Dear Gaybashers by Jill McDonough | Poetry Foundatn

Contents:

• POEMS / GAY PRI POEMS - THE BT POETRY ON THE WEBNEWTSENSUALVIRTUOSO   FOLLOWON MAY 08 2014 09:17 AM PST  FREEDOM
• GAY PRI POEMS - POEMS ABOUT GAY PRI
• GAY PRI WEEKEND, S.F., 1992
• POEMS / GAY POEMS - THE BT POETRY ON THE WEBNEWTEMERE   FOLLOWON AUG 19 2023 06:26 PM PST  PLEADG TO KNOW
• DEAR GAYBASHERS

POEMS / GAY PRI POEMS - THE BT POETRY ON THE WEBNEWTSENSUALVIRTUOSO   FOLLOWON MAY 08 2014 09:17 AM PST  FREEDOM

June is Pri Month, an annual celebratn memoratg the 1969 Stonewall Rts, which took place New York Cy and lnched the lbian, gay, bisexual, transgenr, and queer rights movement the Uned Stat. The double meang wh body and “boy” is clever and the acronym wh the poem metaphorilly speaks to the plights of a trans dividual.the bo’y wak upthe bo’y looks at selfthe bo’y notic somethg missgthere is both too much and not enough flh on the bo’ythe bo’y is vered hairwhat a hairy bo’ysome mak look more like a bo’ysome mak look more like a monsterthe bo’y did not learn to shave om s fatherso tght self how to graze s sk and cut thgs offthe bo’y cuts self by accintthe blood remds the bo’y is a bo’yremds the bo’y how a bo’y bleedsremds the bo’y that not every bo’y bleedsthe bo’y talks to a girl about bleedgshe explas how this bo’y worksthis bo’y is different om hersbo’y has too much and not enough flh to be herthe blogy of a bo’y is jtbo’y will only ever be a bo’ythe bo’y is Blackso the bo’y is and will only ever be a bo’ythe bo’y uldn’t be a man if triedthe bo’y triedthe bo’y feels emptythe bo’y feels like will only ever be emptythe bo’y feels that will never hold the weight of another bo’y si of no matter how many ds f si the bo’ythe bo’y is a hollow fa attempts a nvcg veneerbo’y drs — what hips on the bo’ybo’y pats s face — what lips on the bo’ybo’y adorns self wh labels wrten for lovelier amwhat a betiful bo’ystill a bo’ybut a fierce bo’y nowa royal bo’y nowa bo’y worthy of beg lled queenwhat a dazzlg seto turn a bo’y to a lie everyone lov to look atthe bo’y looks at selfthe bo’y se all the gawkg at s glossthe bo’y hears all the mass askg for s missgthe bo’y offers all of s letters— ‘ b ’ for the birth— ‘ o ’ for the operatn— ‘ y ’ for the lack left s genwhat this bo’y would abandonfor the risk of  beg realthe bo’y is realenough and too muchexistg as s own erasure— what an elive d —evadg removalavoidg regnnleavg jt a bo’ythat is never lostbut n’t be found2"Dear Gaybashers" by Jill McDonoughMIGUEL SCHINCARIOL/AFP/Getty ImagWrten 2014, “Dear Gaybashers” by Jill McDonough is a mt-read for everybody, but pecially those who thk their tnts and jabs will sre off the LGBTQ+ muny om livg and lovg their life.

GAY PRI POEMS - POEMS ABOUT GAY PRI

They are strong, they are uned, and they uldn't re ls what you thk.The night we got bashed we told Rty howthey drove up, yelled QUEER, threw a hot dog, sped off.Rty: Now, is that gaybashg? Good pot.Josey pied the fools: who buys a perfectly good pack of wienersand driv around San Francis chuckg them at gays?And who speeds off?

GAY PRI WEEKEND, S.F., 1992

Missg the pot, the pleasure of the bash?Dear bashers, you should have seen the hot dog h my neck,the srf Josey sewed om antique silk kimonos: so gay. Youmissed lghg at , nfed, your raw hot dog on the ground.Josey and Rty and Bob make fun of the gaybashers, and Iwash my srf the sk. Not hot dogs thrown om F-150s,homophobic eaks.

POEMS / GAY POEMS - THE BT POETRY ON THE WEBNEWTEMERE   FOLLOWON AUG 19 2023 06:26 PM PST  PLEADG TO KNOW

Ass-sized pengus, c*ck after c*ck azure acrylic, butterstch glass, anyone's flh-tone, chrome.3“Gay Pri Weekend” by Brenda ShghnsyThis LGBTQ+ poem by Brenda Shghnsy touch on an experience she had wh a lover and discs how they’re brought together by their past trmas and how wonrful is to be out, loud, and proud.I fot how lh and electrified was wh you. It didn’t.4“The 17-Year-Old and the Gay Bar” by Danez SmhDanez Smh’s LGBTQ+ poem about a 17-year-old a gay bar tells the story of feelg like you belong, and feelg like they mt be heaven to have found others like them and to be accepted.this g-heavy heaven, blsed ground to thk gay & mean we.bls the fake id & the bouncer who knewthis need to be need, to belong, to know howa man taste full on vodka & ee of s.

