·Watch the documentary “Paris is Burning” and consider how personal style can be. Also consider how malleable style can be: So often it is a performance.
And yet the authenticity is not a barrier to watching the film or appreciating the work and effort shown on screen.
Take a screengrab of a moment you found very personal and authentic. Write 100-150 words about why you chose that moment.
Post the image and text to your LP.
I remember reading this passage, which said: “A person with a weak will to survive, a person who only loves tragedy, he still attaches great importance to his appearance, makes every effort to understand, improves his ability, and reminds himself to be honest, reveals the most vulnerable defects, just to be destroyed in a beautiful posture, so as to set off a tragedy.” The life of LGBTQ community is not a tragedy, but their life is much more difficult than others. “You have three strikes against you in this world, every black man has two – that they are just black and they are male – but you are black and you are male and you are gay.” As one of the voguers suggests at the very beginning, the film reveals the anguish and hardship for black queers to sustain themselves in a world filled with homophobia, transphobia, racism, and poverty. Under-ground drag-ball scene provides a place for the LGBTQ community to fully realize their lives and escape from this unwell world. Only when they are here at night can they show the most beautiful and moving side and show their true selves. Even if their life is full of twists and turns, even if they are not recognized, they still try their best to live seriously. They love to be beautiful, to laugh, to be lively, to dress up, and to love their life. So when the side face of this make-up profile appeared, I felt touched, and some very personal emotions erupted. This moment is not “they are like us”, but “we are like them”. They deserve to be treated well and respected.
