Interviews

Czezre Adams

Czezre Tyrell Adams known to many as "Porkchop" was born on August 8, 1989 to Angenette Ellis-Harper and Alvin Adams. Raised on High Street, Czezre attended community schools such as Sherman Preschool, Quitman St, and Louise A.

Amina Baraka

Born Sylvia Robinson, born 1942, in Charlotte, North Carolina – multi-talented artist (dancer, actress, singer/poet, and political activist).

Michael Bronski

Michael Bronski is an independent scholar, journalist, and writer who has been involved in social justice movements since the 1960s. He has been active in gay liberation as a political organizer, writer, editor, publisher and theorist since 1969. He is the author of numerous books.

Bob Cartwright

Bob Cartwright’s introduction to Newark was in 1966, when he entered NJIT, which was then called Newark College of Engineering. He became radicalized because of the anti-war movement and the Civil Rights Movement.

Louie Crew Clay

Louie Crew Clay is a pioneering activist who founded the gay Episcopal group Integrity USA in 1974 and co-founded the LGBT caucus of the National Council of Teachers of English in 1975, among numerous other achievements.

William Courson

Bill Courson was born and raised at the Jersey shore (his hometown is Avon by the Sea) and relocated to and has lived in Montclair, NJ since from 1978.

James Credle

James Credle is the former assistant dean of students at Rutgers University-Newark, a highly decorated Vietnam veteran, and a longtime LGBTQ activist.

Sharon Denise Davis

Sharon D. Davis is butch identified. The middle daughter of 5 girls and 3 boys. Mother Marion was a Homemaker and my Father George was a Machine Operator.

Gwendolyn (Gwen) Davis

Gwendolyn (Gwen) Davis was born in Washington, Pennsylvania in 1939 and was raised by her grandmother in a suburb of Washington called Lincoln Hill until her grandmother’s death. Davis spent the rest of her childhood and adulthood with her parents in Newark, where she eventually became a nurse.

Kysheif DeGraffenreid

Kysheif DeGraffenreid was born and raised in Newark, NJ attending some of the finest schools from St. Benedicts to Montclair State University earning a Bachelors in Sociology. His academic career has led him to provide mental health counseling to many of his peers in the neighborhood.

Anita Dickens

Anita Dickens was born and raised in Newark, NJ 1972. She graduated from West Side High School and went on to receive an Associate’s in Science from Essex County College, a BA in Science from New Jersey City University and a Masters in Public Affairs and Administration from Rutgers-Newark.

Ulysses Dietz

Ulysses Grant Dietz served as curator of Decorative Arts at The Newark Museum from 1980 until 2017, and was appointed Chief Curator in 2012.

blair dorosh-walther

Director and Producer, blair dorosh-walther identifies as gender non-conforming and uses both male and female pronouns, is a social issue documentary director, experienced production designer, and artist with a passion for inspiring action for social justice through media.

June Dowell-Burton

June Dowell-Burton is the founder and an executive board member of Newark Gay Pride, Inc., a LGBT community-based, volunteer run organization that works to enhance LGBTQ life by producing an annual Gay Pride Week and facilitating programming in Newark, New Jersey.

Bryan Epps

Bryan Matthew Charles Epps is a policy wonk and community lover. He has worked for Mayor’s Cory A. Booker and Michael Bloomberg conducting outreach and training to the not-for-profit sector and performance management for city departments.

Tamara Fleming

Tamara Fleming is a creative powerhouse and co-founder of FEMWORKS, an award winning marketing communications firm that specializes in helping businesses to engage consumers in multicultural markets.

Marleny Franco

Marleny Franco has been a Horticulturist helping people grow food for over thirty-five years. She holds a Master’s degree in Plant Physiology from Rutgers University and worked as an Agricultural County Agent and professor at Rutgers University for eleven years before moving on to establish and

Miriam Frank

Miriam Frank grew up in Newark during the 1950s. She retired from fulltime teaching at NYU in 2014 where she is currently Adjunct Professor of Humanities.

Aaron Frazier

Rodney Gilbert

Rodney Gilbert (July 27, 1967 - November 8, 2017) was the founder and CEO of Yendor Productions, a Newark-based firm that consults, develops, and produces arts education programming and events.

Carol Glassman

Carol Glassman was born in Brooklyn in 1942 to a first-generation large Jewish immigrant family. She went to public school and then Smith College, where she got involved with the student movement that became known as the New Left.

Tom Hayden

Tom Hayden (1939-2016) was a major figure in the New Left of the 1960s.

