MONDAY, JUNE 15 • 6-7PM
ZOOM LINK WILL BE PROVIDED AFTER REGISTRATION
Queer The Table is a podcast from Heritage Radio Network (HRN) about the joyful, messy, radical magic that happens in spaces where queerness and food intersect.
On Monday June 15th, in collaboration with the Hetrick-Martin Institute, Queer The Table is bringing a virtual conversation to you live as host Nico Wisler explores the idea of “queer food” and the importance of queer community within the world of food and hospitality.
As some of you may know, this live podcast has been through several iterations. When we shifted from an in-person gathering to a digital event this spring, we knew that our conversation would broaden to cover the Covid-19 crisis. We know now that we also need to shine a light on the ways that Black leaders across the food industry and queer community are responding to the escalating crises of racism and police brutality.
PRESENTED IN PARTNERSHIP WITH
PANELIST BIOS
Nico Wisler is a middle school teacher, storyteller, and enthusiastic dinner party host who is forever swooned by the intimacy of both cooking and making radio. They believe deeply in the power of queer dance parties, chosen family, long bike rides, and extra garlic. Nico’s podcast, Queer The Table is about the joyful, messy, radical magic that happens in spaces where queerness and food intersect. In conversation with farmers, chefs, activists, historians, seed savers and business babes, Nico explores the idea of “queer food” in all of its limitless forms.
John deBary is the Co-Founder and Board President of Restaurant Workers’ Community Foundation, which is devoted to addressing quality-of-life issues in the hospitality industry through grantmaking, advocacy, and impact investing. John is also the creator of Proteau, a line of non-alcoholic botanical aperitifs, as well as the author of the upcoming cocktail book, Drink What You Want, due out June 2020 from Clarkson Potter. He lives in the Lower East Side with his husband and cat.
Christopher Murray is a 32-year old gender nonbinary person working at the Hetrick-Martin Institute as the on-site HIV Tester. Christopher is passionate about bringing people to the table in a literal sense and truly believes that the power in food is the same power used to build community. When they are not streaming live on Twitch or trying to find the best outfit for the day, they move through their day in style, and with a smile!
Vanessa Parish is a pastry chef from North Carolina currently residing in Los Angeles. Vanessa runs a private catering business “Sweet Comfort” for savory and sweet delights. She owns an online cookie business “Brown Sugar’s Cookies” where she creates new and unique flavors to ship straight to your home. Vanessa just launched her own dessert Pop-Up Restaurant “TORCH” which is traveling across major cities. She has worked as a Specialty Pastries Coordinator at one of the top restaurants in downtown L.A, and hosts the show “Tasting Our Roots” on Buzzfeed’s Tasty channel. The show has reached over 15 million views, has countless shares on the web and is now on AppleTV, HULU and Amazon Prime. She still works as a correspondent for Tasty and collaborates consistently on their platforms. Vanessa has been a featured chef for BET, Blavity, AirBNB, Google and Food Network
Andre Springer was born in the Bedford Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn in the 80’s into a Barbadian family who immigrated to the United States in the late 60’s. Andre was always surrounded by the love of food, whether it was Alma, Springer’s Grandmother, or working in restaurants, bars, and cafes for over 17 years. Food was a gateway into other cultures, lives, and places in NYC. Today, Andre is a Hot Sauce and Food Entrepreneur currently expanding the Shaquanda Will Feed You brand across the United States of America online and in real life. Shaquanda Coco Mulatta was born at The Slide (a former bar on the Bowery) in 2005, an alter ego developed by Andre Springer, who lives mostly in the 4th dimension. Shaquanda is a downtown nightlife performer providing an audience with shows that are “hood avant-garde.” Why the name Shaquanda? Why not? Shaquanda is a celebration of Bed-Stuy.
Rae Angelo Tutera (they/them or she/her) is an advocate and partner at Bindle & Keep. After navigating the traditional custom menswear landscape as a non-binary customer, Rae felt there was a unique need for a queer/trans-identified tailor. In 2012, Rae asked Daniel Friedman for an apprenticeship and they forged a partnership to provide accessible and affirming tailoring services to clients of all genders. In 2016, this collaboration was featured in an HBO documentary called Suited that shares 6 of those clients’ experiences not just as clients but as gender non-conforming people in our culture.
Kris Harrington is a NYC based creative – specializing in Genderfluid Fashion Design + Technology.
