To wrap up LGBTQ+ Pride Month 2026, The Sick Times hosted Virtual Pride, a COVID-conscious drag show featuring queer and disabled performers in the Long COVID community from across the country, hosted by Sick Times contributor and poet Khalil Dennis.
In this episode of Still Here, we’re sharing the Q&A that followed the show. Performers Taipei, Mondo Millions, King LOTUS BOY, Ginger Ail, and Katie Drackert open up about the ancestors and mentors who shape their work, camp and absurdism as tools against denial and fascism, the unlearning required to embrace disability, and where they find queer joy outside of Pride Month.
Subscribe to Still Here wherever you get your podcasts, and leave us a review letting us know what you think of the show.
Spotify
Apple Podcasts
PocketCasts
iHeartRadio
RSSPerformers’ social media:
Jump to a specific part of the transcript:
Intro
Melanie Marich: [00:00:00] Before we get started with today’s episode, we wanna let you know that The Sick Times summer fundraiser has begun. Stay tuned till the end of the episode to learn more, or check out the links in the show notes
welcome to Still Here, a Long COVID news and commentary podcast from The Sick Times.[00:00:30]
Miles Griffis: I’m Miles Griffis
Betsy Ladyzhets: And I’m Betsy Ladyzhets. We’re the co-founders of The Sick Times
Melanie Marich: And I’m Melanie Marich, the podcast producer for Still Here.
Miles Griffis: Many institutions are ignoring the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and trying to erase the Long COVID crisis
Betsy Ladyzhets: But here at The Sick Times, we’re bringing you the latest news and commentary that matters to the Long COVID community
Miles Griffis: Without pandemic denial, minimizing, or [00:01:00] gaslighting
Melanie Marich: Being sick during Pride can be a drag. This year, The Sick Times decided to take that quite literally. To wrap up LGBTQ+ Pride Month 2026, we hosted Virtual Pride with The Sick Times, hosted by Khalil Dennis, AKA Chaotica, and featured a bunch of incredible performers from the queer and the Long COVID community: Ty Pay, Mondo Millions, King Lotus Boy, Ginger Ale, Katie [00:01:30] Draker.
We saw nerdy drag. We saw a very campy car wash. We saw a routine that forever changed how we see a Swiffer. It was magic. At the end of the show, our brilliant performers gifted us with a Q&A where they shared about their work, their inspirations, and how they keep going amid sickness, oppression, and much more
For today’s episode, we’re sharing that conversation. Please note that our performers use some colorful language on occasion, so some listener discretion may be advised. Happy Pride from The [00:02:00] Sick Times today and every day. Here’s that conversation
Q&A with TST Pride 2026 performers
Khalil Dennis: So thank you all, of course, of submitting your performances. That was lovely. Um, and so it’s clear from the tapestry of this panel that you all hold a deep curiosity for history, advocacy, and a reverence for rich cultural storytelling. As we enter Disability Pride Month, I wonder which ancestors or [00:02:30] inspirations are you carrying on stage as you navigate grief, joy, and resistance?
And anybody can answer this
Ginger Ail: Hi, everyone. Um, I’m Ginger Ail. Uh, I’m currently wearing, um, a gray, a dark gray, like, pinstriped little blazer. Um, and I have a bunch of clown makeup on. My hair is quite spiky, and I have a little curl that kind of spirals down in the middle of my forehead. [00:03:00] Um, in regards to ancestors that I look to, um, is it okay if I say two?
Okay, cool. Um, so I’m gonna say a person that I do know personally, and then I’m gonna say someone that I look up to. So first one, Andrea Gibson. Um, I feel like Andrea’s work really encapsulates what queer grief specifically feels like for me. Um, I feel like [00:03:30] Andrea just has a, a, a, a way with words that I, I, I hope to encapsulate in how I perform and also how I, I move through nightlife spaces and also just my life in general.
I think their work is really remarkable in capturing feelings that aren’t always discernible with words right away. And then someone who I do know personally is, um, kind of a [00:04:00] cliché answer, but my mom. Uh, I grew up, um, seeing her deal with a lot of really scary health complications surrounding multiple sclerosis.
So growing up, she was kind of my first introduction to, like, disability and also mobility aids ’cause she used several throughout my life. So when I was starting to become more disabled, I really leaned on her for advice on how to navigate it since her disabilities were worsening at around [00:04:30] my age several years ago.
Um, so her input, especially growing up as a disabled person with MS specifically in the ’70s, ’80s, ’90s, where no one really knew what MS was, and it was still really heavily stigmatized. Um, like she was put in like a separate gym class even on account of her disabilities that weren’t diagnosed yet. Um, so her input [00:05:00] coupled with literature from queer disabled folks has really, I think, been pivotal in the way that I navigate queerness, um, and, and disability for sure
King LOTUS BOY: this is, uh, King Lotus Boy. Um, I use he, ze, or they pronouns. And as for a visual description, I am a light-skinned Chinese American trans person with black hair in a mullet with a [00:05:30] fringe, and I’m wearing round silver glasses. I have a silver dangly septum ring, and I’m wearing a black, uh, a red, um, muscle T that says, “Free Palestine,” on it, but you can’t see it, but now you can.
