Dr. Isabel Machado has a new essay in Tributaries, the journal of the Alabama Folklife Association.
This publication is part of Machado’s 2023/24 The Alabama Folk Life Associations Cauthen Fellowship, which is awarded to individuals to conduct original research on an Alabama folk tradition, defined as a tradition passed down through the generations or shared in community in Alabama. This includes, but is not limited to, music, dance, traditional arts, foodways, language, holidays, cultural practices, and work life.
“In this political climate, it is not at all surprising that some people might think that drag does not have a history or that it does not qualify as Alabama folklife. As an artform connected to LGBTQ+ people and communities that creatively challenges gender norms, it has, yet again, become a hot button issue. There are even efforts to criminalize it.
I am writing this as a historian, as a scholar who specializes in Gender and Sexuality Studies and has recently published a book on Mobile’s Mardi Gras. But I am also writing as a fan of this artform and as someone who found a chosen family in LGBTQ+ and drag communities in different parts of the world.”
CSIS 450: Performing Gender and Sexuality (aka Drag Around The World)
Registration is still open for Dr. Machado’s 2025 Winter T2 course.
CSIS 450: Performing Gender & Sexuality
