It’s another fraught Pride Month in the South, where LGBTQ rights remain under attack from conservative lawmakers. This week we talk to Dolores Wilk of Central Arkansas Pride about their advocacy for the state’s queer population, and the importance of visibility — including a Pride celebration right in front of the state Capitol Building.
Also: The Supreme Court lets Alabama go back to marginalizing Black voters; the troubled history of a for-profit immigrant detention center in Louisiana; and Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger disappoints the state’s cannabis industry. Plus, a look at gay Florida playwright Matthew Lopez, and a current production of his work in Jacksonville.
Show Notes:
Central Arkansas Pride
“Norman Jones” Encyclopedia of Arkansas
“Supreme Court’s Alabama redistricting ruling marks brazen reversal of its previous stance” Democracy Docket
“Sanitation, use-of-force transparency lacking at Winnfield ICE facility, inspection finds” Louisiana Illuminator
“Migrants detained at ICE facilities launch hunger strikes to protest conditions” Stateline
“My Four Months as a Private Prison Guard” Shane Bauer, Mother Jones
“ICE detention is growing in the South. This state was the first.” USA Today
“Record-Setting $7 Million Settlement Caps LaSalle’s Legacy at Texarkana Jail” Prison Legal News
“Louisiana jury awards more than $40 million to family of man who died in privately-run jail” Associated Press
“Another year, another Va. retail cannabis market veto leaves businesses, the public with few options” Virginia Mercury
The Legend of Georgia McBride The 5 & Dime Theatre Co.