In 2022, Detroit Vesey’s, a queer restaurant and bicycle café, commissioned artist Nora Rachel to paint a 27-foot-long mural about queer and trans history, and also to paint a mural with queer symbols in the restaurant's bathrooms. The different elements in the main mural, titled "History is a Weapon (so light a match)," focused on the symbols and history of queer and trans communities in North America.
There was a focus on events that took place pre-Stonewall, to show the long history of resistance we stand on. Queer and trans people have always existed, and we have always found each other, through our intra-community codes and our acts of resistance. Our history is our weapon, and our foundation. We have resistance and joy and we have always been the ones who keep us safe. Please enjoy this walk through our histories, our queer codes, our struggles, and our joys.
There was a focus on events that took place pre-Stonewall, to show the long history of resistance we stand on. Queer and trans people have always existed, and we have always found each other, through our intra-community codes and our acts of resistance. Our history is our weapon, and our foundation. We have resistance and joy and we have always been the ones who keep us safe. Please enjoy this walk through our histories, our queer codes, our struggles, and our joys.
"History is a Weapon: A Queer & Trans History Zine" is a zine about the mural, which outlines all of the research and information on the symbols and historical events depicted in this mural. It contains documents, historical photos, and images of the mural with a guide to looking up each element.
Zine Available Here
Zine Available Here
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Why Pink and Black?
The choice of color in this piece was intentional. Like the yellow Star of David used to demarcate Jews during the holocaust, the pink triangle was forced to be worn on the sleeves of homosexuals (which in this case was defined as gay men). While homosexual sex between men was criminalized, homosexual sex between women, though not accepted in society, was not.
The black triangles were forced to be worn on the sleeves any person the Nazis deemed to be "Asozial" (antisocial), which included lesbians. The black triangle was a wide umbrella category which included sex workers, Roma people, homeless people, disabled people, dissidents, and mentally ill people, among many others.
The black triangles were forced to be worn on the sleeves any person the Nazis deemed to be "Asozial" (antisocial), which included lesbians. The black triangle was a wide umbrella category which included sex workers, Roma people, homeless people, disabled people, dissidents, and mentally ill people, among many others.
The AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power (ACT UP) formed in 1987, reclaimed the pink triangle and was an international grassroots political group which used direct action to advocate for people living with AIDS. Due to this history, in particular pink triangles, are often used as a symbol that identifies one's self as queer.
Today, Pink and Black colors are worn by protesters, intentionally to identify themselves as queer, in homage to the LGBTQ people who were imprisoned and killed in concentration camps in WWII, and to people who fought back during the early days of the AIDS crisis. They are also just a fabulous color combo.
