin queens kept calling her ''La Belleza'' (Spanish for "the beauty"). In the 1960s and 1970s, drag queens of color were expected to whiten their appearance to help their chances at winning competitions and they often faced racist environments. LaBeija was one of only a few African American drag queens to be awarded a "Queen of the Ball" title at a drag ball organized by whites during this era. In 1967, she was crowned Miss Manhattan. LaBeija subsequently competed in the 1967 Miss All-America Camp Beauty Pageant held in New York City Town Hall, a competition documented in ''The Qu ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Lottie LaBeija
Lottie is a feminine given name, often a diminutive for Charlotte or Lieselotte. It may refer to: People *Lottie (name) Places * Lottie, Louisiana, United States, an unincorporated community * Lottie Lake, Canadian hamlet * 3489 Lottie, a main-belt asteroid Other *Lottie Dolls, children's fashion dolls made by Arklu Ltd. *''The Lottie Project'', a 1997 children's novel by Jacqueline Wilson *Lottie Sleigh, an 1852 sailing barque *Severe Tropical Cyclone Lottie, a deadly 1973 Australian region cyclone that was originally named Natalie *Lottie (file format), file format for vectorial graphics See also * * Lott (other) * Lotte (other) * Lotti Lotti may refer to any of the following: * Antonio Lotti (c.1667–1740), Italian composer * Brian Lotti, U.S. professional skateboarder * Carlo Lotti (1916–2013), Italian engineer and professor of hydraulic construction * Carola Lotti (1910– ..., a list of people with the surname {{disambig, geo, given name, surnam ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Racism In The United States
Racism in the United States comprises negative attitudes and views on race or ethnicity which are related to each other, are held by various people and groups in the United States, and have been reflected in discriminatory laws, practices and actions (including violence) at various times in the history of the United States against racial or ethnic groups. Throughout American history, white Americans have generally enjoyed legally or socially sanctioned privileges and rights, which have been denied to members of various ethnic or minority groups at various times. European Americans, particularly affluent white Anglo-Saxon Protestants, are said to have enjoyed advantages in matters of education, immigration, voting rights, citizenship, land acquisition, and criminal procedure. Racism against various ethnic or minority groups has existed in the United States since the early colonial era. Before 1865, most African Americans were enslaved and even afterwards, they have faced sev ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Drag Pageantry
Drag pageantry is a developed form of pageantry for female impersonators, drag queens, and trans women, styled after traditional beauty pageants or contests for cisgender women. It has also evolved into a pageantry for male impersonators, drag kings and trans men. National pageants in the United States National drag pageants became enmeshed within the gay community during the 1960s with a national circuit of pageants organized by Flawless Sabrina and have become increasingly prevalent since. Drag pageants were held in individual gay bars, and discothèques during the post Stonewall era. Drag pageants evolved independently, in the decade subsequent to the first gay Mardi Gras coronations. Miss Gay America Mirroring the format of the Miss America contest, the first national gay pageant Miss Gay America (MGA) was held in 1972 at the Watch Your Hat & Coat Saloon in Nashville, Tennessee, Nashville's first gay dance and show bar. Jerry Peek opened this bar in 1971, and it was ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Ball Culture
The Ballroom Scene (also known as the Ballroom community, Ballroom culture, or just Ballroom) is an African-American and Latino underground LGBTQ+ subculture that originated in New York City. Beginning in the late 20th century, Black and Latino drag queens began to organize their own pageants in opposition to racism experienced in established drag queen pageant circuits. Though racially integrated for the participants, the judges of these circuits were mostly white people. While the initial establishment of Ballroom mimicked these drag queen pageants, the inclusion of gay men and trans women would transform the Ballroom scene into what it is today: a multitude of categories that all LGBTQ+ people can participate in. Attendees "walk" these categories for trophies and cash prizes. Most participants in Ballroom belong to groups known as "houses," where chosen families of friends form relationships and communities separate from their families of origin, from which they may be estr ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Ballroom Culture
The Ballroom Scene (also known as the Ballroom community, Ballroom culture, or just Ballroom) is an African-American and Latino underground LGBTQ+ subculture that originated in New York City. Beginning in the late 20th century, Black and Latino drag queens began to organize their own pageants in opposition to racism experienced in established drag queen pageant circuits. Though racially integrated for the participants, the judges of these circuits were mostly white people. While the initial establishment of Ballroom mimicked these drag queen pageants, the inclusion of gay men and trans women would transform the Ballroom scene into what it is today: a multitude of categories that all LGBTQ+ people can participate in. Attendees "walk" these categories for trophies and cash prizes. Most participants in Ballroom belong to groups known as "houses," where chosen families of friends form relationships and communities separate from their families of origin, from which they may be estran ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Gender Variance
