Oct 062011
 

Aliza Shapiro—a wonderful activist, organizer, event producer, drag king, artist, and performer from Boston—recently suffered a stroke from a cerebral hemorrhage. If you’ve ever been to a East Coast event about queers, drag, burlesque, gender, art, sex, or politics, chances are Aliza had a hand in it. I met her and her then-partner L.A. Teodosio what seems like a million years ago in Boston. I have participated in events with Aliza, seen her at countless others, and most recently loved re-connecting with her last fall at IDKE in Baltimore. In fact, I may have even written a story once about a character based on Aliza. As a self-employed queer, Aliza does not have the resources to support herself during what promises to be a long, difficult recovery. Her friends and loved ones have set up the Aliza’s Brain Trust to collect donations for her and post updates about her progress. So far the amount of love and support has been phenomenal, but the bills continue to accumulate as Aliza does rehabilitation.

I’ve launched a fundraiser for Aliza, and here’s the scoop: donate to Aliza’s Brain Trust between October 6, 2011 and October 19, 2011. The person who makes the largest donation during this time period will win a lunch date with me! Our lunch can take place in any one of the following cities during my Fall Tour:

  • Boston (10/20)
  • Amherst (11/10)
  • Springfield (11/11-13)
  • New York (11/14-15)
  • Seattle (11/20-21)
  • Portland, OR (11/26-27)
  • San Francisco (11/28-12/1)

To Enter:

1. Make a donation to Aliza’s Brain Trust. Do it by October 19, 2011 by 2 pm EST to be considered for this prize.

2. Anyone who donates more than $75 will receive a free porn DVD from me! Anyone who donates $100 or more will be in the running to win the date.

3. The winner will be announced October 19, 2011 at 5 pm EST. Tristan will contact the winner directly to set up the lunch.