Growing up gay in the south
By Joshua Brown
Logan Lee&#;s travel-journal-turned-memoir recounts the author&#;s formative years as a gender non-conforming Kentuckian. Lee&#;s authorial voice reads smooth and affectionate, like an afternoon check in from a good ally. This personal tone serves his twofold goal for the book: offering a &#;guidebook&#; for young people on similar journeys of discovery, and to &#;serve as a resource&#; for their loved ones who may not understand.
Purchase here: Small Town Gay: Growing Up Different in the South =cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_MQKBH3GBKQGS4C18EZ38
A chronicle of stories from childhood to present, Small Town Gay revels in the details of life in the fictitious town of Mercer, KY — and the joy of Lee&#;s work really is in these details. From pranks endured at the hands of big sister Leanne, through grade-school friends and early-adult lovers, Small Town Gay creates an intimate time-warp of memories. We follow Lee&#;s growth through his own eyes, as the subject acting out these memories and the voice describing them constantly approach convergence.
Throughout the book&#;s odd-year span, we greet and pass by a battalion of women: family members, teachers, friends, girlfriends, mentors. Th
Growing Up Southern And Gay
In the south, we possess a saying, “we don&#;t hide crazy, we march it out on the front porch and grant it a sweet tea.” It is an engaging turn of phrase that most people don&#;t grasp. The basics of it mean that whatever makes us different isn’t something you hideaway in the dark recesses. Instead, carry it out for all to see and be grateful . But it also has a second meaning, one that refers to the fact that even the oddest parts of our families are still, just that… family.
But that is not the case with all the crazies…
Perception of being Southern and gay
There are plenty of television shows and movies that show how southern belles cannot go one unattached place without their homosexual besties, giving them both beauty and fashion suggestions. Those queer men dressed to the nines and held in high regard, in many circles.
The south, however, is a very class-ridden society that places more importance on social status than anything else.
Those less than fortunate circles aren&#;t as lucky. Religion becomes a more dominant mindset and forces many queer folx to retreat to a life of being in the closet. A brutally, classist identity that hasn&#;t changed m
Iremembermy first solo in the Sunbeam Children’s Choir at Antioch Baptist Church: a beautiful, southern, predominantly African-American congregation nestled in the countryside outskirts of Richmond, Virginia. “Yes, there is hope,” I belted at the top of my five-year-old lungs, watching as the congregation applauded and shouted words of praise and worship. In that moment, I remember feeling so alive and almost magical, as if the microphone was a wand that caused the audience to get emotional and feel moved. I instantly fell in love with singing, and the stage became a sacred cosmos.
Growing up in Virginia was overall a pretty experience and is still a big part of who I am. It was good eating, excellent manners, and a whole lot of love. My community was filled with warmth, hospitality, and essence. My family always helped and embraced others and instilled those values in me from an premature age. My mother worked two, sometimes three jobs simultaneously to provide for me and my sister.
My parents divorced when I was baby, so I did not really possess much of a father figure growing up (which, unfortunately, seemed to be a common theme amongst of lot of the black students I knew). Sinc
Small Town Gay: Growing Up Different in the South
Grady
Author 51 books1, followers
‘Learning to accept myself was a journey that took time’
Kentucky author Logan Lee is a nurse by trade and an advocate for ‘every soul who has never fit the norm – every human being who’s ever felt isolation, anxiety, or a painful sense of not belonging (or all of the above)….encouragment to reach into your full self, whoever that may be. and to embrace every inch of who you are without shame, embarrassment, or dread.’ SMALL TOWN GAY is his debut publication.
The introductory comments Logan offers, prior to sharing his memoir, aptly propose the quality of his writing: ‘This book is a memoir of what I endured throughout grade school, middle school, elevated school, and beyond, while being different from those around me. Learning to accept myself was a journey that took day. I’m sharing my story with you…in hopes that it will give you the courage to acknowledge yourself and be ‘you’ too.’ He states that his intention in writing is to provide the guidebook he never had and to serve as a resource for the family and friends of people who are coming out – a process he believes should be healin
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