Gender variance or gender nonconformity is behavior or gender expression by an individual that does not match masculine or feminine gender norms. A gender-nonconforming person may be variant in their gender identity, being transgender or non-binary, or they may be cisgender. In the case of transgender people, they may be perceived, or perceive themselves as, gender-nonconforming before transitioning, but might not be perceived as such after transitioning. Transgender adults who appear gender-nonconforming after transition are more likely to experience transphobic discrimination. Terminology People who exhibit gender variance may be called ''gender-variant'', ''gender-nonconforming'', ''gender-diverse,'' or ''gender-atypical''. The terms ''gender variance'' and ''gender-variant'' are used by scholars of psychology, psychiatry, anthropology, and gender studies, as well as advocacy groups of gender-variant people themselves. The term ''gender-variant'' is deliberately broad, enc ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Transgender
A transgender (often abbreviated as trans) person is someone whose gender identity or gender expression does not correspond with their sex assigned at birth. Many transgender people experience dysphoria, which they seek to alleviate through transitioning, often adopting a different name and set of pronouns in the process. Additionally, they may undergo sex reassignment therapies such as hormone therapy and sex reassignment surgery to more closely align their primary and secondary sex characteristics with their gender identity. Not all transgender people desire these treatments, however, and others may be unable to access them for financial or medical reasons. Those who do desire to medically transition to another sex may identify as transsexual. ''Transgender'' is an umbrella term. In addition to trans men and trans women, it may also include people who are non-binary or genderqueer. Other definitions of ''transgender'' also include people who belong to a third gender, ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Pepper LaBeija
Pepper LaBeija (November 5, 1948 – May 14, 2003) was an American drag queen and fashion designer. LaBeija was known as "the last remaining queen of the Harlem drag balls". Early life and career LaBeija was born in The Bronx. While LaBeija identified as male, she preferred to be referred to by the feminine pronoun ''she''. In 1981, she took over from Crystal LaBeija as the head of the ball culture House of LaBeija (from which her surname was derived). She remained the head (known as "the Mother") for over 20 years. LaBeija competed in numerous drag balls and was known for her Egyptian-inspired runway performances. Over the course of her career, she won approximately 250 trophies. To earn money, she produced drag balls and taught modeling. Later years and death LaBeija and her companion Pamela Jackson had a daughter together, and LaBeija devoted much of her time to her family, raising her daughter and stepson. In 1992, Pamela Jackson died. As LaBeija's health declined, her c ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Kia LaBeija
Kia LaBeija (born Kia Michelle Benow; March 18, 1990) is an American fine artist. Her most well known series, ''24,'' is a sociopolitical commentary on the effects of growing up as a young woman of color with HIV. She is a former Mother of the Royal House of LaBeija. Biography Kia LaBeija was born and raised in Hell's Kitchen, New York. Her mother, Kwan Bennet, was born in Subic Bay, Philippines and is Filipino American. Her father, drummer Warren Benbow, was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York and is African American. She grew up in Manhattan Plaza and was in the dance program at Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Alvin Ailey. In 1993, LaBeija was diagnosed with HIV at the age of three, having contracted the virus through perinatal (mother-to-child) transmission. Her mother, Kwan, passed away of HIV/AIDS, AIDS-related illness when LaBeija was 14. LaBeija studied the arts at Eugene Lang College of Liberal Arts at The New School in Manhattan. At the age of 19, while at The ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Aja (entertainer)
Venus Nadya Oshun, known professionally as Aja LaBeija, better known mononymously as Aja () (born January 4, 1994) is an American rapper, reality television personality and drag queen best known for competing on the ninth season of ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' and on the third season of '' RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars''. Aja released her debut EP, ''In My Feelings'', in 2018, followed by her debut studio album, ''BOX Office'', in February 2019. Her second EP, ''ALL CAPS'', was released in June 2019. She released '' Nail in the Coffin'', a Halloween-themed EP, in collaboration with Shilow later that year. She recently starred as a contestant on the third season of ''Legendary'' on HBO Max, where she finished in 6th place with the House of LaBeija. Early life Aja was born on January 4, 1994, in Bedford–Stuyvesant, Brooklyn. She was raised by adoptive parents. She used to suffer from PTSD and anxiety, attributing her to a "broken family" situation, but stopped having panic attacks af ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |