Pride & Joy: Taking the Streets of New York City

193 Pages·2016·17.31 MB·English

by  Wajdowicz, J

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Other Books in This Series PHOTOGRAPHY / GAY AND LESBIAN STUDIES $21.95 U.S.
Five Bells: Being LGBT in Australia Pride&JJooyy “captures the five-alarm sensory blast that
Jenny Papalexandris
is the nyc Gay Pride march.” —Kate Clinton
Lyudmila and Natasha: Russian Lives
Misha Friedman More than forty years have passed since members of the
Taking the Streets of New York City LGBT community took to the streets of New York City on the
Bordered Lives: Transgender Portraits from Mexico
first anniversary of the Stonewall riots, for the world’s first
Kike Arnal
P march for gay rights. From its modest beginnings, the annual
r
i event has grown into an all-encompassing celebration of
d
e queer culture, drawing more than a million people from all
&
“I had just moved to the city after graduating from college.
J over the world to the streets of New York each June.
It was really transformative for me, at age twenty, to be in o
With an introduction by satirist and activist Kate Clinton
y
that huge crowd of gay people. In everyday life my queerness,
| and published in the wake of the historic U.S. Supreme Court
J
or at least my outness, had become an issue. Looking for a u decision on same-sex marriage, Pride & Joy is an ode to what
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job, walking down the street, being with my family, there e
k is now a New York institution—a true photographic celebration
was always some degree of tension and friction because of W that captures the spirit of this remarkable gay pride event.
my difference. But here among the marchers, there was no a
j Energetic, colorful, and irreverent, these vivid images are a
d
difference.”—AliSOn Bechdel ow playful and moving affirmation of equality. Noted photographer
ic Jurek Wajdowicz journeys deep into the heart of the march,
“I first marched, in 1973, as an act of political assertion. We z
offering portraits of marchers, bystanders, and leading figures
were marching in defiance of the pressures to remain invisible,
in the LGBT community, images that revel in the rich diversity
of the fears we all carried with us about coming out into the
of the parade. Exquisitely presented, the book includes
open. That first march was so exhilarating that I knew I would
interviews with members of the queer community about their
keep doing it. I kept marching for the sense of collective
relationship to the march, chronicling a startling variety of
power and pride that the march provided.” —JOhn d’emiliO
responses to this integral part of New York life.
“I marched for women who needed no one to march, or The fourth in a major new series of LGBT-themed
do much of anything, for them. They did for themselves. photography books, Pride & Joy is a visual treat for
I marched to meet and mourn and resurrect the parts of photography lovers, an inspiration for the global queer
myself I keep cooped up or quiet. I marched to practice community, and a singular tribute to New York City.
stepping off my safe, private place on the pavement and into
the mad helter-skelter crush in the street. I marched to be
reminded that there is joy there, in the mix of singular, special Jurek Wajdowicz is a Polish-born American artist, fine
people in a common crowd, dancing differently together.” art photographer, and internationally known graphic designer.
—lAurA FlAnderS He lives and works in New York City. Together with Lisa
LaRochelle, he is principal of the award-winning design
“Harvey Milk encouraged generations of Americans to ‘come
firm Emerson, Wajdowicz Studios (EWS). EWS’s partners
out’ and demand our full dignity and equality. There is
and clients include foremost international humanitarian
probably no event that is more in the spirit of Milk’s exhorta-
organizations and nonprofit institutions active in social
tions than the Pride March: folks from all walks of life—gay
change. Wajdowicz is acknowledged as one of the leading
and straight—expressing their fundamental belief that we
graphic designers known for his photojournalistic creative
each have a right to live with dignity regardless of whom
approach to design. In recent years, he has also focused
we love.” —AnThOny rOmerO his attention on fine art abstract photography. His art
photography book, Liminal Spaces, was published in 2013.
Wajdowicz’s solo art photography exhibition Solace was
presented by the Kasia Michalski Gallery in 2015. His work
is included in permanent collections of museums in the
Jurek Wajdowicz
United States, Germany, Poland, and Switzerland.
with an introduction by Kate clinton is a nationally known humorist, activist, and
Kate Clinton award-winning writer specializing in political commentary
www.thenewpress.com
from a gay/lesbian point of view. She is the author of several
Cover photographs © by Jurek Wajdowicz books, including Don’t Get Me Started, What the L?, and
Cover design by Emerson, Wajdowicz Studios (EWS) I Told You So. Clinton lives in New York City.
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STR/107_PRIDE&JOYcover_Final_0318.indd 1 3/24/16 6:00 PM
Pride&Joy