He is jt.he begs me to dance, to marvel men wh thedashof hips i brought, he ems my mouth some stranger’s mouth necsary.bls that man’s mouth, the song we sway sloppy to, the beat, the bridge, the lengthof his hand on my thigh & back & i know not which untry i am of.i want to live on his tongue, build a home of gospel & gayetyi want to raise a cy behd his teeth for all boys of choirs & closets to refuge .i want my new god to look at the mec i built him & ll damn goodor maybe i’m jt tipsy & ee for the first time, willg to worship anythg i n taste.5"Whom You Love" by Joseph O.

For each gay kid whose adolcence was Ameri the forti or fifti the primary, the ccialscenar forever is g out —or not.

DEAR GAYBASHERS

My lover is a woman& when i hold herfeel her warmth i feel good feel safethen—i never thk ofmy fay’s voicnever hear my sisters saybulldaggers, queers, funny e see , but don’t brg your iends ’s ok wh , but don’t tell mama ’d break her heartnever feel my fatherturn his gravenever hear my mother cryLord, what kd of child is this?9"A Queerifitn" by Regie CabiDANIEL MIHAILESCU/AFP/Getty ImagAnother excerpt, this piece om “A Queerifitn” preach acceptance, inty, and that scriptns like 'queer' really don't mean anythg the bigger picture.queer me shift me transgrs me tell my stunts i’m gay tell chick fil a i’m queer tell the new york tim i’m straight tell the mail man i’m a lbian tell amerin airl i don’t know what my genr is like melikg youlike summer blockbter armrt datarmrt cematic loveelbow to forearm the dark humor me queerly fill me wh lghter make me high wh queer gas prs me om centuri of spanish quisn& self-righteo judgment10"Exclively On Ven" by Trace PetersonHere’s an excerpt om Trace Peterson's “Exclively on Ven.” This poem will give you chills wh s overwhelmgly lovely words and scriptns, provg that humans n't be forced to f to any type of box.Ros are red / vlets are transsexual / wele to womanhood / now get to work honeyRos are performative / vlets are blogil / I have very sensive breasts / and so do your breastsRos are blogil / you have the nict sk / I n’t stop kissg you / let’s read more nondualistic queer theoryRos are fed up / wh our bary fetish / I f*cked my doctors / and stole all the meditn to hi a ve and share wh other trans peopleRos have got me / up agast the wall / kissg my neck / which is socially nstcted to be a super hot strong femist neckRos are vlet / vlets are ros / I really like you / I like you tubeRos are born this way / vlets have a lbian streak / somethg about your dry sense of humor and our soft tertwed limbs / feels transcenntly femaleRos are blue / vlets are vlet / ros are nonvlet / blue is bluenormativeRos are om mars / vlets had the whole surgery / settg up mp / exclively on Ven11"I Am Not A Myth" by Matthew HtgerMatthew Hettger has said that he wrote “I Am Not a Myth” the voice of Marlene Derich who, acrdg to a bgraphy on Marilyn Monroe, found the lipstick trace on Marilyn's whe mk "madngly erotic." Hettger ed her voice to wre this poem and is credibly sexy.Marlene Dietrich remembers the night of the Marilyn Monroe Productns prs nference, New York Cy, January 1955I wanted to be that trace of srlet lipstickwhen you arrived, tipsy, a b chartrsea subdued platum angel, a whe mkstole. Both the doctor and the patient are the same age, both are gay, and the poem is an credible look at the emotnal attachment between the two men, both as patient and doctor, and as gay men.One day, I drew his blood, and while I didHe lghed, and said I was his girliend now,His blood-brother. When you’re gay Dixie,you’re a clown of a sperate circ.Sometim the only way to be like daddyis to hate like him—hope your brothers lghstead of shoot,wrap a nferate skirt around your waist.You trad glamour for nasty tricks—throng your mammy’s image for dollarsthat will never ver so much bt,unravelg years she lostlovg you for a livg."The Lns" by Adrienne RichI believe I saved the most powerful for last wh “The Lns.” I'm not a poem analyst by tra, but this one was so rivetg and I feel as though the lns is the person that has tght the poet that this untry may feel opprsive, but is for everybody.

Celebratg LGBTQIA+ Pri, June—and the rich tradn of gay, lbian, bisexual, transgenr, and queer poetry all year long—browse this selectn of poems by classic and ntemporary poets. “Gay Marriage Poem” by Jenny JohnsonWe uld promise to elope….