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  • Queer Charlottesville Oral History Project20

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1. Aaron Eichorst Oral History (31:43)

Date:
2025-05-28
Main contributors:
Aaron Eichorst, Jenny Mead
Summary:
Aaron Eichorst shares his experiences growing up as a Mennonite and his complicated relationship with the Mennonite Church after coming out. He discusses the gay community in Charlottesville and several gay bars that are now closed, including the Silver Fox, Club 216, and Escafe. Aaron also describes his experiences as an art teacher and deciding when and how to be out with his coworkers and students.

2. Alan Cohn and Joe Montoya Oral History (1:33:07)

Date:
2025-05-28
Main contributors:
Alan Cohn, Joe Montoya, Jenny Mead
Summary:
Alan Cohn and Joe Montoya are a gay couple - one of the first to be legally married in Charlottesville in 2014. They discuss how they met and how they each grew into their identities. They moved to Charlottesville in 1991 for professional opportunities, and they describe their experiences with the Charlottesville queer community. They discuss the process of having a child via surrogate and the legal complications around custody, including the decision to get married as soon as it became legal.

6. Charley Burton Oral History (59:23)

Date:
2025-05-28
Main contributors:
Charley Burton, Amy-Sarah Marshall
Summary:
Charley Burton is a Black trans man from North Garden, VA, just outside of Charlottesville. He tells his story of growing up in a rural Black community, then struggling with his gender and sexuality and recovering from drug and alcohol addiction. Charley transitioned as an older person, and he discusses his transition process and his work creating community for other Black trans people in the Charlottesville area. He speaks about the murder of Sage Smith, a young Black trans woman in Charlottesville, and about becoming a Black man, especially after the Unite the Right rally of August 2017.