The other day Master
mentioned a restaurant He found in Las Vegas called Hash House a Go
Go, that name has stuck in slave's mind ever since. This dish has
nothing to do with that establishment. Nor does it have anything to
do with the Pride event we honor with this dish. It was just a handy
name!
43 years ago a horrendous event happened at a gay bar in New Orleans: The Upstairs Lounge. Lets dedicate this dish and remember the victims of that horrible night. Be sure to read the quick write-up on The Upstairs Lounge following the recipe.
Ingredients
1
onion (chopped)
Heat
oven to 350°F.
Spray 13x9-inch glass baking dish.
Do
the cutting of onion and anything else that needs it. Open the cans
and drain them.
Cook
pasta as directed on package, using minimum cook time; drain.
Meanwhile,
in large skillet, melt butter over medium-high
heat. Cook the onions in butter 7
- 10 minutes, stirring
occasionally, until tender. Add mushrooms and cook for another 5
minutes
until moisture is gone.
In
large bowl, mix the onions & mushrooms with the cream cheese.
When
combined, add the chicken, the soup, and cooked pasta. Stir this
together until mixed. Pour mixture into baking dish.
If
you like a touch of crunch topping mix Parmesan cheese with bread
crumbs and sprinkle over top.
Bake
uncovered 55
minutes
or until bubbly.
Let
stand 5 minutes before serving.
This
can be served as a one dish casserole, no need for additional sides.
However a brown & serve bread goes nicely and maybe a small fruit
cup to round out the presentation. Again magic from what was in the
pantry.
For
our music tonight slave has picked a reminder of the song that was
sung that fateful night in New Orleans. Be sure to read the quick
write up that follows.
So
grateful to be serving my Master Indy and grateful for Pride. Our
viewpoint today is from the shoulders of heroes!
To
satisfy and restore.
To
nourish, support and maintain.
To
gratify, spoil, comfort and please,
to
nurture, assist, and sustain
…..I
cook!
Please
buy slave's cookbook:
The
Little Black Book of Indiscreet Recipes
by
Dan White
http://www.amazon.com
/dp/B00F315Y4I
/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_vAT4sb0934RTM
via
@amazon
A
Dark Night in New Orleans
“OneOrlando”
has raised about $7.5
million for
family and friends of victims of the Pulse homophobic terrorist
attack. This
is the largest of the MANY fund raising efforts going on around the
world. Our hearts are still heavy from this atrocity. But let me
remind you of another carnage that took place in a gay bar. The
response 43 years ago was very different.
Let
go back for a quick time line of history:
In
1968
The
Rev. Troy Perry felt
called to return to his faith and to offer a place for gay people to
worship God freely. He started the Metropolitan Community Church.
In
1969
the
NYC police raided the gay bar Stonewall Inn, this caused riots that
lasted nearly a week. Those riots are considered to mark the
beginnings of the LGBT Rights Movement.
On
Sunday, June 24th, 1973,
The LGBT community of New Orleans were celebrating the last day of
Pride weekend. This was only the third Pride weekend in history.
Sunday
afternoons at the Upstairs Lounge usually meant a sing along around a
piano. That Sunday, dozens of members of the Metropolitan Community
Church (MCC), got together there for drinks & talk. It was the
fourth anniversary of Stonewall. The club hosted free beer and dinner
for 125 patrons.
As
was the custom, the ending sing-a-long closed with the group singing
“United We Stand”.
There
was still no Gay Pride Parade
in New Orleans. It is said that after the free food and beer ran out
about half of the people had drifted off for the night.
Then
just a few minutes before 8PM,
the door buzzer sounded. Gay bars had to keep the doors locked and
have a doorman screen who could get in. This involved unlocking a
steel door to the flight of stairs leading down to the ground floor.
So the heavy metal door was opened and ALL HELL broke lose!
In
less than a second, an explosion of flames engulfed the entire bar.
Amazingly some escaped, some through running upstairs, some wiggled
out through the bars on the windows falling to the street below.
Reverend Bill Larson of the MCC could only make it halfway out. The
firefighters left him fused to the window frame. Rev.
Larson's body was not removed from the window
throughout
the
initial investigation, and symbolized the city's uncaring attitude
towards the mostly gay victims.
Thirty-two
lives were incinerated in less than 18 minutes!
The
death toll was the worst in New Orleans history up to that time.
It
was until this month, the largest mass murder of gays and lesbians to
ever be reported in the United States.
Even at first, the media responses to the fire were not sympathetic.
Some family members who knew, refused to claim the remains (little more than ashes). That would be admitting someone in their family was “queer”. The un-identified were buried in an unmarked mass grave. Radio commentators joked the remains could always be buried in FRUIT jars. The press ran quotes like: "I hope the fire burned their dresses off."
The States-Item described the scene this way: "workers stood knee deep in bodies. The heat had been so intense, many were cooked together."
Detective Major Henry Morris, of the New Orleans Police Department said, "Some thieves hung out there, and you know this was a queer bar."
The news coverage was mean. At best, the police response could be described as “uncaring”. However the reaction from religious organizations of New Orleans was a disgrace! One after another of the churches and cathedrals refused to hold memorial services.
Finally, on the first of July a full service was held at St. Mark’s United Methodist Church. Reverend Troy Perry, founder of the Metropolitan Community Church, officiated along with Methodist Bishop Finis Crutchfield.
According to the official story and popular histories: a troubled street hustler who was thrown out of the bar earlier was quickly blamed. He passed a lie detector test and he was never charged, nothing was ever proved. He had been in psychiatric custody for awhile, but had gotten out long before the incident. He was the perfect scapegoat. Was he guilty? He is said to have committed “suicide” the following year.
Finally
3 years ago, the
Roman catholic Archbishop of New Orleans, Gregory Michael Aymond,
issued a statement of regret that the local church leadership and
former Archbishop Philip Hannan had ignored the arson attack at the
time. He stated “The church does not condone violence and hatred.
If we did not extend our care and condolences, I deeply apologize.”
So
today we can be thankful some attitudes have changed. Yet we still
face the kind of homophobia that drives a person to mass slaughter!
When
I'm asked: “Why have a Pride?” I say look at what we have
achieved in the past 43 years. Yet still some churches celebrated
the killings! The hatred continues. We had Pride because it took
a riot to start demanding citizenship rights – not some kind of
“special” rights.
You
say that you don't have to parade down the street shouting you are
straight. Just be thankful you never needed to!
yprOLmRkc
The Municipal Courts Building in Saint Louis
This weekend for PRIDE!
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