Um, I just, yeah, I will try to be brief ’cause I know we’re short on time. But last year we lost two revolutionary disability justice oracles, um, and leaders, and they’ve been on my heart and mind almost every day since. First is Patty [00:06:00] Berne, who was the co-founder of Sins Invalid, i- which is a revolutionary arts organization that centers disabled QT BIPOC people.
And Sins Invalid’s 10 Principles of Disability Justice, if you don’t know what that is, look it up, uh, has really been kind of like my North Star for my values, my politics, my artistic work. Um, and of course, we also lost Alice Wong, who is a writer, organizer, [00:06:30] founder of the Disability Visibility Project, and someone who I’m really honored to have called a friend in this lifetime.
Um, both, both their work and their writings were really transformative to me coming into my understanding of, like, my disabilities, my purpose. And I think about Alice a lot because I think that she really embodied disabled joy, whether it’s, like, through hosting really fun and generous parties or creating spaces for disabled people, [00:07:00] and specifically disabled and immunocompromised people, to come together and just express our full range of humanity.
Um, but also she embodied disabled rage, which I don’t know about y’all, but I’ve been feeling a lot of that lately, and especially around the ongoing pandemic. She never stopped advocating for masking, especially as someone who could not mask, and it really at times angers me, and I, I try to, you know, release that through art, but it angers me to see how many people [00:07:30] honored Patty and Alice, uh, when they became ancestors, but those people still aren’t masking in their daily lives.
And so to me, you’re not honoring people in life at all, and you’re not honoring disabled life, which is what we’re all here to do, right? Um, disabled joy, rage, resistance, grief, all of it. And to me, masking is not only about accessibility, it is resistance. It is resistance to so many things, surveillance, police state, airborne illnesses.
Um, and so those are the two ancestors [00:08:00] I really wanted to call into the space today. Thanks.
Khalil Dennis: Thank you so much, King Lotus Boy, for bringing in Patty and Alice into this space. Um, really appreciate you. Um, this is the next question that I’m fielding to all of our performers, but many of you help organize accessible in-person events in your communities.
What top tips do you have for people wanting to organize safer events? For example, how do you [00:08:30] determine venues to partner with, or how do you respond to various access needs of a space?
Katie Drackert: Um, I would love to talk about this if that’s okay. Okay. Hi, everybody. My name is Katie. I am a white woman wearing a black lace jester collar with bell and a dark blue and green striped shirt, and I have short brown hair and very glamorous makeup on.
Um, a f- I’ll do the, my top [00:09:00] two ’cause I think there’s a lot of people with a lot of wisdom around this, but one is don’t neglect your local library. At least in Austin, we have, um, rooms that we can rent for free. The libraries are very ADA accessible. Um, you can rent them all over Austin. We bring purifiers.
It doesn’t cost you anything to use the venue, and it’s been really, really great when we wanna host various workshops and things like that. So remember your local library. And then the second thing is, feels [00:09:30] v- very obvious, but, um, when, when it was, when it came to, like, what venue we wanted to pick for our variety show, it was what, um, access needs were already built into the space and how flexible were the venue owners with discussing accessibility, and how were, how did they react when we brought it up?
Were they defensive, or were they like, “Oh, no. Yeah, we’ll try to work on that,” or, “So sorry, this is all we can offer”? So, um, you know, not picking a space based on [00:10:00] clout. Picki- picking a space based on what is truly going to, like, bring the most joy through accessibility
Mondo Millions: Hi. I love that. This is Mondo, by the way. Um, I’m a light-skinned Black trans masc person. Uh, I’m wearing a black and white floral shirt, and I have tiny little [00:10:30] earrings, um, that are, um, plague masks. Um, and I wanted to say in regards to creating these COVID- more COVID-conscious, COVID-safer events, I always wanna remind people that it’s okay if they are not able to create these sort of scenes in their own area.
I know for myself, I, in my local community, I spent a lot of time trying to sort of move the needle in that [00:11:00] regard, and I didn’t have a lot of support. So that’s something that is a very big component, to start with building support around you, making sure that you have what you need, making sure that you have, like, people who are genuine about that, who are willing to change what they’re doing, who are willing to navigate the discomfort that comes with pushing back against the current paradigm where everybody’s just kind of like, “Oh, it is now [00:11:30] 2019 because we said so.”
And it’s not. So I always like to tell people to just really, for one, like- To give yourself grace, to really, like, think about what people would need. You know, a lot of us were already thinking about this, but it’s also just voicing this to other people. Like, for example, for myself, um, [00:12:00] like trying to navigate mostly hearing spaces is something that’s given me a lot of food for thought in terms of just auditory accessibility, in terms of the fact that not everybody is going to know sign language, but also not everybody is going to be able to have the same accessibility with captioning, uh, same accessibility.
