Photo: Nomad World Pub - Facebook
Brady Street
Brady Street
Brady Street will kick off Pride month Saturday, June 2 with what is believed to be Milwaukee’s first drag pub crawl, hosted by Chanel D’Vine and Nomad World Pub. From 1-5 p.m. crawlers will tour five Brady Street bars with popup drag shows at each location.
Matt Krueger, who is cohosting the crawl, said he was inspired by the turnout and support he has seen during Brady Street Festival drag shows. “I thought it would be great to say, ‘We’re out here, we’re everywhere,’” said Nomad World Pub general manager Amanda Olson, who helped organize the event. “Brady Street is for everyone, the Nomad is for everyone, and it’s just spreading those good vibes and inclusivity all up and down the neighborhood.”
More than a celebration, the event will bring awareness to LGBTQ culture and issues that face the community, such as homelessness and sexually transmitted diseases among LGBTQ youth. The BESTD Clinic—which has been offering accessible HIV and STD testing since it was founded by the Gay People’s Union in the early 1970s—will be open, providing education and advocacy; and organizers said the event will offer a chance for open dialogue.
“Want to ask a question about drag or about LGBTQ+ issues or just have a conversation?” said Nomad event coordinator Danny Neelon. “This is our opportunity, we are providing this venue to learn and work with us and experience us. We’re taking it off the stage and bringing it to the street.”
Saturday’s event will also benefit Courage MKE, a collaborative movement to provide the resources LGBTQ youth need to thrive.
“On any given night, more than 500 youth across Milwaukee go without a place to sleep or call home,” according to Courage MKE. Of those 500 youth, 40 percent identify as LGBTQ and 26% are on the streets because their parents rejected them.
Courage MKE seeks to solve this problem by opening the first home designed to serve all youth in need—an inclusive, safe and accepting community where youth ages 10 to 17 can work to become their best self and have the love and support they need to be successful, according to Courage MKE cofounder and executive director Brad Schlaikowski. “Because we believe that a child is not able to work on themselves until they can be themselves.”
After two and a half years of fundraising, the organization purchased property this past February and later this year will open Wisconsin’s first home for LGBTQ youth.
With a goal of $5,000, the proceeds raised during the drag crawl through donations, the 50/50 raffle and performance tips will go toward $30,000 worth of renovations for the property that will become home to eight youth.
Ultimately, organizers hope the event will bring people together by fostering acceptance and inclusiveness for all who attend.
“We’ve gone to gay bars because we had to go to gay bars a long time ago,” Schlaikowski said. “I think it’s also a great opportunity for the gay community to step out and see what else Milwaukee has to offer, and what better place to do it than at bars that are opening their arms to us.”
The full Brady Street Drag Crawl schedule is below:
1 p.m. - Melee McQueen, Hi-Hat/Garage
2 p.m. - Jaida Essence Hall, Jack’s
3 p.m. - Tempest Heat, Malone’s
4 p.m. - Nova D’Vine, Club Brady
5 p.m. - Chanel D’Vine, Nomad
No signup is needed to participate. If you can’t attend but would like to donate, visit www.couragemke.org.
