TIRE BEACH, 2001

The first convening of Gay Shame at Tire Beach in 2001 consisted of bands, speakers, a hair-cutting station, child care, a clothing swap, food, free stuff like silk-screened shirts, as radical queers sought to create an alternative to corporate Pride (R). It lasted until the cops showed up and told everyone to leave.

A crowd of people gather at Tire Beach for the first Gay Shame convening, looking at a band.

Crowd listens to a speaker with an industrial chimney in the back.

Crowd listens to a speaker with an industrial chimney in the back.

Someone reads from a zine.

Another band plays the tunes of the early aughts. People with Gay Shame t-shirts gather as the sun falls on the sleepy town.