Column

   

  A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of interviewing Madeline Davis for an article I was writing about her documentary, Swimming with Lesbians.

 

  Swimming with Lesbians provides a raw look into the GLBT movement of a “rustbelt city on the edge of the Midwest,” otherwise known as Buffalo, NY. It’s an engaging, heartwarming, tragic, realistic, gritty, and fabulous account of the people and personal stories that have paved the way for where we are now — from the tantalizing tales of Tangara, a local 60s drag queen, to Peggy Ames, a transsexual woman who was courageous enough to embrace her true gender when her family and an entire town turned their backs on her.

 

  But Swimming with Lesbians is more than just a documentary; it’s a visual reminder of the lives we have lived, the places we have been, and the beautiful history we have created together right here in Western New York.

 

  The name for the documentary came about by accident. Davis was driving with a friend (who is also featured in the documentary) and he mentioned that he didn’t like swimming because gay men are judgmental about body images. Davis told him jokingly that he should go swimming with lesbians, because lesbians don’t care how people look.  “I think lesbians are much more accepting in that regard,” she said. “We come in all different shapes, colors, cultures, ages and sizes. We come from everywhere. We are the most fortunate of genders, because we allow each other to be as we are.”

 

  For those of you who don’t know her, Madeline Davis is a woman with many extraordinary sides, including lesbian, author, musician, Reiki master, librarian, and speaker. She is also a pivotal player in GLBT history and she’s seen her fair share of pride parades, demonstrations and protests. In 1971, she marched and spoke at the first gay rights rally at the New York State Capitol and participated in the original effort to lobby the state legislature on behalf of gay rights. Often credited for single-handedly bringing GLBT issues and politics to the forefront in Buffalo, she began collecting items for what is now known as “The Madeline Davis GLBT Archives of Western, New York” in 2001.

 

  Swimming with Lesbians gives you an inside view of Davis’ personal life, her brilliant past, and her unwavering determination to create one of the most extensive GLBT archive collections in the country. When she set out to film the documentary, Davis hoped that one central message would be perceived: that people would understand how vitally important it is to not let our history disappear. That is why she created the archives. She believes that we need to keep a living collection of GLBT history and make it available for researchers, for students, and for future generations of gays and lesbians in this country so that they know what happened before. If we don’t, well then our history will simply go up in smoke.

So far, Swimming with Lesbians has been well received. Davis is hoping that a distribution company will pick up the documentary and eventually air it on popular networks such as HBO or LOGO. As for the archives, Buffalo State College is currently clearing space in the Butler Library in order to showcase them and preserve them for years to come. 

 

  I invite you to watch Swimming with Lesbians if you haven’t had a chance to see it yet. It’s not only an important part of Western New York GLBT culture, it’s an important part of GLBT culture, period.