Friday June 21st, 2013 @ 7pm-9pm
Casa de las Americas

182 E. 111th St. (Btwn. Lexington Ave. and 3rd Ave.) Take the 6 train to E. 110th St.

LGBT rights have always been a controversial issue in Cuba! The Cuban Revolution has taken steps to promote LGBT rights, freedom of gender identity/expression, and to combat homophobia, but there is still a lot to be done! Join The Popular Education Project to Free the Cuban 5 for this special Queer Pride event!

Join us as we explore this hot button issue! We will answer questions; ask new ones; debate these issues; and learn from each other!

Program: Screening the film Mariposas en el Andamio (Butterflies on the Scaffold):
After the Revolution, gays were not respected in Cuba, but in the small Havana neighborhood of La Güinera, a few courageous women came to power and encouraged the gay community. Glamorous gowns fashioned from grain sacks and eyelashes made out of carbon paper are the reality of drag in Cuba. In La Güinera, gay transvestite performers have earned respect and status through creative work for the neighbourhood. On stage action and backstage preparation opens out into insightful interviews with community leaders, families, and the performers themselves. the question; can you be gay and accepted in Cuba?

An interview of Mariela Castro; director of CENESEX (the national Cuban sexual health and sexuality organization) by Filmmaker/Journalist Jennifer Wager.