DEAN ATTA & TOM
Attitude columnist, poet and writer Dean Atta, 34, and boyfriend Tom, 27, a doctor, deliver their prognosis of where the fight for LGBTQ rights should be heading
What is your mission statement as a writer, Dean?
D: I write from my own experience and to represent the groups I belong to, so black and queer. I’ve written poems about Tom and shown them to him, which is not something I’ve done with a partner before. That must be a bit of a turn- on? T: Absolutely!
D: I normally write break- up poems, now I’m writing actual love poems [ laughs]. What does Pride mean to you?
T: For years, being homosexual involved a lot of hiding away. Pride isn’t just this one opportunity a year to be in a parade. Take that celebration home with you.
D: People should go to Pride in smaller cities and towns, or support Trans Pride. Show up for other groups, be an ally for the rest of the community. And there’s UK Black Pride, which is so important to me — it encompasses everything I’m about.
Is there anything in particular you think the LGBTQ community should work on?
D: Showing more sustained support for trans people. A lot of cis gay men think they’ve won the battles: we can get married, live that life, but we leave a lot of people behind if we think like that.
T: Being supportive of each other when it comes to mental- health issues. Can you single out a moment where the queer community has lifted you up?
T: It’s great to see all the HIV studies strengthening the message that “undetectables” can’t transmit the virus.
D: The first time I did drag [ as The Black Flamingo]. When I stepped out on stage, I looked fabulous, felt fabulous and was told I was fabulous. @ deanatta
Dean’s book The Black Flamingo is out now