The 1990s saw the heyday of Milwaukee’s LGBT Rainbow Associations. I was involved in Bay View’s. There were others in Riverwest, Washington Heights and Wauwatosa. They provided a solution to Milwaukee’s lack of a centralized gay-borhood. Although the bars were clustered in the Third Ward and Walker’s Point, there was no enclave like Chicago’s Boystown or New York’s Chelsea where gay business and residential areas provided a true community hub. The Rainbow Associations connected LGBT people socially, recreationally and culturally with their LGBT neighbors. Unfortunately, most have since faded away.
One, the Washington Heights Rainbow Association (WHRA), continues to thrive. This year it celebrates its 20th anniversary. Its longevity is a result of its members’ engagement. Dozens strong, their commitment is not only to their neighborhood, but to the greater LGBT community and the community at large.
Unlike other organizations serving a particular demographic, WHRA members span the LGBT acronym as well as a diverse age and ethnicity spectrum. Most importantly, they are neighbors in the traditional sense. Aside from communal outings, parties and picnics, they are immersed in their neighborhood and beyond. One noteworthy activity is their annual volunteers stint at PrideFest where they staff a wine bar. It is also their primary fundraising source.
While these proceeds partially subsidize organization events, most of the money raised is donated to other LGBT and non-LGBT causes. Recipients range from the Gay Arts Center to the summer concerts in Washington Park. WHRA also provides school supplies for local students and swim gear for Youth Swimmers.
Over time that civic engagement has evolved and expanded. WHRA members are now part of Washington Heights Neighborhood Association and sit on its board and Green Committee. Together they produce the Washington Boulevard Bash and provide candy and costumes for the neighborhood Halloween event, Spooktacular.
The Green Committee has initiated various projects in pursuit of environmental sustainability. WHRA helped raise funds to produce and distribute 3,000 green shopping bags. It also participates in the annual Bloom and Groom city initiative that provides discounted plants to green up neighborhoods. The plants are obtained from Lowe’s. It was discovered that pesticides used on those plants caused bee colony die offs. The Green Committee then joined a national campaign petitioning Lowe’s to stop using the pesticides. As a result, that company agreed to reduce their use and eventually phase them out.
The Green Committee is sponsoring an upcoming screening of the documentary Plastic Paradise: The Great Pacific Garbage Patch. The film warns of the dangers of plastics and hopes to inspire recycling. The showing is Saturday, April 18 at the Times Cinema, 5906 W. Vliet St.
WHRA may be contacted through social media. Membership is free and open to all, even if you don’t live in Washington Heights.
