Samantha Medina
Professor Sunny Talero
ENGL 110
In this research essay I’ll be discussing why I think that LGBTQ+ ballroom language should be taken more seriously due to the history behind it. Ballroom culture started in the 1960’s and is a huge community with LGBTQ+ folx, it consists of voguing which is seen as performance art/dance, fun categories where people can dress up in certain costumes depending on the category, and is just a fun and welcoming environment to watch something collectively while in a safe space. Ballroom language is a victim of cultural appropriation, you might have heard or used the terms “Slay”, “Werk” ,“Yasss” or “Queen”, those have all originated from LGBTQ+ ballroom culture. This topic is interesting and important to me because I think that LGBTQ+ history should be taken more seriously and acknowledged more since a lot of people use their language yet don’t know the history. I feel like people should be educated by watching documentaries like “Paris is Burning” and shows like “Pose”, because those shows and movies are educational when it comes to ballroom culture. I feel like it should also be included in more shows and possibly books and taught in classrooms to spread more awareness and know the history behind it.
The history of ballroom is highly important when it comes to the LGBTQ+ community. In the late 1960s, during the stonewall riots is when ballroom was kickstarted. In the article “A Brief History of Modern Ballroom Culture” by Shannon Halliwell who is a writer and mostly writes for allgaylong.com which features different articles about all things surrounding gay culture. In the article, it states, “ In the 1960s, Black queens Crystal LaBeija and her friend Lottie began their own drag ball titled ‘House of LaBeija’. This kickstarted the current ballroom scene in New York. The queer black ballroom community then established their own underground ball culture from then on. The drag ball scene from there illuminated themes of race, gender, and sexual orientation within society.”. This discusses and explains the history on why ballroom was created and how it became deeply important in the LGBTQ+ community and its history. In the article “The Language of Ballroom ” by Chloe Davis who is a black bisexual woman who works in the entertainment industry and spent 15 years studying LGBTQ+ language. In the article it states, “ These ballroom phrases have been appropriated by both the larger LGBT community and mainstream culture. They are monetized, branded on clothing, and heard in the latest music. However, most people don’t know these words were brought to life by Crystal LaBeija, Dorian Corey, Paris Dupree, Kim Pendavis, Junior LaBeija, and countless members of the Houses of Corey, Dior, Wong, Christian, Ebony, Omni (UltraOmni), and others.”. This discusses and proves my point of how people use ballroom language and phrases but don’t care about or acknowledge the history behind it and who created and came up with the language and phrases. In the article, “Houses and Ballroom Culture: More than just ‘Glitz and Glam’ for LGBTQ+ and BIPOC Communities” by Lindsey Ford who is a multimedia journalist for RockyMountainPBS who went to workshops about ballroom culture and went to a ball. In the article it states “The iconic House of LaBeija, to use a historic example, was the first ballroom to host benefits to raise awareness during the 1980s HIV/AIDS epidemic.”. This discusses how important houses were and what they did for the balls and how they contributed which again shows how deeply important houses and ballroom is in the LGBTQ+ community and history.
All of these examples I showed proves my point of how the history behind the LGBTQ+ community and its language is rich and extremely important. A lot of people love to use their phrases and language and appropriate it, but they know little to none of the history or real culture about the language they so called love using. I’m not saying that people should gatekeep the language, because it is known around the world, but I do feel like everyone and especially people that use their language should know and understand the history behind it so they can possibly appreciate it more.
In conclusion, I think that LGBTQ+ ballroom language should be taken more seriously due to the history behind it. I feel like the people that use the language and phrases but don’t know or acknowledge the history behind it, it turns into appropriation, but I feel like when they understand and learn the history it can be turned into appreciation and love the language more than before because of how important the history is to the LGBTQ+ community.
Works Cited
Davis, Chloe. “The Language of Ballroom.” The Gay & Lesbian Review, 28 Aug. 2023, glreview.org/the-language-of-ballroom/#:~:text=At%20the%20root%20of%20this,person%20of%20color%20and%20queer.
Ford, Lindsey. “Houses and Ballroom Culture: More than Just ‘glitz and Glam’ for LGBTQ+ and BIPOC Communities.” RMPBS, RMPBS, 9 Oct. 2021, www.rmpbs.org/blogs/rocky-mountain-pbs/houses-and-ballroom-culture-more-than-just-glitz-and-glam-for-lgbtq-and-bipoc-communities/.
Wardzich, Corin. “Connections on the Ballroom Floor.” Brill, Brill Fink, 5 Oct. 2022, brill.com/edcollchap/book/9783846767313/BP000017.xml.
