Photo by Luke Fontana
Disruptors
Duncan Crabtree-Ireland
Meet one of the artists, disruptors, educators, groundbreakers, innovators, and storytellers who all helped make the world a better place for LGBTQ+ people.
Duncan Crabtree-Ireland — the national executive director and chief negotiator for SAG-AFTRA — oversees the world’s largest entertainment union, which boasts over 160,000 members. And along with SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher, he’s one of the faces of their strike over a labor dispute with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers.
As one of the few out leaders of a major entertainment group, Crabtree-Ireland knows that the fight for labor and LGBTQ+ equality go hand in hand. “One of the things that we’re fighting for is basic equity, inclusion, and fairness in the industry,” he says. “And I’m proud to say that SAG-AFTRA has been at the forefront of making sure that the entire American scene is represented on film, television, and streaming — and that’s a fight that we’re in for the long run.”
And there is a lesson to be learned from the strike to advance change, which is the power of solidarity. “When we stand together and when we fight together, that’s how we win,” he says. “Division always weakens us. Unity strengthens us.”
The outcome of Crabtree-Ireland’s advocacy through the SAG-AFTRA strike will determine the future of how actors and other entertainment professionals are treated in show business, as technological advances like streaming services and AI impact their careers and livelihoods. But the country’s largest strike in 26 years has also helped fuel a revolution for workers in hospitality, the automotive industry, and beyond.
This revolution shows the power of a compelling narrative. In fact, one of his biggest challenges during the strike was the task of clearly communicating SAG-AFTRA’s message “with the rest of the community, the industry, and the world so that everyone understood why we’re in the fight that we’re in, and how it was going to change everything for the better.” Clearly, the message has gotten through.
This year, Crabtree-Ireland is proud “to fight against the biggest companies in the world and say we demand to be treated with respect and fairness.” @duncanci
Disruptors
Los Angeles Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence
Meet one of the artists, disruptors, educators, groundbreakers, innovators, and storytellers who all helped make the world a better place for LGBTQ+ people.
Dusti Cunningham for FIGHT Magazine
The Los Angeles Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence have been operating out of the City of Angels since 1995, serving the queer community with education, resources, fundraising, entertainment, and hope. The sisters employ drag, iconoclasm, and humor to further their mission “to remove stigmatic guilt and promulgate omniversal joy.”
For decades of service, the Sisters were slated this year to be honored by the Los Angeles Dodgers with the team’s Community Hero Award. Unfortunately, conservative Christians and the far right saw the moment as a chance to attack, launching a national campaign against the Sisters and their appearance at the game.
“The Dodgers controversy brought the current sociopolitical crisis of our nation right home to our doorstep,” Sister Unity says. “Instantly, our work became urgently relevant once again. Our response was to again be our flamboyant selves exactly as we are, but this time organized for national engagement.”
That national engagement led to over $16,000 in donations, an influx of people wanting to join and continue their mission, widespread broadcasting of their message, and new opportunities to work with other groups. And the collective outrage over their exclusion led to a restoration of their honor, which the group received on the field at Dodgers Pride Night.
Amid the drama, the Sisters keep preaching the queer gospel. “Our message continues to be that we flaming drag nuns are here in the streets of the world being our own colorful selves, and that if we can do this, then there is room in the world for each person to be who they are, as they are, free from shame and guilt and filled with love and joy for your own lives.” @ladragnuns