From the Editors: June 2024

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It's the human condition: we all want to be loved and accepted for who we are.

For some, that kind of love and acceptance comes easily — those lucky enough to have an empathetic, stable, and supportive "family of origin." Countless others have to search outside their biological family units to find true family for themselves; those deep friendships and connections that provide what one's genetically-related family chooses not to — support, acceptance, and non-judgmental, unconditional love. "Family of choice" or "found family'' are often safety nets for marginalized groups of people — veterans, those facing addiction recovery, and, most often, those within the LGBTQIA+ community.

Enter places like The Zone, as featured gorgeously on our cover this month by guest artist Gaby "Apollo" Reyes. The Zone exists as Erie's only Queer bar, and for a quarter of a century, has been a welcoming place where LGBTQIA+ folks in Erie can find their family — a place of true acceptance, love, and judgment-free fun.

In order to find family, one has to know where to look for support — as Susannah Faulkner points out in her op-ed this month, many LGBTQIA+ citizens of Erie who cannot find a source of support from family end up becoming unhoused at a higher rate, winding up at overflow shelters, many of which are not designed to be welcoming to them — especially those in the trans community. This kind of structural social problem requires broad spectrum governmental solutions and community support — which can come by way of municipal plans and financing with nonprofit collaboration.

Erie's own Tyler Titus is the human embodiment of these sources of community support — through their position within Erie City Council as well as their impactful nonprofit Compton's Table. Read about the organization's upcoming 40 Shades of Purple event, which aims to support the work of the nonprofit that "curates safe spaces for Queer and gender nonconforming people."

Pride can't happen if those who should be proud are not given the support they need to survive and thrive. As we move forward as an LGBTQIA+ sanctuary city, we can all offer kinship to ensure that Erie is a safe space, that Erieites are found family, and that everyone is given the opportunity to find their zone.