Because I know for myself, if the volume’s too loud, then my hearing aid kind of cuts out. [00:12:30] And so it’s like all these, like, different things that we all learn from our own lived experience and by interacting with others, with the support that we’re creating, with the s- networks that we’re building, and that’s honestly, like, the biggest first step, like even more than a venue.
And I always tell people there is a huge, huge, like … Well, I don’t know if market’s the right word, but there’s a lot of people who really, really appreciate virtual, who really, really appreciate, shout out to the audience, [00:13:00] who really appreciate the fact that people are making spaces where we don’t have to go anywhere.
So that’s, yeah, that’s what I want to make sure people know, to just be adaptable. And when the doors close, find a window. When people push back, be like, “Okay, so you don’t want access. You are not for liberation. I can spend more of my time trying to fight you on that, or I [00:13:30] can try and find that window.” So yeah, those are just some of my thoughts on that.
Khalil Dennis: Wise words. If the door closes, open a window. That’s beautiful. I’ve never heard that before. That’s really lovely. Yeah, finding, finding very close community to work with that you trust is super important. Um, yeah. And so I’m wondering, um, this is the last question fielded to all, all performers, um, and then I’ll go into very specific questions for each of you.
Um, [00:14:00] but, um, has having Long COVID while occupying your specific social contexts changed your artistic process? We know it limits physically and cognitively how artists can perform or create, but has it led to new themes, topics, narratives, or commentary in your work that wasn’t there before?
Mondo Millions: So I was gonna say specifically that it’s, it’s forced me to really grapple with my own capacity, to really grapple with the [00:14:30] fact that, like, prior to getting COVID twice, um, I was doing Spartan Race, which I was able to complete the Spartan Trifecta, which is a very physically, like, strenuous thing, and realizing that not only was I aging, but my body was not responding well to life, let’s say.
And, and that sucks. That sucks. [00:15:00] It sucks a lot to, like… And that’s the thing, this isn’t even, like, a new experience. There’s tons of people who have been navigating, like, all the physical issues that COVID brings on, so that’s why we’re not just reinventing the wheel with trying to find support. But it sucks specifically in that not even just the navigating the change in your own ability and the change in your own capacity, but navigating the fact that it made the ableism of the world impossible to [00:15:30] ignore because it was becoming a constant process of do I wanna choose me and my own needs, my own accommodations, my own access, or do I wanna choose- Being welcomed?
Do I wanna choose being included, or do I wanna choose myself? And, and that’s something that I had to really grapple with, just, okay, like, [00:16:00] do I want to do this because people want me to be there, and they want me to do the things, and they want me to perform, and they want me to be their little bit of, of inclusion to illustrate that,
yes, we have a deaf performer in our space. But they’re not willing to consider, “Hey, are we gonna keep this disabled performer out of the hospital? Are we gonna keep this disabled performer [00:16:30] from accidentally taking out his loved ones, like, inadvertently just because someone didn’t wanna wear a mask when they felt a sniffle?”
Like, and that’s my thing. It’s like it’s not even just COVID at this point. It’s the fact that I am hearing countless stories of people who did not realize how much their lives were negatively impacted from respiratory illnesses. Like, you know, people who were getting sick constantly prior to masking in the U.S. being normalized.[00:17:00]
And it just, again, just comes back to me to the adaptability to-
To really center yourself in a lot of ways. To really think about, okay, I am not going to be able to do everything the way I used to. I am not necessarily going to be able to do everything the way my community and my peers are saying that I need to. Like, I don’t need to mask [00:17:30] the fact that I have needs, period.
I don’t need to mask the fact that I’m going to have to do things differently. And it really forced me to stand up for myself in that way, which allowed me to find those windows, find the chimneys, find the little tiny mouse hole in the wall, whatever So yeah, like that was the main thing that I got out of it, was realizing [00:18:00] that even though I was running into all of these different walls and all of these different barriers, oh, your boy can climb , you know?
So yeah, just- Yeah. It was just, it was just really nice to know that just because things change doesn’t mean you have to stop creating. You’ll find a new way. Like, you know, even like I have friends who can’t handle light, [00:18:30] you know? It doesn’t necessarily mean that they can’t sing or that they can’t figure out new ways to spotlight their area, find creative ways to light their space, to bring beauty in, to create beautiful shadows, you know?
There’s lots of options, and having Long COVID doesn’t stop any of them
Khalil Dennis: Thank you so much for offering that perspective, Mondo. Really appreciate that. Um, I’m [00:19:00] going to go into, um, individual questions now. So all of you guys are on the chopping block. Just kidding. Um, but first we’re gonna start with, we haven’t heard from you yet, Taipei. Um, but the question we have for you is, across social media, you educate viewers on intersectional history through the lens of beauty and fashion, and it’s so well-produced.
Wow. Um, goals. Um, but you also educate people about [00:19:30] infection-associated diseases like Long COVID and ME in, in, um, in engaging viral ways. What lessons teaching history to your audience prepared you to help educate people on these complex and often overlooked diseases?
Taipei: Hi, everyone. So my name’s Taipei, she/her.