Alicia Heath-Toby

C. Alicia Heath-Toby resides in Newark, NJ with her wife, Saundra ‘Honei’. She is the current board president of the Newark LGBTQ Community Center Board of Directors. In 1984 she received her Bachelor of Arts from the College of the Holy Cross.

Yvonne Hernandez

Native born. Yvonne Hernandez is an actress, director and writer. Her plays have been produced and performed at The Manhattan Repertory Theatre and The Elektra Theatre in Times Square. She has written a book titled, Queer Monologues & Short Plays.

Renata Hill

Renata Hill is currently a full-time student on the path to earn an Associates degree in Human Services at the Borough of Manhattan Community College and will then work to get her master’s degree in Social Work.

Janyce Jackson Jones

Reverend Janyce Jackson Jones, a prominent and respected leader in the community retired after 21 years of dedicated service to her church and to social justice in the city of Newark.

* John

John (b.1938) grew up in North Newark, in an Irish Catholic family.

Patreese Johnson

Patreese Johnson is a femme-identified poet. She is the youngest of four brothers and one sister, and she grew up as the youngest on the block in her tight-knit community in Newark, New Jersey. She is fiercely empathetic with a big heart.

Elizabeth Kaeton

The Reverend Dr. Elizabeth Kaeton first came to Newark in 1991 as Vicar of St. Barnabas Episcopal Church and Executive Director of St. Barnabas AIDS Resource Center.

Arnie Kantrowitz

Arnold (Arnie) Kantrowitz, a 1961 B.A. alum of Rutgers University-Newark, was a pioneering activist for LGBT equality in the United States.

Lynette Lashawn

THE BEGINNING

* Lovari

Born and raised in Queens, and now a resident of Newark, singer/actor Lovari has released his new album "The Rhythm Of Life" (currently on Amazon's Bestseller Soul Chart).

Larry Lyons

Larry Lyons has lectured and taught courses in 20th Century American literature, sociology and composition at Rutgers and Princeton University.

Steven Malick

Steven Malick serves as the secretary of the Board of Directors for the Newark LGBTQ Community Center. He previously volunteered with the Newark LGBTQ Concerns Advisory Commission and helped to organize the first ever town hall debate on issues relevant to the LGBTQ community.

Gail Malmgreen

Gail Malmgreen (b.1942) grew up mostly in Weequahic, where her parents were active in Left politics.

Jasmine Mans

Jasmine Mans is an artist who calls Newark her home and celebrates the childhood she there spent through her poetry.

Aleix Martinez

Aleix Martinez is a longtime Newark resident, music industry communications specialist, and artist across multiple platforms.

Peggie Miller

My name is Peggie Miller. Living the majority of my life as a butch woman, I noticed how we tend to live in the shadows, usually among our own exclusively.

Jerri Mitchell-Lee

Reverend Jerri Mitchell-Lee is a native of Brooklyn, New York. As the daughter of a Career Army Officer she has lived all across the United States and has been a long time resident of New Jersey.

Darnell L. Moore

Juliana Moraes

Bio forthcoming.

Andrew Moreira

Andrew Santos Moreira is a proud First Generation of Brazilian descent and New Jersey native. As an undergrad at Rutgers-Newark, Andrew served as Co-President to his campus’ only LGBTQIA+ student organization, RU Pride.

Eyricka Morgan

Eyricka Morgan (1987-2013) was one of the amazing speakers on the "Queer Newarkers: The 21st Century Generation" panel of Queer Newark's first conference, Queer Newa

Albert Mrozik

Albert J. Mrozik Jr. (“Bert”) is a proud member of the LGBTQ community, who has been instrumental in the fight for LGBTQ rights in New York and New Jersey. A graduate of Columbia College, he received his law degree from the University of Denver.

Walter Newkirk

Walter Newkirk owns Walter Newkirk Public Relations LLC. A graduate of Rutgers University in New Brunswick NJ, Mr. Newkirk was the first openly gay Arts Editor of The Rutgers Daily Targum, the daily newspaper on the New Brunswick campus from 1975-1976.

Tracey Africa Norman

In 2017 the name Tracey Africa Norman has become synonymous with terms like “full circle and comeback kid”. Tracey's modeling career got started, all because she was in the wrong place, at the right time.

Tiney Pringle

Tiney Pringle was born and raised in Newark. In her oral history, she discusses growing up butch in the city, including touring with a basketball team of all self-identified butch players in and around the tri-state area.

Raymond Proctor (Family...

Raymond Proctor (1934-1988) was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, and after high school moved to New York City, following h

Angela Raine

Angela Raine was born and raised in Newark, after her parents moved up from the South. The last of six children, she attended Central High School and worked in various agencies in Newark doing HIV prevention and establishing transgender support groups.

