Cruising | A Queer Documentary Podcast Sarah Gabrielli, Rachel Karp, and Jennifer McGinity

This week, we're sharing the story of Ms. Mabel Hampton, in partnership with The Lesbian Herstory Archives. Ms. Hampton (1902-1989) was an African-American lesbian, an activist, a dancer, a singer, and a domestic worker. She was also a dear friend and mentor of Joan Nestle, one of The Lesbian Herstory Archives' founders. Between 1976 and 1988, Joan Nestle sat down with Ms. Hampton numerous times to record a series of oral history interviews. We've pulled bits and pieces from these tapes to sh...

In 1963, white supremacist terrorists bombed the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, killing four young black girls. Despite the FBI and local investigators identifying four key perpetrators, no one was charged. Until 1977, when Pete Smith, a trans man, worked with the FBI to testify against and convict his uncle, Robert Chambliss. In partnership with Invisible Histories, we are releasing this 1988 interview with Pete. This episode is a part of a series we’re c...

Happy Pride Month!! Starting this month, we will be releasing a series of episodes that we’re calling Cruising the Archives. We’re featuring extended interviews with LGBTQ+ icons from our own archives, as well as from the collections of queer and lesbian archives throughout the country. First up: Patricia McCombs. In December of 1974, Pat noticed that she and her Black and latinx friends were being discriminated against at CK’s, a North Side Chicago lesbian bar. In this interv...

Redz is a little known former lesbian bar in East LA, which opened in the 1950s and catered primarily to Chicana lesbians. This is the story of one woman in particular who called this space a home: Nancy Valverde. Nancy is most known for her long fought battle with the LAPD over masquerading laws, spending dozens of nights in jail throughout the 1950s for her refusal to wear typical women’s clothing.Nancy passed away in March of 2024 just six months after our interview with her. This episode ...

There's a new dyke bar in Bushwick, and it's called The Bush! These are the stories of humans that run it, and the humans that call it a home.Thank you to everyone who shared their stories with us for this episode!This episode features interviews with: Nikke Alleyne, Justine LaViolette, Macon Reed, Loretta Andro Chung, and Sarah Hallonquist. Check out Macon's work here. Order Dyke Beer here.Thank you for listening to Cruising Podcast!-Reviews help other listeners find Cruising! If you like wh...

Our full interview with Summer, security at Doc Marie's.Thank you for listening to Cruising Podcast!-Support Cruising here! Cruising is an independent podcast. That means we're entirely funded by sponsors and listeners like you!-Reviews help other listeners find Cruising! If you like what you hear, please subscribe and leave us a 5-star review!-For more Cruising adventures, follow us @cruisingpod on Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook-Cruising is reported and produced by a small but mighty team o...