A 2014 graduate of the Fashion Institute of Technology in Menswear Design with a Business Marketing degree from Loyola University – Kris gained industry experience at a number of notable brands such Van Heusen, Tommy Hilfiger, DKNY, Henri Bendel, Armani Exchange and Ermenegildo Zenga before launching Gender Fluid Eveningwear line – KRIS HARRING.
A 2018 OUT Magazine Fashion Vanguard Award recipient and member of the Class of 2018 FIT Design Entrepreneurs Accelerator – Kris’ work has been featured in notable publications such as the NEW YORK TIMES and New York Magazine Weddings and has been a featured panelist on Design Entrepreneurship at the Re:Think Connect Marketing Symposium featured in Forbes Magazine. Through her work, Kris represents the power of individuality and freedom of self expression through style and is excited to continue the push being a voice in fashion innovation and inclusive design.
Henry Bae believes in fashion’s power to break rules, spark conversations, and challenge established systems of power! Since 2016, Bae has designed and sold femme footwear in large sizes under the name SYRO. His work reverts the conventions of his heteronormative Asian-American upbringing, and has enabled him to continue further exploring his queerness. He is a Virgo and takes things very seriously.
Anita Dolce Vita is the Publisher and Creative Director of dapperQ, a premier queer style digital magazine dedicated to “ungendering fashion.” Dubbed GQ for the “unconventionally masculine,” dapperQ was among the first digital spaces to champion “menswear” for those traditionally under-served by mainstream menswear media and designers. Anita is the executive producer behind some of the world’s largest queer fashion shows, including the annual New York Fashion week queer runway event at Brooklyn Museum. She recently became a contributing fashion editor at Curve, the nation’s best selling lesbian magazine. Anita’s fashion shows and writing have been featured in reputable media outlets such as Vanity Fair, The New York Times, Vice, HBO, Teen Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, and Refinery29, to name a few.
Alex Berg is a correspondent and producer covering national news, women’s issues and LGBTQ culture. She is the host of the new SiriusXM Progress weekly series The Issues, unpacking topics on the 2020 campaign trail. Previously, she was a host of the Mic documentary series Mic Dispatch and a supervising producer at BuzzFeed News. Her writing has appeared in Teen Vogue, NBC News, OUT and more. In her free time, Alex is a skater for Gotham Girls Roller Derby. Follow her at @itsalexberg.
Cole Delbyck is a New York City-based entertainment reporter for HuffPost and moderator at Build Series. His work has appeared in The Nation and Time Out magazines. He began his career at the LGBTQ human rights organization OutRight Action International.
Clare Kenny serves as GLAAD’s Director of Youth Engagement. In her first three years at GLAAD, Kenny launched and continues to oversee GLAAD’s Campus Ambassador Program, Rising Stars Grant Program, and digital storytelling platform ‘Amp.’ Her work has appeared in HuffPost, POPSUGAR, Elite Daily, and more. Kenny graduated with an Honors B.A. in Gender Studies from Skidmore College in 2015. Connect with Clare on Instagram and Twitter @vonkenny.
Phil Jimenez is an Inkpot, Diamond, and Wizard-award-winning writer and artist who has worked for DC Entertainment, Marvel Entertainment, and a host of other comic book companies for over 25 years. Best known for his work on Tempest, JLA/Titans, Planetary/Authority; The Invisibles, New-X-Men, Wonder Woman, Infinite Crisis, Amazing Spider-Man, The Transformers, DC: Rebirth, Superwoman, and his creator owned project Otherworld, Jimenez is currently drawing Historia, the Black Label graphic novel written by Kelly Sue DeConnick for DC Comics. Jimenez has also worked as a creator in film, television, traditional print media, and design/packaging for toy companies; has created large-scale artworks for public spaces, schools, and museums in New York and Chicago; lectured at universities, museums, and the Library of Congress on identity and diversity in entertainment; and mentors young designers at the Cooper Hewitt National Design Museum. Considered one of the most prominent gay creators in mainstream comics (Entertainment Weekly, the Advocate, OUT magazine/Out 100 alum), Jimenez also teaches life drawing at the School of Visual Arts in NYC. Find Phil on FB, Instagram, and Twitter at @Philjimeneznyc.
Diana Tourjée is a GLAAD award-winning journalist specializing in identity and culture. She is a senior staff writer at Vice Media and is currently writing her first book for Bloomsbury Publishing. Her work has been featured in Time Magazine, Dazed Digital, DAZED Magazine, Out Magazine, VICE Magazine, V Magazine, Garage Magazine, Aperture Magazine, Buzzfeed, The Huffington Post, CR Men’s Book, and The Village Voice.