Community News.
WV Queers News, helping bring a community together.
By Zack Steed, photos donated from various sources. Feb 23, 2010
West Virginia has always been a place a place where homophobia has been a big issue, mainly because of fear of persecution from the rednecks that live there. In the past growing up gay in this state could mean torment or many ways, leading up to death if you were discovered to be homosexual. That being said there has never been much of a gay community until one man decided that he wanted to take a stand and try to unite a community that he felt deserved to be known.
In 2002 Terry Urban decided that he wanted to try to bring the community of the area together through an online magazine that he titled “West Virginia Queer News”. It is amazing the impact that this one man could have on a community, with his help the gay community of Parkersburg has become something to be recognized and respected, rather than made fun of and looked down upon. Through the years of dedicated service Terry has added a multitude of events that the magazine supports, with the most prominent being the Terry Awards.
When asked what the Terry Awards were and why he started them, he answered, “The Terry Awards is a set of reader’s choice awards that I hold each year. It is dedicated to the online chatters in the various gay chat rooms within the state, and also is a chance for the writers of the paper to be recognized for their dedication and hard work throughout the year. The reason for the Terry Awards is simple: It establishes recognition within a group for various things, and makes people in our community feel more important.” The Terry Awards, also becoming widely known throughout the state as, “The Gay Grammys” is on its way to being the biggest gay event in the state of West Virginia. People come from all over the state to see if they will be the winner of the infamous “gay Grammy.” These awards are not the only event that West Virginia Queer News hosts throughout the year; they also hold many different pageants.
Each year the magazine sponsors at least 2 pageants. One is the Ms WV Queer News Pageant, and the other is the Mr. WV Queer News. We hold a pageant and people come to compete for the title from all over the state. It is always a great show and everyone enjoys themselves,” stated Terry. The Miss WV Queer News Pageant is the second largest gay pageant system within the state of West Virginia, it is only second to the Miss WV Gay Pride Pageant held in Charleston, West Virginia. Competitors from all over the state come and they “work it out” in this battle to see who the best diva is. The time and effort that these guys and girls put into their repertoire, from their costumes to their dance moves, is outstanding! It just goes to show how much they want to win so that they get the chance to represent the magazine for the next year, and show their support for their community.
The first Miss WV Queer News pageant was held in March 2007 at Woodstarr, a local gay club in Parkersburg. Entertainers showed up from Morgantown, Charleston, Clarksburg, and Huntington, West Virginia. They all came to show their support and vie for the title at stake. It was a very close call, however only one woman could prevail. “The first Miss WVQN was crowned in March of 2007. She is, and forever will be, known as the first lady of West Virginia Queer News, Ms Robin Hearts from Vice Versa in Morgantown, WV,” stated editor of the magazine.
After the first Miss WV Queer New pageant the magazine started to become widely respected, which helped to get new writers to join the staff. Jim Lawson, author of the “Speak Out” column, was one of the columnists to join the papers ranks. He is widely known throughout the gay community for his very unique perspective on events that transpire. If you want to a good read that is sure to spark controversy this column is definitely one to check out in the paper. When asked about his controversial column Jim responded, “I do not try to spark controversy with my column; it is just that I believe that others within our gay community need to see someone else’s point of view to get a different side of the story so that they get the full effect.”
The magazine is flourishing and bringing the community together through the hard work and dedication of the staff who vigorously work to give credible and inspirational news to their fellow peers. Dustin Sprouse, an avid weekly reader commented, I believe that WV Queer News is one of the best things to happen to this state. At each event that I go to, I see more and more people supporting the magazine. It seems to bring people from all areas together to support one another.”
The influence that can come from someone finally being able, and willing, to take a stand can affect an entire region in a positive way if done correctly, and Terry has done just that. Most people will not stand up due to their fear, but there comes a time when fear must be overcome. Rosa Parks was a small black woman, and even she wasn’t afraid to take a stand. If it weren’t for her one small action, and the actions of Martin Luther King, then the world would still believe that black people are inferior to white people. It is understandable why people are scared to take action and stand up, and being a gay man or woman, your fear is well deserved. Persecution of gays has taken things to the extremes before, and though homosexuality is becoming more widely accepted there will always be those who will harbor ill will towards homosexuals.
West Virginia Queer News has helped to spread the word of homosexuality throughout the straight community as well holding conferences at local libraries. These conferences help to spread the awareness of difficulties and tribulations that homosexuals in the community face on a daily basis. With this step the gay community of Parkersburg has been on the rise on the radar. Many people have attended these events, and the people that attend become supporters to try to help fight for gay rights not only within the state but the country as well.
Unfortunately, there were those who were not so happy about the show of support for the local gay community. There were protesters there with signs and megaphones shouting how God hates homosexuals, and that all gays and straight people that supported them would burn in hell.
The response of the festival committee and participants alike was to simply ignore the vicious comments being shouted at them. It was the opinion of everyone in attendance that they deserved to have the opportunity to show their support for one another without letting the ignorance of uneducated bigots ruin their good time. That is exactly what they did too.