I’m honored to bring more support, joy, and connection to our community through events like the upcoming CREAM Ball, hosted at The Center on Saturday, January 24, from 4-10pm!
At Black Services at The Center, our work is rooted in our commitment to support our community and create spaces where Black LGBTQ+ people can gather, reflect, celebrate, and be fully seen. Over the last few months, we’ve been building more opportunities for dialogue and joy, and we’re excited to continue growing these spaces.
Near the end of the year, we screened MAJOR! and celebrated the life of Miss Major Griffin-Gracy, a trailblazing Black trans activist whose courage and leadership changed many lives. We also screened The Death and Life of Marsha P. Johnson, honoring another iconic Black trans activist whose bold advocacy helped shape the LGBTQ+ movement and continues to deeply inspire us today.
Most recently, we held a community movie night in collaboration with Women’s Services and Project TRANS at The Center. This event focused on solidarity and allyship, centering BIPOC LGBTQ+ voices while inviting white allies to show up with accountability and collaboration. Through conversation and a film honoring the life of Andrea Gibson, we reflected on what it means to unite in care, equity, and action.
These gatherings are part of our vision to make film screenings and community dialogue a regular offering within Black Services at The Center. We want to cultivate spaces where we can learn from our past, support each other in the present, and shape a better future together.
That vision continues this Saturday, January 24, with the 2nd Annual CREAM Ball! This extravagant celebration of ballroom culture, creativity, and Black LGBTQ+ excellence will be hosted at The Center by International Westcoast Mother Queen Staxx Ebony. The ballroom scene is an underground LGBTQ+ subculture that traces its roots to the drag balls of the mid-19th century, and was popularized in the 1900s. In the ballroom scene, Black and Latino drag performers could achieve glory, find surrogate families, and feel a sense of belonging. Miss Major, who came out as transgender in her teens in late 1950s Chicago, was part of African-American drag ball culture.
Famously documented in the groundbreaking 1991 film Paris is Burning, ballroom has always been a space of authentic expression, radiant joy, and chosen family, and we’re honored to hold space for that legacy at The Center.
The CREAM Ball will feature Legendary DJ Tone 007, iconic commentators, and multiple categories where guests can compete for prizes. Doors to the event in The Center’s Auditorium will open at 4pm, with the ball starting at 5pm. Entry is $40 cash only at the door. The Center will also be supporting our community with free STI and HIV testing directly at the event, provided by our Sexual Health and Wellness team.
In the coming months, we’ll be hosting more community conversations designed to help folx deepen their understanding of privilege, accountability, and solidarity. I invite you to join Black Services both this weekend at the CREAM Ball and beyond at future events as we explore how to better support and advocate for our underrepresented communities, so we can all connect, reflect, and celebrate our community together.
In community,
Tiffany Martin (she/her)
Black Services Manager