Pride&Joy
Taking the Streets of New York City
Jurek Wajdowicz
THE NEW PRESS
© 2016 by Jurek Wajdowicz
Preface © 2016 by Jon Stryker
Introduction © 2016 by Kate Clinton
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced, in any form, without written permission from the publisher.
Requests for permission to reproduce selections from this book should be mailed to:
Permissions Department, The New Press, 120 Wall Street, 31st floor, New York, NY 10005.
Published in the United States by The New Press, New York, 2016
Distributed by Perseus Distribution
ISBN 978-1-62097-185-7 (pbk)
ISBN 978-1-62097-206-9 (e-book)
CIP data available
The New Press publishes books that promote and enrich public discussion and understanding of the
issues vital to our democracy and to a more equitable world. These books are made possible by the
enthusiasm of our readers; the support of a committed group of donors, large and small; the col-
laboration of our many partners in the independent media and the not-for-profit sector; booksellers,
who often hand-sell New Press books; librarians; and above all by our authors.
www.thenewpress.com
Book design and composition © 2016 by Emerson, Wajdowicz Studios (EWS)
This book was set in Helvetica Inserat, Helvetica Neue, Franklin Gothic and News Gothic
Printed in the United States of America
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Preface
JON STRYKER
The photographs in this book and others in this series are part of a larger collective body
of commissioned work by some of the world’s most gifted contemporary photojournalists.
The project was born out of conversations that I had with Jurek Wajdowicz. He is an
accomplished art photographer and frequent collaborator of mine, and I am a lover
of and collector of photography. I owe a great debt to Jurek and his design partner,
Lisa LaRochelle, in bringing this book series to life.
Both Jurek and I have been extremely active in social justice causes—I as an activist
and philanthropist and he as a creative collaborator with some of the household names
in social change. Together we set out with an ambitious goal to explore and illuminate
the most intimate and personal dimensions of self, still too often treated as taboo: gen-
der identity and expression, and sexual orientation. These books continue to reveal the
amazing multiplicity in these core aspects of our being, played out against a vast array
of distinct and varied cultures and customs from around the world.
Photography is a powerful medium for communication that can transform our under-
standing and awareness of the world we live in. We believe the photographs in this series
will forever alter our perceptions of the arbitrary boundaries that we draw between others
and ourselves and, at the same time, delight us with the broad spectrum of possibility for
how we live our lives and love one another.
I am particularly happy seeing Jurek’s Pride & Joy come to life. For this book he is
not only the artistic director, but also the photographer. He, and the other photographers
in this ongoing series, are more than craftsmen: They are communicators, translators,
and facilitators of the kind of exchange that we hope will eventually allow all the world’s
people to live in greater harmony. n
Jon Stryker, philanthropist, architect, and photography devotee, is the founder and board president of the Arcus Foundation,
a global foundation promoting respect for diversity among peoples and in nature.
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Introduction
KATE CLINTON
Stepping off the curb into the New York City SAGE, TransPride, International Pride, LGBT
Pride Parade has the exhilarating, familiar employee groups, the Imperial Court, the
rush of “Here we go!” Supreme Court decisions, the fireworks, the
dance on the pier, the next day’s mandatory
All the decisions behind that
brunch recap.
day’s first step:
All of these somehow crystallize into one
The outfit, the layering, the shoes, the
glorious, joyous, outrageous, sexy, sweaty,
snacks, the hydration, the ID, the SPF, the
present moment—as small and beautiful as
phone calls, the texts, the plans to meet, the
a glittered nipple and as large and beautiful
affinity group, the banner, the slogans, the
as the rainbow flag rippling down the canyon
glitter, the makeup, the precision dance-step
of Fifth Avenue.
practice, the post-parade plans.
The decision to come out of the closet is
All the politics of the parade:
a very private moment. Each lesbian, gay,
The organizing, the meetings, the fund-
bisexual, and transgender person faces it.
raising, the infighting, the committees, the
No confetti, no thumping bass, no cheering
subcommittees, the sub-sub-subcommittees,
people. Those who have come out know the
the ordering of the rainbow-balloon arch
subtle shift forward, the first step out of the
and port-o-johns, navigating the labyrinthine
closet, then the wild, liberating, headlong
city departments, the noise ordinances,
rush of “Here we go!”
the parade security, the registration, the
The Pride Parade celebrates and inspires that
volunteer lawyers, the corporate sponsors,
moment and that movement every year.
the politicians, the reviewing stand, the
selection of grand marshals, the marshaling Stepping off the curb, off the sidelines,
of volunteers, the cleanup. into a community.
All the history of the parade: Here we go!:
The Stonewall riots, the Homophile Society, Rumors of a parade of those who have
the parade on the first anniversary of the come out, news stories, and police reports,
riots, the first years of visibility, the growing spur others to join the masses.
numbers, the numbers disputed by the
Marchers with bags on their heads
media, the party, the disco beat, the AIDS
now posting sweaty selfies.
protests, the moment of silence, the chants,
the signage, the protesters, the spectators, Chanting, chatting, waving, smiling.
the sirens, the Big Apple Marching Band,
PFLAG, the Center kids, the leather
contingent, Lavender Light Gospel Choir,
the LGBT veterans, the veteran LGBT elders,
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