Thursday, April 28, 2011

Metromode: Drag Queen Bingo (Or How Metro Detroit Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Five 15)

"Royal Oak is chock full of cutesy boutiques filled with cute 'n clever gift items. But where in Royal Oak can you find zebra-print wine purses; cookbooks with titles like Any Bitch Can Party!; copies of Vogue (the Parisian, Australian, Italian AND Indian editions) and $25 manties (that's man-panties to you)?

'Five 15 Media Mojo and More is the answer, which is celebrating its four-year anniversary on May 15.

'It's not that the GLBT (gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered) community is under-served … well, no, actually it's exactly that. For a so-called 'subculture' which is known to have a huge presence in suburban cities like Royal Oak and Ferndale, there is a surprising lack of businesses for and by the bi and queer. Save for a smattering of clubs and bookstores (between the two cities you can still count them all on one hand), there is a notable absence of distinctly 'gay' businesses – not just gay-friendly, and not just gay-owned, but recognizably and unequivocally GAY..."

Read the rest of the article here.