Um, I’m currently out of drag right now. I have my, uh, natural kind of short, mid-length, uh, brown hair. Um, I’m wearing a very swanky, uh, probably early [00:20:00] ’80s blue to green color shift blouse, um, as well as a fun emerald green, uh, ’70s Avon necklace from someone’s, uh, grandmother. So thank you very much, uh, buy nothing group.
Um, so yeah, thanks again to The Sick Times for having me. Um, to, uh, answer this question, um, it’s been a huge privilege to be able to use the, the platform that I’ve been lucky enough to build to raise awareness about Long COVID and ME, um, something that I’m both, like, selfishly [00:20:30] invested in as someone living with Long COVID, um, and also am sort of moved to talk about, uh, because of folks I’ve met, both with Long COVID as well as, um, ME/CFS.
I think, um, there’s, there’s two aspects of this I wanna talk about, the first being my general strategy in educating people on social media, which is really to kind of start from the bottom and then build up and make the content as easily digestible as possible, and as easy to, uh, understand, [00:21:00] um, as possible.
Uh, within a 90-minute timeframe, which is typically how long my videos are, I need to omit a lot of details. So I spend a lot of time thinking about what’s the minimum amount of detail I can fit and speak at a reasonable pace, uh, and still make sense and get across what I wanna get across. So I basically have to assume that my audience knows absolutely nothing, uh, going into it, and I define things for them every time.
Keeping in mind as well, even if you’ve talked about something previously on social media, that doesn’t mean, [00:21:30] uh, the same people are now seeing your new post. It could be a totally new set of people, so good to like reestablish any, like, really important background information. I think, um, to answer specifically how has educating on history influenced the way I talk about, uh, these illnesses and disability, um, one thing that has really struck me is the connection between how our queer ancestors navigated, uh, the AIDS epidemic, um, and how we are now navigating, um, uh, [00:22:00] COVID-19 and, and other illnesses.
Um, seeing how, uh, queer people and their allies, uh, navigated a, a sort of level of government indifference, um, and mismanagement of the AIDS epidemic, um, at the institutional level, and how they built their own systems to protect them, and they protested and, and fiercely advocated that AIDS get the attention and the research funding, uh, and the management that it needed.
Um, so sort of remembering that Uh, [00:22:30] whether they are, it’s the healthcare system or the government, they’re all fair weather friends of the community or sometimes not even friends ever at all, and we need to continually hold them accountable and continue to make noise. Um, so yeah, that’s, that’s my perspective, and thanks again, everyone, for coming out to this event.
Khalil Dennis: And Taipei, I just wanted to ask you this quick question, and everybody can answer this question once I field you the question. But if there, if you could identify to any cartoon character [00:23:00] ever, who do you think most accurately, um, represents you?
Taipei: Wow, I actually have, um… That’s a wonderful question. I actually have, uh, an answer in mind.
Um, so this is a cartoon character that Taipei identifies with. I have somewhat of a separation between, like, my drag persona and my, the complicated human being that exists 99% of the time. So that person is not really a cartoon character, but Taipei, who only, you know, kind of exists in a very curated, [00:23:30] artistic way, and she spends five hours getting ready, uh, she is in many ways, uh, parallel to, uh…
So there’s this movie, uh, called Sinbad. I think Sinbad: Tale of the Seven Seas or something like that, from like 2003. DreamWorks film, kind of obscure. And the villain is voiced by Michelle Pfeiffer. It’s Eris, the goddess of chaos. And she is so, like, sickening and, like, her, her hair is made of smoke. And she, like, disappears and [00:24:00] reappears.
And she’s kind of like, she has, like, no reason for doing any of the evil things she’s doing. She’s just sort of like, “I’m the goddess of chaos. Like, I just do this.” And as, like, a spoiler for this movie that’s over 20 years old, even when she, like, things don’t go her way, she’s just like, “Eh, whatever. Like, I’m just gonna, like, leave.”
And she kind of, like, speaks in riddles. So I sort of imagine Taipei as this, like, morally ambivalent or kind of mischievous, like, goddess that, like, travels through time, and that’s why she’s so… She has all these glamorous vintage looks because [00:24:30] she’s, like, immortal. So she’s always, like, changing her appearance to, like, be a flapper during the ’20s or being, like, a disco queen during the ’70s.
But she’s always, like, up to something kind of nefarious. So yeah, Taipei is Eris from the 2003 uh, DreamWorks film Sinbad
Khalil Dennis: Lovely. Thank you so much. I’m a cartoon fiend, so I have to know that for everybody here. But, um, I’m gonna move to then Katie Drackert. So Katie, your brilliant performance tonight [00:25:00] leaned heavily into camp, as we could all see.
As we experience so much denial on the pa- on the pandemic and Long COVID, how does camp absurdism and other performance themes like this help expose and confront much of the denial and fascism we’re seeing today in the US?
Katie Drackert: Yeah. Thank you. I love that question. Um, so I think for me, there are a number of important pieces at play here with absurdism, camp, and then [00:25:30] the third one for me would be playfulness and play.
