Vanguard Revisited

After my first day at Castro one of the clerks from a second-hand clothing store invited me to a launch party celebrating the return of the 1960s magazine, “The Vanguard.” The magazine was run by gay, lesbian, and trans gender youths of that time.

At first I was a little reluctant to go because the party was from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. and I wasn’t used to being in city during in the dark, but then I realized this could the perfect opportunity to meet potential sources for my later articles.

It took me about 30 minutes to find the location of the party, since the girl who invited me to the party didn’t exactly tell me what the place looked like. My eyes widened slightly when I realized the party was at a Lutheran church (St. Francis), which was odd because the only words I would associate a church with are prayers and the holy bible.

Since I got to the party a little early I got to see the pastor of the church and a couple other people set up. They brought out chips, candy, soda, and a photo booth. But the first thing I noticed was the old typewriters on a table. The pastor told me that the typewriters went with the theme of the party.

When the guests arrived some of them immediately walked towards the typewriters and I attempted to use one of the typewriters. I couldn’t help but think, “It must have taken most of the Vanguard writers 20 minutes to get one sentence typed.” I scanned the room and noticed some men and women in drag and one guy wearing black leotard with white angel wings and a black halo.

I was probably one of the few heterosexuals there. At first I felt a little out of place, but most of the guests at the party made me feel completely welcomed. I got to hear about their “coming out” stories, accomplishments in college, and even traded contact information.

The one person who stood out to me at the party was 65-year-old Felicia, who was actually genetically male. Felicia told us how she served in the army when she was still a man and how during the 1960s she was arrested for dressing like a girl. I was amazed at how fun and vibrant Felicia was, even with all hardships she experienced.

The party felt more like a small gathering with its modest snack foods and small number of guests. Even though the Vanguard Launch party may not have been very glamorous, but I still enjoyed myself, the guests have really gotten me out of my shell.