As well versed as I am regarding the African-American LGBT community, I was totally unaware of the story of Willmer "Little Axe" Broadnax until recently. The video below is a short (under 5 minutes) but very informative documentary that tells the incredible story. Please take a moment to view.
WOW! Willmer lived his entire life as a man and everyone except for his brother was unaware. He accomplished fame and notoriety in the gospel community. But if this community [the community of Black Christian folks] had been aware of his truth, he would have never have been successful as he was. I would say the fact that he was able to pull this off was a miracle.
The story of Little Axe is a remarkable one. But I'm sure the story of Little Axe parallels the story of many individuals that identify as transgender, especially during this era. Today, trans folks don't have to live under the radar or off the grid. Gender norms are being destroyed everyday and folks that self identity as trans can walk proudly and demand to be labeled as they see fit. But not that long ago, for many in the trans community found it necessary to live stealth.
I love gospel music and I love this spectacularly interesting story of Willmer "Little Axe" Broadaxe. It is a story that I feel needs to be a bit more commonplace. Kudos to him for achieving what he wanted to achieve as a gospel artists inspite of his very unique circumstance. And kudos to his brother for keeping his secret for his entire adult life.
No comments:
Post a Comment