And when I think of absurdism, I think of that meme of the guy, the two guys on the bus, and it’s like, “Everything matters,” and he’s like, “Everything matters!” And s- that’s, like, exactly what comes to mind. And so absurdism to me is a key to imagining a different reality in a world where they’re attempting to suffocate our ability to have an imagination with fascism and with, like, [00:26:00] the mass denialism.
My brain fog is brain fogging right now. I apologize. Um, but I think it really… When we lean into the absurd, whether it’s on a smaller scale of, like- What if I wear sponges as a bra? And then another level of absurdism is what if I put a fridge in front of a coffee shop, and then people can go get free food at any time?
That concept sounds absurd, but when we [00:26:30] lean into this, we really allow ourselves to visualize a better reality and a different reality, and the last thing that these overlords want is us imagining a different reality. They want us to feel stuck and scared and, like, locked, gridlocked in this hellscape.
And I wanna give kudos to my best friend, Devin Harris, who also has Long COVID, and they consistently bring up the concept and importance of imagination, so I think they also play a really important role for me, [00:27:00] um, kind of having this realization and the connection of it with my art. And the final bit, um, that I wanted to touch on when it comes to absurdism and fighting fascism is absurdism can be inherently, like, jestery and jokey, and the trope of the jester historically has been one that has been strategically used by people, uh, marginalized people, to get around, to pull a fast one on these people causing [00:27:30] harm.
And so, you know, just embodying the trope of the jester I think is really important for us these days, and is also why I think culturally it’s becoming more relevant in pop culture. But anyways, that’s a whole other conversation.
Khalil Dennis: No, I really feel you. I, um, as was said earlier, I’m like a huge fan of One Piece, and I think a lot of the… I think media a lot right now is leaning into, like, children sort of saving the world, and I think a lot about how absurdism and youth are [00:28:00] sort of, like, something that I feel really deeply connected to, that, like, sometimes liberation, like you can’t have liberation without a party.
You can’t have liberation without humor. You can’t… Like, all of those things are sort of together. Like, so I really appreciate your answer, um, in that. And next, I ha- Oh, I wanna know your cartoon character
Katie Drackert: Well, I feel like since I just did a SpongeBoob performance, and me and SpongeBob actually have the same birthdate, the same month and day, I feel [00:28:30] like I should say SpongeBob.
Um, so I’ll go, I’ll go with, with that. Yeah. Cool. So like SpongeBob- Okay … and, mm, I’m trying to… I feel like SpongeBob and like Harley Quinn combo. Really weird combo, but it makes sense for me.
Khalil Dennis: Hey, they bor- bor… They both embody toon force, um, energy. So I, I appreciate that. Um, next we have Mondo Millions, a question for you.
Um, [00:29:00] becoming a drag performer is difficult in and of itself, but is a particular challenge when most venues are not accessible. What tips do you have for COVID aware people who want to get into performing in their own communities? I think you kind of answered this in a previous question, but if you, if you wanted to, um, expand
Mondo Millions: So yes, I did answer a little bit of this, [00:29:30] but, um, for me Like I’ve mentioned, it was just kind of began finding the window. I’m- I swear I’ll move away from this analogy at some point. But it was just more specifically, one, making space for people who have different accommodations from yourself was a big thing for mine.
Because I’m like, “Okay, I have friends who utilize, like, wheelchairs or power chairs, and I wanna make sure, okay, can they [00:30:00] get in the venue?” And then I realized, “Oh. Oh, shoot.” Once I was able to figure that out, it meant that it was that much easier for my peeps with Long COVID to come through because we have an elevator.
You know, they don’t have to go up the stairs. Or, oh, there is no stairs, or no … Exactly, the curb cut effect. And so it was just kind of finding more ways to do that, even if it’s just, “Hey, do we have seating for everybody? Like, do … Or do we just have folding chairs? Do [00:30:30] we have a sofa? Do we have, like, options?”
It was just really just finding options, whether that’s like, okay, we can’t have an indoor venue. Well, maybe we can find a park. Do we have to get a permit? We probably don’t have to get a permit. We probably don’t have to get a permit. And just kind of acknowledging that right now we’re at, we are s- you know, that that even the like, I, I keep tearing up because it’s the, this is [00:31:00] the largest amount of, like, COVID conscious people I had seen in one spot in person or virtually.
And, and it was just really just I wish we could all, like, literally get together. But it was just knowing that if I created spaces that had options for people of so many different disabilities, then it means that by default I would end up connecting with more people who [00:31:30] understand why se- respiratory precautions, or, or not even respiratory precautions, but respiratory accommodations are even necessary.
It’s like I, I helped organize a local event called Elk Grove Pride, um, which is a mask-required pride here in, in Northern California. And I had to explain to people, I’m like, “Look, I understand that this is not the popular thing to do, to create a- an [00:32:00] accessible in-person pride to the best of our ability.
