Go Triad, Greensboro News & Record October 14, 2004

Are You Game?

BY JERI ROWE, GO TRIAD EDITOR

Nancy Sinatra’s tawdry classic "These Boots Are Made for Walkin’ " blasted from the Empire Room’s sound system as a drag queen named Crystal Frost strutted across the room in a black mini-skirt, ice-blue sequins and knee-high boots with seven-inch heels that would make Cher jealous.

But Karla Kincaid paid him no mind. And it wasn’t because his own outfit from eBay was so "Laugh-In" chic for this 1960s-themed party. No, Greensboro’s most recognizable drag queen had a bingo game to run. So, after Frost finished performing, Kincaid stood in front of the crowd of 400 and called their attention to the big screen.

It was time to begin.

"Repeat after me," Kincaid proclaimed.

The crowd hushed and began.
I pledge allegiance to the dauber

Of Green Queen Bingo of the Triad

And to the hilarity

For which it stands;

One community, under stress

Striving for acceptance of all



The crowd applauded and prepared for the third installment of Guilford County’s biggest nonalcoholic party of the year: Green Queen Bingo, a fund-raiser for the Guilford Green Foundation, a nonprofit volunteer organization that raises money for Guilford’s gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community, known in the local gay culture as GLBT.

Green Queen Bingo has been a risk. The Future Fund, a group of young philanthropists with the Community Foundation of Greenboro, gave Guilford Green a $10,000 grant to help get Green Bingo started in February. But many wondered whether gay bingo could be successful in a socially conservative city where the gay population has often been unseen and unheard.

The answer is yes — so far. Green Queen Bingo has attracted sell-out or near sell-out crowds in its three events and has raised $14,000, with one more event scheduled for Halloween weekend. Later this month, Guilford Green will award $47,500 in grants — the most money the group has ever given in its 10-year history — thanks in part to Green Queen Bingo. Guilford Green has raised nearly $100,000 this year, and next year, Green Queen Bingo will be self-funded.

And this all comes in a year when gay life has become a divisive hot-button politicial issue. But on this particular night a few weeks ago, there was no talk about the proposed Constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage. This crowd, gay and straight alike, came to play bingo.

Near the front by the clutch of drag queens was Jo Cole, known to her friends and family as "Mama Jo." She came with her son and daughter to celebrate her 83rd birthday. Near the back was Richard Levy with his 18-year-old son, Edward. He came to help his son understand differences.

And tucked near the Empire Room’s far corner, was Jeremy Raines, a sixth-grader wearing one of his favorite baseball shirts. He came with his father, who’s gay, because he likes playing bingo and seeing people he knows.

Matt Hill, who stood by the door, took it all in. In gay bingo lingo, he was a "bingo verifying diva," BVD for short. He’s a volunteer. But he’s also a gay 18-year-old from Winston-Salem who has comtemplated suicide over the loneliness and confusion caused by his sexual orientation; one who has seen the word "Fag" scratched across the passenger side of his pickup truck.

At Green Queen Bingo, he was with a crowd of like-minded people who were raising money for causes that would help him cope and function.

"There is a community that needs support and feels disenfranchised by America — the American government mainly — and to see this (a diverse crowd) reinforces what I do: working for equality and awareness," said Hill, a UNCG freshman who founded the Gay Straight Alliance at Reynolds High, his alma mater.

But it hasn’t been summer-camp sweet. At the first Green Queen Bingo in February, a dozen protesters picketed the event, toting signs that read, "Protect our Children." Then three local residents stood before the Guilford County Board of Commissioners and asked them to stop funding Triad Health Project, a nonprofit AIDS support group. Why? Triad Health Project benefitted from Green Queen Bingo, an event the residents saw as deviant.

Triad Health Project didn’t lose its funding, and the protesters haven’t been back. Still, the sentiment remains. Some of the drag queens don’t reveal their real names in print because they are worried about retaliation and bigotry. Just a few weeks ago in downtown Greensboro, two gay men holding hands were walking down South Elm Street when someone yelled from a passing car, "Queers! Faggots!"

But organizers, participants, Future Fund members and city leaders see Green Queen Bingo as a good start toward breaking down barriers in the name of promoting tolerance and diversity in Greensboro. At the first Green Queen Bingo, Kincaid stood in front of the room and asked two questions.

"How many here are gay?"

Half of the people in the room raised their hands.

"How many here are straight?"

Half raised their hands.

When Judith Kobler heard that, she felt goosebumps rise on her arms. She had lived in secret for decades, disguising her life as a lesbian. But not anymore.

"I never thought I would see this day," said Kobler, 67.

It’s not surprising to some that this acceptance would happen in Greensboro, a city with a history of promoting diversity and tolerance dating back to its Quaker roots. But Green Queen Bingo, the most high-profile event ever undertaken by Greensboro’s gay community, had upped the ante.

Future Fund members, who usually fund more practical ideas such as creating wireless Internet downtown, awarded Guilford Green a $10,000 grant because they believed the event would help draw and keep young people in Guilford County. Moreover, they believed the grant would help the region’s bottom line and help dash the idea that Greensboro, as one longtime restaurateur has said, is "confoundingly square."

In the past two years, rock-star economist Richard Florida has told leaders of both Greensboro and Winston-Salem that a thriving gay community is a good indication of a place that’s tolerant, nondiscriminating and good for business.

Levy, president of a manufacturing company, believes that.

"I love going to an Irish bar and being able to get stout on draft, and that is a certain level of sophistication, and this is, too," said Levy, 54, about Green Queen Bingo. "With that being said, Greensboro is going from being a little provincial Southern town to a more cosmopolitan city, and that’s so important. The whole future of the city depends on all sorts of people coming to Greensboro, and the more at ease they feel, the better it is for the city."

But between shouts of "Bingo!" can lessons really be learned? Jeremy Raines, 11, says yes.

Jeremy says it was difficult at first when his father first told him he was gay. But now, it has become easier to accept, with the help of events such as Green Queen Bingo. He says Green Queen Bingo is "fun," the drag queens are "funny," and his dad’s friends are "pretty cool."

"I just want my dad and other gay/lesbian people to be treated like they should and not like dirt on the road," Jeremy said. "They’re normal human beings. They may like different things but they don’t deserve to be treated differently."

As Jeremy talked from the back of the Empire Room, the night’s six drag queens stepped onstage to perform for a roaring crowd.

Jessica O’Brien came out in an ankle-length hot pink coat and sang Helen Reddy’s "I Am Woman." Then Natasha Diamond turned aerobic during Toni Basil’s "Mickey." She flipped, somersaulted and did splits.

"Mama Jo" Cole just laughed. This frail woman of barely 100 pounds was out of her wheelchair, clapping and smiling. She told O’Brien, "You are my role model," and asked another drag queen about her enhanced physical endowments.

"EBay, honey, eBay," the drag queen shouted back.

After the production numbers, Kincaid led the crowd in singing "Happy Birthday" to Mama Jo.

"She’s 83 and playing gay bingo," Kincaid proclaimed.



Contact Jeri Rowe at 373-7374 or jeri@gotriad.com

Transcribed to computer file: December 19, 2004