One hundred years ago, New York City was in the midst of the so-called Pansy (Queer) Craze, which catalyzed the raucous eroticism of the Jazz Age. Prohibition revelers flocked to see queer performers at the Astor Hotel and the Cotton Club. Broadway stars rubbed elbows with Harlem Renaissance luminaries at the Hamilton Lodge Drag Ball. Shortly thereafter, there was a crackdown, not unlike the one alt-right conservatives are mounting against LGBTQ+ communities today. It’s a familiar pattern, characterized by advances in social rights followed by reactionary efforts to dial them back.

“Queer Craze 2.0: An Intergenerational Conversation and Centennial Celebration” will focus on historical parallels between the 1920s and the 2020s, using Margaret Vandenburg’s new novel, Craze, as a springboard. Then, as now, New York was teeming with gender-bending people from all walks of life. The two conversationalists will be Margaret Vandenburg (novelist, playwright, academic) and Temi George (writer, sound artist, Lesbian Herstory Archives affiliate). If past is prologue, revisiting the Queer Craze might help us navigate current culture wars.

This event will take place in person at the Bureau of General Services—Queer Division, on the second floor (room 210) of The LGBT Community Center, 208 W. 13th St., NYC, 10011.

Registration is not required. Seating is first come, first served.

Suggested donation to benefit the Bureau: $10.

All are welcome to attend, with or without a donation.

We will pass a bag for donations at the start of the event, but we can also take credit card donations at the register or on Venmo @BGSQD