Sure, it’s not popular. However, why can’t we ask our community, who cares about us, to wear a mask for four hours one time a year? I don’t think that’s too much to ask.” Like, I get it. You don’t wanna do it for every single one because you’re worried about how it’s gonna impact your pockets. You’re worried about how it’s going to impact your ability to find venues and make connections.
But [00:32:30] for people who are trying to migrate towards actually creating these spaces, like start with one. Start with one. Like figure out how to make one show happen. Figure out how to make, and then learn from that. You know, just like pivot and find out, okay, well, maybe you don’t wanna work with X, Y, Z venue again.
Why not? Like, for me, when it comes to creating COVID conscious performances in my own community, [00:33:00] it really led to me actively getting really loud about what I needed and the fact that in my community, like I am the only Deaf drag performer in Sacramento. Like as far as Deaf drag kings, there’s not even that many in the United States.
I think there’s maybe like 10 Deaf drag performers in the United States right now that I can think of off the top of my head, and I’ve met most of them. So like, but we’re all scattered. So it’s like, okay, well, how do [00:33:30] we create community where there is not enough of us to pull together? And it just really just, okay, how about we make this event accessible for the people who don’t get these spaces?
And you start there. People want to be inclusive. They want it to be an easy thing. And I found that for myself as someone with Long COVID, the amount of work and effort just to put on one show [00:34:00] was so much. It was so much work. It w- I was crying. I was… Things didn’t go right in so many ways, but I got through it and it reminded me that if I can do this, then all of y’all abled people can definitely make space once a year.
You can definitely make space once a week, once a month. Find something. Stop making excuses. Like I, I cannot afford ASL [00:34:30] interpreters out of my own pocket. That doesn’t mean I’m not going to find a way. I’m gonna find someone who will be able to help me fundraise for that interpreter. I’m going to, like, purchase masks myself if people are like, “Well, how are we gonna buy masks?”
Like being willing to really push the envelope because I had the privilege to be able to do so, even if it was just my education or the fact that I started performing prior to 2019. Well, actually, no, sorry, I started performing in [00:35:00] 2019. I performed for like four months before everything closed. So like I had to adapt because I wanted to keep going.
I wanted to keep performing. And so just figure out what your, your driving, your driving factor, why do you wanna do this? How can you make it happen? Not how is everybody else doing it. How can you personally make that happen? Do you need other people? Then ask those people. If you need to make it virtual, then make it virtual.
If you need to make it something [00:35:30] where everybody is seated or everybody prerecorded or you have to, like, go and, like, ask someone and center your needs and center your right to belong, your right to matter in this world that says we are supposed to matter that is exclusively performative. Like, tell people to put their money where their mouth is, to put their actions where their words are And don’t take no for an answer.[00:36:00]
Like, yeah, there’s a quote that I can’t remember but it was just like, “Too long have we been held under these unjust and unholy charges.” And so yeah, push back. You have at least the 300 people in this call to back you. Thank you.
Khalil Dennis: Uh, thank you, Mondo. Yeah, yeah. There’s no experience like starting, right?
There’s no experience like starting, and adaptability is one thing [00:36:30] that disabled folks across the board kind of are intuitively skilled at. So thank you for, for, um, for raising that up. Um, so King Lotus, um, King Lotus Boy, as a performer and educator, a big theme in your art has been unlearning. Can you talk a bit about this and how you’ve helped your audiences unlearn and unpack concepts like ableism?
King LOTUS BOY: Of course. I will try my best to keep this brief. Um, [00:37:00] yeah, so I try in all of my performances to give the audience something to think about, hopefully something that challenges their preconceived notions about the world. Um, and I’ve actually been disabled and chronically ill since I was a kid.
I was actually first diagnosed with CFS and fibromyalgia at age like 12. Um, but I didn’t claim those identities until much later in life due to, what do you know, [00:37:30] ableism. And I didn’t have the resources or care at the time to address my needs, you know. I’m really grateful that my immediate family has always been really supportive and had good intentions, but they’re mostly abled people, right, that are very high achieving, physically fit.
I’m talking people who exercise for fun. Could never be me, but I love that for y’all. Um, and no- none of us had experience with like chronic illness, and I also was in denial. I was like very young, [00:38:00] and I also learned from an early age to ignore my body’s needs, push past my limits, just keep going, you know.
I, as a recovering Type A, I desperately wanted to believe that I could embody this like American ideal of like- The glorification of the grind, you know? Um, I’m just gonna, like, summarize, but, like, it wasn’t until moving to the Bay Area and being so lucky that there’s so much rich [00:38:30] history of disability rights activism.
The reason why we even have the ADA is because of the Section 504 sit-in that happened, uh, in San Francisco. Look it up if you don’t know it. Um, and, like, really learning about it and delving into that was kind of the catalyst to me accepting that I’m disabled, and there’s nothing wrong with that. What’s, what’s wrong is the ableist eugenicist structures and ideologies that make it hard to exist and survive and thrive as a disabled [00:39:00] person.
