Preferred Name
Maya Aisha Gary
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
Date of Graduation
5-15-2026
Semester of Graduation
Spring
Degree Name
Master of Arts (MA)
Department
Department of History
First Advisor
Emily Westkaemper
Second Advisor
Fawn-Amber Montoya
Third Advisor
Michael Gubser
Fourth Advisor
Kristen Kelley
Abstract
This master's thesis project delivers a concise history of the development of Queer Ballroom in the 1980s–1990s in Harlem, New York City, primarily focusing on low-income Black and Latino queer individuals and how they created spaces of belonging and joy during the HIV/AIDS crisis. This work illustrates how ballroom culture functioned as both a space of refuge and a network for mutual aid, outreach, and advocacy. In addition to the historical analysis, this project includes a free-to-use educational website and lesson plans aligned with the Virginia Standards of Learning for grades 6 and 11. This work demonstrates the importance of marginalized histories and how to center inclusivity in education while still showing the complexity and diversity of American History.
Included in
Black History Commons, Curriculum and Instruction Commons, Gender and Sexuality Commons, Public History Commons, Secondary Education Commons, United States History Commons
