Bricks have become symbolic for the LGBTQ+ community. However, Hunny Blunt, a 27-year-old local drag performer in Memphis, tells the Flyer that it isn’t a violent symbol, but rather one that bears meaning and is representative of an ongoing struggle present in the community.
Blunt explains that the brick symbolism dates back to the Stonewall riots in New York City in 1969, a pivotal moment in LGBTQ history. “When we hold a brick in the air, we’re not necessarily threatening violence or inciting any sort of damage,” Blunt explains. “What we are doing is really paying homage to the fact that we were so repressed that we literally had to fight back with bricks.”
Hunny Blunt, like many others in the LGBTQ+ community, has been fighting back in a number of ways over the past few months. Most recently Governor Bill Lee signed legislation that will negatively impact members of the LGBTQ+ community. Some of these bills include Senate Bill 3 and Senate Bill 1.
Opponents of the legislation say it serves as an attempt to erase LGBTQ+ culture from Tennessee.
“You read the wording of some of these bills and it’s so hateful. I can’t believe nobody said ‘This is a little too much,’” said Jenna Lee Dunn. Dunn serves as the trans services specialist for OUTMemphis, and recently started Jenna On Fire Productions, LLC. “There is no line or boundary with these people. They’re just hateful. They want to get rid of us completely.”
Members of the LGBTQ+ community have decided that they will not go quietly and are planning to take an active stance against the legislation. One of these ways is through an event called “Rage On The Stage: Trans Day of Visibility, Drag Show Riot.” The event will be held on March 30th at the Hi-Tone Cafe.
The event was created by Dunn, who invited several community partners to sponsor the event.
“We need to be seen. We need to be making noise to show how big we are in number,” says Blunt. “I think we are reaching that turning point where it does feel good to see allyship from people. It does feel good to be seen and accepted.”
Blunt explains that it is important for them to stand in solidarity, as these bills impact the community as a whole, and not just drag performers and trans youth. “A lot of these drag bans really target transgendered people who really aren’t drag performers, but are everyday transgender people” she says. “We have transgendered drag performers of course, but there are transgender people that don’t necessarily do drag, but that’s how they live their life, and these laws can really prevent them from being in any kind of safe space.
The idea of not only having a safe space, but the need to be seen and heard has been a common theme amongst participants and event organizers like Dunn, who says that there are certain places, like drag shows, where people in the community feel more comfortable. She says that her love and passion for the trans community, as well as having friends that are drag performers, has amplified her drive for wanting to put on events such as this one.
“I can’t go to Nashville and force these people to not pass these bills, and to change their minds and to stop hating people,” she says, “but what I can do is create outlets for people to be able to go and enjoy themselves and try to get some of this off of their mind.”