I know everyone on this call knows this, but, you know, that was kind of the biggest unlearning for me, and to really accept my limitations, um, and my boundaries. And also reconnecting to my ancestral healing practices of traditional Chinese medicine, uh, acupuncture, qigong. Um, all of those have been really, like, transformative for my management of my health.
Um, and then also around unlearning, um, [00:39:30] I got Long COVID after my infection in December of 2023, and then 2024 was the year that I really Started learning e- everything I could about Long COVID, trying to actively unlearn the propaganda that our pandemic-denying governments have been trying to shove down our throats, um, and also recommitting to masking.
Um, I got Long COVID, or I got COVID that led to Long COVID during the one year that I relaxed my masking due to the nature of being a [00:40:00] performer, uh, and also believing the lies, sadly. And, um, so 2024 onwards, obviously my capacity, my, um, abilities really were, were decreasing, and so I started performing with- from my sick bed.
I bring a blow-up air mattress on stage with me. I put all of the sheets, the blankets, the pillows on it because I really wanna challenge people what, what they think is a valuable or engaging performance, right? Who [00:40:30] deserves to be on stage, and why the fuck can’t I perform from bed, right? Uh, I have, actually.
I’ve performed from bed several times since then, and what do you know? I got tipped. I got applause, right? And so really always trying to, to get people to question, you know, all the internalized ableism, and that, that, that includes me too, right? We are all born into this very ableist world, and so I’m constantly unlearning, you know, questioning my own [00:41:00] ableism around immunocompromised people prior to becoming immunocompromised myself.
Also, my, my sibling also got Long COVID too around the same time as me, and so, you know, I… It sucks that it took that for me to, to approach accessibility differently, but I’m grateful that I, I’ve, am where I am, and I’m also so grateful that I’ve leaned into disabled and COVID-cautious, uh, community and, uh, been able to collaborate with amazing disabled artists such as Tai Pei, Mondo Millions, [00:41:30] to do the damn thing ourselves, right?
Create events by us, for us, by disabled QTBIPOC people, uh, for disabled folks because we’re really the only ones who know what we need, right, and know how to do it in a way that is actually inclusive and accessible, uh, or more, right? Because we can’t ever guarantee that everything is 100% accessible. Um- Yeah, I think, I think that’s, that’s what I wanted to say.
And lastly, I’ll just throw in my cartoon character is Him from [00:42:00] Powerpuff Girls. I always think that he gave very f**** drag king, uh, energy, and, uh, I also did, like, a look of, uh, a drag look for him for Halloween a few years ago, so thanks.
Khalil Dennis: One of my all-time favorites. N- see, we could be friends, ’cause I like, I like that answer.
Yay. But, um, last but certainly not least, um, Ginger Ail. Um, so how are you taking care, um, how are you [00:42:30] taking care of your mental health while pursuing your art in these unaccommodating times? And where are you finding queer joy during the rest of the year outside of Pride?
Ginger Ail: Ooh, okay, two things. I’m gonna say my cartoon character first ’cause I know I’m gonna forget. Um, definitely Hiccup from How to Train Your Dragon. I just resonate deeply, very deeply with that man as a trans masc person. Number two, um, how I protect my mental health amongst these [00:43:00] very unaccommodating times, especially going back to what Mondo Millions was saying about how it’s kind of like a 9 out of 10 chance when you go to a gig and you’re at this bar, it’s not going to be accessible.
Either the bathrooms aren’t going to be accessible, the dressing room is gonna be down a flight of stairs that are, like, impeccably steep, or the bar is gonna be like this wide. Um, so it is incredibly hard to feel, especially during Pride Month, really welcome in a, [00:43:30] in a space because you’re reminded immediately upon getting to the venue that this place wasn’t built with someone like me in mind.
So I have really found comfort, and I, I can’t really say… It, it, it’s difficult for me to say, um, but I think protecting your mental health is a good way to put it. I’ve been able to protect my mental health by surrounding myself with other disabled people who do drag, which is, whi- [00:44:00] which is difficult, um, especially if you’re in, like, more rural communities.
But, like, finding people online who share the same principles as I do has been incredibly refreshing. To be able to, like, see other disabled people who do a similar art form as I do, and to be able to shoot the shit with them and be like, “Can you believe what this diva said to me at the bar about my crutches?”
Like, it, it, it, it’s comforting to be able to have that solidarity with like-minded folks. [00:44:30] Another way I can protect my mental health amid- amidst very, you know, glaring ableism, and also very casual ableism, like weird biting side comments that an unmasked person will say to you at the gig, um, is by sitting with my rage and letting my rage fuel my art.
I think, I, I think anger is a festering emotion and rage is a propelling one. So I [00:45:00] always, always try to cling to my rage, and whenever I feel it slipping or whenever I feel myself get passive, I have to really remind myself to very adamantly advocate for myself. So that look, that looks like when someone says something weird about your mobility aids, you’re like, “Hey, that was fucked up.
