Gay people make Detroit, and everywhere else, better

My friend Joe, who you might know better as Supergay Detroit, shared a video with me today about the gay scene in Detroit. It’s inspiring, and beautifully done, and I probably would have shared it anyway, but I’m especially happy to do so tonight, as it features, among others, my friend David Blair, who just passed away unexpectedly a few days ago, at the age of 43… That’s David that you hear talking 29 seconds in. (You can also see him performing at 6:35.) I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

MotorCity Pride from 4exit4 on Vimeo.

[I don’t know if producers Toby Barlow and Dorota Coy intended this to be a gay recruitment piece, but, if they did, I think they’ll find it pretty effective… In fact, I suspect that many of you in the audience are finding yourselves turning gay at this very moment, and planning your move to the Motor City.]

Here, for those of you who didn’t watch, is part of what David has to say about the gay community of Detroit:

“…I think we bring with us a lot of creativity. We have a knack for finding creative ways of getting what we need from life. And I think that we make places we go more beautiful.”

And that was certainly the case for David, who most people here in Michigan knew as Blair.

And, here, for those of you in Detroit, is information about David’s memorial, which will take place this Sunday, July 31, 2011.

We want to give Blair back some of the love and life he gave to all of us. We are going to send him off with a 2nd Line Jazz funeral and we invite you to come mourn and celebrate.

1pm: Please gather on the corner of Cass and MLK/Mack. We will march down Cass to the Unitarian Universalist Church (UU) at 4605 Cass on the corner of Forest. Percussion instruments are welcome to join in this march.

2pm: Life Celebration at the UU church

3pm: We will 2nd Line March back out into the street and let Detroit hear us celebrate.

3:30pm: Community Potluck at Memorial Hall at the UU. Please bring a dish.