I'm still recuperating from attending the West Hollywood Halloween Carnaval on Santa Monica Blvd last night. I've known of West Hollywood ("WeHo") for years, especially when at the age of 12 I caught a glimpse of two guys kissing on the corner of Robertson and Santa Monica Blvd. For the first time in my life, my little mind conceived of the notion of an openly gay and lesbian community.
Fast forward 15+ years and there I was at about 12 midnight walking through the crowd of male dominatrices, cross dressers of all sorts, and a favorite of the night, for nostalgia sake: Pee-Wee Herman, red bike, goofy laugh, and annoying voice included. The classic Hollywood iconic heterosexual couples came out too (no pun intended) and included Lucy and Ricky, Shrek and Fiona, and Heff and his three bunnies. Food couples were also big: bacon and eggs and Mcdonald's French fries and Heinz Ketchup to name two.
But c'mon, these heteros had nothing on the gay community that came out tour de force for this event. There were a little under 300 Spartans, which left male and female onlookers desiring to conquer their hot gateway. Tina Turner was present and--unlike love--she was nothing near a sweet old fashion notion. One of the most outrageous scenes included a half-naked man pulling another burly man with a chariot. Imagine pulling someone all night on a chariot for about a mile each way.
Then there was this person:
LA Sights:
But let's compare the Carnaval to another one of LA's sights: a celebration like May Day, which took place on May 1, 2007--known internationally as Labour Day, or International Workers' day. First it should be noted that Halloween, like Baseball, is a national celebration and pastime, but few Americans really understand May Day's importance.
Police Presence and Amenities
There were a lot of costumed police at the Carnaval, looking like LA's finest, but they had on black leather pants like this guy.
Real LA County Sheriffs came out in loads as well, but their presence wasn't at all overbearing, which was nice 'cause people just walked the street having drinks, eating food, and smoking it up.
Police presence was huge at the May Day celebration too (mostly LAPD), and they came bearing their own costumes--riot gear, blunt batons, and guns that fired real rubber bullets. Unlike the Carnaval, the May Day celebration did not offer participants beer to drink and very few food stands were present.
The West Hollywood Halloween Carnaval was marked by organization through collaboration, respect for individuality, celebration without incident, and a heightened--perhaps short-lived--sense of community and solidarity.
The May Day celebration was marked by organization with little collaboration, disrespect for individuality, incident as a result of celebration, and a heightened--perhaps short-lived--sense of community and solidarity, at least between those doing the running and those receiving the blunt ends of swinging batons. (Unlike the Carnaval, at least journalists and reporters had the chance to become part of their own feature story).
Something that Unites!
Both events are meant to provide an opportunity to make a statement about tolerance, solidarity, individual prerogative, marginalization, and celebration. They give the wider public a chance to celebrate and honor different choices, lifestyles, and circumstance and highlight the bedrock principles of US democracy.
I hope that one day the LGBT community of West Hollywood, which is largely white and affluent, very successful at developing events and working with the city, and holding some political and economic clout in the state will align and collaborate with the low-income immigrant communities that make up much of the fabric of LA, the May Day Marches, and the WeHo celebration.
How might this occur? First, let's acknowledge that both communities experience inequality and marginalization. The issue of civil unions as a response to same-sex marriage is just as much a hotly contested issue as a guest-worker program as a response to a fair and just immigration policy. Next, there is something that binds these communities--all communities really--and runs deeper than race, class, gender, and sexual preference.
Ahhh, there is opportunity here somewhere, but I'll save that for a later post. There are at least two more constants I failed to mention earlier: I'm still recuperating from the frightful scenes and the underlying socio-political dynamics that powerfully rocked thousands at both events. Yet, as a result of the deep impact each event had on my hopes for the future of LA, I'm looking forward to celebrating in the streets at both events next year!
P.S.
A view of one of the many food stands at the Carnaval.
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