#DotGayQAndA with PremierePDX.gay
PremierePDX.gay is a website that supports community by sharing information and stories about Portland’s LGBTQ events, businesses, and artists. Via their .gay site and multiple social media platforms, PremierePDX.gay hopes to contribute to a new post-COVID era of community and success for Portland’s LGBTQ residents.
The site includes a form for any LGBTQ business, artist, or event promoter in Portland to add themselves to the PremierePDX.gay directory. There is no cost involved, as PremierePDX.gay is funded by donations only. Click here to make a donation!
We got in touch with PremierePDX.gay founder Bruce Ross to discuss the site and its role in building up Portland’s LGBTQ communities. Read on for the #DotGayQAndA!
Tell us about PremierePDX.gay and its mission!
Well, firstly there wouldn't be a PremierePDX.gay without the launch of Premiere PDX LGBTQ back in 2014, which started out as a digital magazine for the Portland metro LGBTQ community. During this time print was slowly dying as the digital era was finally warming up with Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook at the helm. The magazine was a place for artists, entertainers, and voices of the community to have a platform to share their artistry and experiences as members of the queer community. Now years later with COVID-19 really taking a toll on our city, I want to reshape Premiere PDX LGBTQ into PremierePDX.gay as a place to highlight, promote, and raise up those community artists, entertainers, and local businesses into more success, at no cost to them, supported by those who wish to donate.
Why did you choose a .gay domain for this project?
Who wouldn’t? A moment in the peak internet era, .gay is a form of inclusion that someone raised during the beginnings of the internet age couldn't pass up. It makes me incredibly happy to type it every time; it’s a daily reminder of how far we've come in society, and of how much more work we have ahead of us in other areas to raise queer voices, specifically our trans brothers and sisters, and people of color.
Why is support for the arts, culture, and nightlife so important for the well-being of LGBTQ people?
James Baldwin, Billy Porter, Dan Levy, Kate McKinnon, Janelle Monáe; these famous individuals all stem from the arts, culture, and nightlife. Artists inspire and cultivate imagination, creating a world where others in the community benefit by creating worlds of their own to share with others. Supporting the foundation of artists who produce these experiences creates more inclusion and acceptance.
What role do you see the internet playing in supporting in-person events as we emerge from COVID?
The internet is vital in getting the world up and running again and pushing people out to events. Face it, we have lived on the internet for a year plus, more than we ever have before. The internet has to be a place to excite people to get out again and to support those who create memories, experiences, and laughter. Ironically the internet has to make people get off the internet, and finally get people to see each other face to face again.
Why is it important to help create a safer internet for LGBTQ people?
Because LGBTQ people need to be safe everywhere, period. Over the last four years of the Trump administration constantly attacking our rights, well-being, and safety, the internet was the number one place to organize, get information out, and to be seen and heard. The internet does have its downfalls though; these same platforms that create safe spaces can also cultivate disinformation and hate very easily. Platforms have a responsibility to step up and create safe spaces where minorities and communities can exist without worry. Luckily .gay domains are exactly that.