The Project
Realizing our history.
Sharing our stories.
LGBTQ+ history didn’t just happen in San Francisco and New York, here in the South we have our own groundbreaking figures and stories of resilience. It is because of these LGBTQ+ figures, we are able to continue to advocate and seek liberation for all community members. Their lives inform our liberties and pursuits today. Our desire and hope is to bring greater awareness to their stories and the rich LGBTQ+ history of our Atlanta community.
The Project Includes:
+ In-person & online exhibitions honoring LGBTQ+ luminaries who have changed the landscape of Atlanta’s queer community, through life stories told in their own voices and portraits made by local LGBTQ+ photographers
+ Oral history interviews with each exhibition subject, to be preserved and archived with Georgia State University’s LGBTQ+ History Archives
+ A podcast created from the recorded oral histories
As a celebration of Atlanta’s prodigious LGBTQ+ talent, this project is a proud collaboration between local LGBTQ+ photographers, designers, writers, and audio editors.
Our project is honored to include:
Charlie Brown
Atlanta Drag Performer
Dee Dee Chamblee
Executive Director at LAGENDER INC
Grant Henry
Owner & Resident Artist at Sister Louisa's CHURCH
Jen Maguire
Co-owner, My Sister’s Room
Julie Rhoad
Former President & Director of The Names Project & AIDS Memorial Quilt
Sen. Kim Jackson
Georgia State Senator, Senate District 41
Lena Lust
Atlanta Drag Performer
Monica Helms
Creator of the Trans Flag
Rabbi Joshua Lesser
Founder of SOJOURN
Rabbi. Bet Haverim
Rep. Sam Park
Georgia State Representative,
House District 101
Others to be added as they confirm their participation in the project.
Project Team
Project Co-Founders & Directors
Rachel
Garbus-BenitezCo-Founder &
Communications Director
(She/Her) A writer, editor, and oral history maker. Originally from Massachusetts, she moved to Atlanta after college and accidentally fell in love with the South. She’s now the deputy editor at Atlanta magazine 🖊️ and the culture editor at queer outlet Wussy 👄 She lives in Westview (#BestView) with her wife, a professional primatologist, her daughter (professionally cute), and her rescue dog (professionally anxious). She’s a big fan of superlative coffee, satisfying pens, and delightful encounters with strangers.
Instagram @goodgraciousrachel | LinkedIn
rachelgarbus.com 🌻
Sam
LandisCo-Founder &
Creative Director
(They/Them) A designer and creative director passionate about queer history. Raised in Alabama, they moved to Atlanta for SCAD and have been deeply involved in the local LGBTQ community ever since. Now building their own agency, Gingko Creative Co. Recently relocated to Seattle’s Capitol Hill neighborhood with their dog Opal to build a chosen family with their queer partners Al and Martha. When not working, Sam enjoys outdoor adventures, art of all kinds, and discovering new places and people.
Instagram @littlemxsam | LinkedIn
samlandis.com
Out Down South Podcast Team
Mykal
Alder JunePodcast Producer
& Showrunner
(She/Her) A writer, producer, and musician in Atlanta, Georgia. She spent twenty years in public radio and podcasting and her work earned awards from the Georgia Association of Broadcasters and the Associated Press. She is co-host of Write Club Atlanta, a live literary series which kicks the ass of most any poetry reading you’d care to name. She records and composes music as meaning of everything.
Instagram @goodgraciousrachel | LinkedIn
rachelgarbus.com 🌻
Jonathan Thomas
MaioccoPodcast Sound Designer & Audio Editor
Music Producer, Film Composer, and Recording Artist
Administrative & Research Team
Myles
MarkumDevelopment Strategy
& Fundraising
Bio coming soon.
Coming
SoonVideo Content
Creator& Editor
Bio coming soon.
Coming
SoonResearch Fellow
Bio coming soon.
Applications
Open NowSpring 2027 Intern
Apply at the link on the “Join Our Team” page
Project Advisors
Julie Rhoad (She/Her)
Nonprofit and Creative Industry Leader, Consultant, Strategist: Change Management, Fundraising, Creative Direction, Program Design, Production Management Former President & CEO of The NAMES Project Foundation, former caretaker of The AIDS Memorial Quilt. Rhoad serves as a program advisor for the Atlanta LGBTQ+ History Project.
Morna Gerrard (She/Her)
The lead archivist for Women’s/Gender and Sexuality Collections at Georgia State University. In this role, she collects, preserves, and makes available the records and oral histories of women and the LGBTQ+ communities in Atlanta, Georgia, and the South. Gerard serves as a program advisor and the archival partner and representative of the recipient institution for all project materials.
Jeff Graham (He/Him)
The executive director of Equality Foundation of Georgia, an organization that works to advance fairness, safety and opportunity for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender communities throughout Georgia. Equality Foundation of Georgia is serving as the fiscal sponsor for the Atlanta LGBTQ+ History Project, and Graham serves as a program advisor and fiscal advisor.
And we are still growing!
Learn more about open roles and apply below.
Project Partners
* These are partners of the project, but should not be seen as the same entity as the project.
Each organization is separate but works in collaboration with The Atlanta LGBTQ History Project, with the exception of Equality Foundation of Georgia, our fiscal sponsor.
Special Recognition
Julie Rhoad, for her ongoing guidance and direction as an advisor of the project.
Ryan Roemerman, for his guidance, while Executive Director of The LGBTQ Institute.Rachael Ward and Jon Dean, for their roles in co-founding the project.
Tim’m West, for their guidance and collaboration as the current Executive Director of The LGBTQ Institute.
Morna Gerrard, our oral history & archive guru, for help in coordinating space to record oral histories, and use of oral histories she already had recorded.
Daniel Ballon-Garst, Patrick Long, and Kacie Willis for their contribution and collaboration in the first year of the project.
Paul Conroy, for his support and partnership as Out Front Theatre Company’s Founder & Producing Artistic Director. The Out Front Theatre Company was previously the fiscal sponsor of The Atlanta LGBTQ+ History Project.
Help us tell our stories.
Donate to the project or contact us to learn more about how you can participate in the project.
In the Press
'Out Down South' outdoor exhibit observes years of rich Atlanta LGBTQ+ history
NPR WABE | City Lights Staff | January 23rd, 2023
6 Must-See Exhibitions To Check Out This Atlanta Pride Month
Secret Atlanta | Jack Rattenbury | October 3, 2022
Woo Girl! Queer Oral History with Rachel Garbus
Wussy Mag | Good Judy Podcast | Jun 24, 2022