Don’t say that again to anyone, including me.” Um, I, I think it’s important to remember, and even though it’s incredibly hard ’cause you don’t wanna, like, [00:45:30] stir the pot or you don’t wanna create any, like, conflict even though the person saying the ableist thing was the conflict. Like, how we advocate for ourselves is inevitably how we end up advocating for others.
So the way that we show up oursel- for ourselves is the way that we will show up for other people. Um, and finding queer joy has, um, honestly combining sideshow and drag has been a way that I find queer joy. It’s a way that I can marvel at the way that my conditions, like- [00:46:00] manifest in my body, like specifically with, like, Clothespin Sideshow, I realized, like, my EDS gave me really stretchy skin, and I was like, “Whoa, I can use…
I can make something of this, and I can reclaim the fact that my disability is no longer something to gawk at.” Now it’s like, “Look at this incredible thing that I can do. Look at, look at this marvel that I am making of myself.” Um, and, and finding ways to exist within my limitations has been so, [00:46:30] so joyful, and, like, getting into drag in my bed and lying down on the floor at the gig because my brain fog is getting crazy and I need to relax.
Like, finding all of these ways to reclaim oneself, um, and honor your body, um, I think those things have brought me a lot of joy and a lot of peace. Um, so, uh, getting emotional, but, um, thank you so much to everyone who is here, and it- [00:47:00] it’s been incredible to be on a panel with so many remarkable and trailblazing people.
Uh, so thank you
Khalil Dennis: Queeriod, queeriod, yes. I, I really, um, I feel so honored to be holding space with you guys. Such brilliant creatives, such principled artists. Um, and yeah, thank you so much to all of you for sharing your art with us. [00:47:30] And it wouldn’t be Pride if we didn’t end in an emotional way, if we weren’t emotional.
This is a very emotional month for a lot of us who honestly have been pushed out of so much queer community and pushed out of so many space- what does even queer community mean today, you know? Like, we, we really… It’s, it’s such a tumultuous time. So I really wanna honor just how much courage and bravery and creativity and adaptability that all of you have brought in your careers, and thank you for sharing, um, [00:48:00] even just some of that, that microcosm with us, you know.
Um, so thank you so much. And also, my cartoon character is Grim from The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy. Um, I just think Grim will slice your head off, but will also be, um, taking a bath and wearing a whole head wrap and with the cucumbers on the eyes and stuff, was really just, like, just a bottom, just a bottom at heart, [00:48:30] you know?
Just a bottom at heart, likes to act like he’s a top, but just a bottom. Like, come on. Anyway, um, sorry, had to end like that. But yes, um, anyways, thank you guys for joining this Q&A. Thank you to all of the wonderful people that attended, um, this event. And, and thank you all for fighting, like continuing to fight, you know.
Um, you can keep doing it as long as we [00:49:00] have each other. Solidarity up. Let’s continue loving on each other as we enter Pride Month stage two.
And I’m your host, I was your host, Chaotica/Khalil. Um, and I’m just glad to be here.
Betsy Ladyzhets: To learn more about these performers and catch some glimpses of this iconic show, check out the links in our show notes.
Summer fundraiser announcement
Melanie Marich: Before you go, we [00:49:30] have some exciting news to share. It’s summer fundraiser time. As we say at the end of every episode, this podcast and The Sick Times are supported by you, and for almost three years, your support has been the reason we can report major Long COVID stories, cover clinical trials, host events like our virtual pride, and have a podcast where we share Long COVID news and commentary with you.
Our goal is to become a more sustainable newsroom and truly be in it for the long haul, pun intended. [00:50:00] For the next two weeks, we’re hoping to get two hundred new supporters to start a monthly donation to The Sick Times. This donation can be at any amount, and there’s an extra bonus. Each supporter will receive a limited edition sticker pack with designs by artists in the Long COVID community.
Guys, I’ve seen the stickers. They’re fabulous. You will want them, trust me.
We understand that it’s not possible for many of our listeners to donate, which is why this support is always optional. We will never put our vital reporting [00:50:30] behind a paywall, and we’ll always make it free for other outlets to republish and share.
If you can’t donate, please consider sharing our fundraiser on social media, forwarding our newsletter to friends and loved ones, or leaving us a comment telling us why you read The Sick Times and/or listen to Still Here.
It would make a world of difference. Thank you
Outro
Betsy Ladyzhets: That’s all for this week’s episode.
Miles Griffis: In the meantime, we’ll continue reporting the information that you need.
Betsy Ladyzhets: Solidarity with everyone still here.
Melanie Marich: This podcast and The [00:51:00] Sick Times are supported by you. You can help us keep this work going by donating on our website. Still Here is a production of The Sick Times, a nonprofit newsroom chronicling the ongoing Long COVID crisis.
Our theme song for this episode is The Rude Mechanical Orchestra’s rendition of Which Side Are You On?, originally by Florence Reece. I’m Melanie Marich, and I produced this episode. Our engagement editor is Heather Hogan. Sophie Dimitriou designed our podcast cover art. And Miles Griffis and Betsy Ladyzhets are your co-hosts and The Sick Times co-founders.
Thanks for [00:51:30] listening