Donald Ransom

Since arriving in Newark in the early 1980s, Rev. Don Ransom has worked in the fields of substance abuse and recovery, as well as HIV prevention and education.

Pucci Revlon

Lioniemar Reyes

Lioniemar Reyes, Lily, is a peace love and positivity, protector of individuality, energetic soul. She is a 90's baby who grew up in Newark, New Jersey. She and her brother were raised by two proud and hardworking Puerto Rican parents. She attended Middle School and High School at North Start A

Darryl Rochester

Julio Roman

At the age of sixteen, Safe Space Expert and LGBTQIA+ Rights Advocate, Julio C. Roman, accepted his calling in LGBTQIA+ activism and safe space design.

Morgan Royel

*Morgan Roy'el's transcript under review

Peter Savastano

Peter Savastano was born and raised in Newark, New Jersey where he lived and worked for most of his adult life. He holds a Ph.D. in Religion and Society from Drew University. An anthropologist of religion, consciousness, sexuality and gender, Dr.

Douglas Says

There’s an impressive résumé attached to the name Douglas Says, which includes working with a list of celebrity photographers such as; Mike Ruiz, Fadil Berisha, Alex Chatelain, Ghillian Lewin, Marc Baptiste, Dah Len, Keith Major

Deion Session

Deion Amar “Dee Amar” Session. I rep Newark for life. Rutgers University: Newark. Unapologetically Black & Queer. Live your truth!

Taj Shareef

Taj Shareef is an LA/NJ based writer/VO artist.

Beatrice Simpkins

Beatrice Dolores Simpkins is an alum of Rutgers University-Newark. In 2016, Ms. Simpkins became a Rutgers University 250 Fellow – receiving a medal at the “A Day of Revolutionary Thinking”, the culminating event of Rutgers’ 250Th birthday celebration.

Marc Sir Dane

Marc Sir Dane - MSD is one of the most exciting and sensational live performers on the music (“Real Music”) trip today! He has been the opening act for such musical artists as Stephanie Mills, The Times and more. The real essence of his musical genius is his powerful vocals – stro

Perris Straughter

Perris Straughter is the Director of Planning for Queens and Staten Island for the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development.

Terri Suess

Terri was born and raised in Seattle, Wa. and has made Newark, NJ her home with her life partner. She studied communications at the University of Washington, Seattle and worked several years as a journalist in the Pacific Northwest.

Kevin E. Taylor

Kevin E. Taylor is working on his greatness while he inspires you to walk in yours!

Saundra Toby-Heath

Saundra A. Toby-Heath is a Newark Native who loves her city with great passion. She is an artisan and the sole proprietor of Akirfa Design Studio (find her art on Facebook).

Burley Tuggle

Burley Tuggle completed her Masters in Urban Policy Analysis and Management in 1997 and officially began her professional career. She has nearly 20 years of experience in the fields of Public Policy and Financial Management. Over this period, Ms.

Rejean (Tornado) Veal

Rejean “Tornado” Veal was born and raised in Newark, NJ. During his sophomore year in high school at Malcolm X Shabazz, he ventured into the world of voguing. Since then, he has built a career as a professional dancer and has become active on the ballroom scene.

Aminah Washington

Aminah Washington is an African American Trans woman, b.1986, born and raised in Newark, NJ. She attended Malcolm X Shabazz High School and Peshine Ave Prep. She has been through more than most and is blessed to have the chance to learn and grow from her life experiences.

Emma Wilcox

Emma Wilcox is the Gallery Director at Gallery Aferro, where, with co-founder Artistic Director Evonne Davis she has designed and implemented hundreds of exhibits, p

Kiyan Williams

Kiyan Williams is a multidisciplinary artist from Newark, NJ who works fluidly across sculpture, performance, and video. Kiyan graduated from Science Park High School and went on to earn a BA with honors from Stanford University and an MFA in Visual Art from Columbia University.

Noelle Lorraine Williams

Noelle Lorraine Williams is an artist whose life's work exemplifies her continued interest in engaging in

Kareem Willis

Kareem Willis is a scholar, activist and proud member of the LGBTQ Community.

Margaret Woods

Margaret L.

Gary Paul Wright

Gary Paul Wright is the Founder and Executive Director of the African American Office of Gay Concerns. He is very active within the LGBTQ community in Newark, New Jersey, where he served two 3-year terms as a Charter Member of the City of Newark’s Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgend

Queer Newark

Oral History Project