Navek Leatherman ➡️ Beyond Darklands

Black woman wearing white cardigan, corset, gloves and pearls posing with a white Mal wearing a leather harness and cap on a crowded downtown city street. Text: [Sometimes we are consciously aware that exclusion is a bad thing, and we may deny that it is taking place within our feminist or queer circles. We may even resort to tokenism—pointing to one or a few minority members in order to make the case that our movement or community is truly diverse. But in other cases, we are blatantly exclusive. Some feminists vocally condemn other feminists for dressing too femininely, or because of the sexual partners or practices they take up. More mainstream gays decry the presence of drag queens and leather daddies in their pride parades, and there is a long history of lesbians and gay men who outright dismiss bisexual, asexual, and transgender identities. Within the transgender and bisexual umbrellas, there are constant accusations that certain individuals do not qualify as “real” members of the group, or that their identities or actions somehow reinforce “the gender binary” (i.e., the rigid division of all people into two mutually exclusive genders). And in most queer communities, regardless of one’s sex or identity, people who are more masculine in gender expression are almost always viewed as more valid and attractive than their feminine counterparts.]

Quote from Excluded: Making Feminist and Queer Movements More Inclusive by Julia Serano (2013). Photo of the New York Pride Parade (1980s) from the Randy Sauder and Gary DeNichilo collection at the LA&M.

Andy is a white man with short gray hair and a thick brown mustache. He is wearing a collared shirt, tie and vest and a studded leather sash. He is standing at a microphone next to a similarly dressed butch person.

Andy Anderson (right) was president of the Canadian Leather Alliance, director of the Mr. Leatherman Toronto Contest, and worked with the Toronto Pride Committee, the AIDS Committee of Toronto, and Casey House.

[Leather United Chicago Newsletter Vol 5 No 2 April 1994. Passings. Our condolences go out to the family and many, many friends of David Lithgow who left us saddened on March 3rd. David fought a valiant battle with AIDS for several years. All who knew him knew that he was honest, tough, willing to fight for what he believed in, and a very caring and loving man. David had been a member and past president of Chicago Hellfire Club before his resignation due to his deteriorating health, and he and his partner, Don Ferreira have been long time members of LUC. He was a hell of a man and I am proud to say I knew him. I for one will not soon be able to fill the void his passing has left in my life.]

David Lithgow was a former president of the Chicago Hellfire Club and a member of Leather United Chicago.

In today's newsletter 🪢 Rick AND MORE from Numbers / February 1982 🔞 Subscribe here: open.substack.com/pub/autoerot...

Sheila is a butch woman with bright short blonde hair and partial arms. She is wearing a leather cuff around one upper arm and a leather vest. She is in the center of a group portrait.

Sheila Courser (center) was a board member of the International Ms. Leather contest. Courser competed in the contest in 1990. She produced the Ms. Bear Leather contest and a Ms. Stripper of the Year performance and contest for both amateurs and professionals.

Close up of two women sitting on a couch. One wearing knee high lace up boots with her thighs bound by a leather strap and arms in a straight jacket. Other wearing thigh high latex stockings and latex underwear and top.

The LA&M Teri Rose Memorial Library will be closed this Saturday from 1pm to 5pm.

The museum galleries will be open regular hours for your enjoyment, 11am to 5pm on Saturday.

Three men, the winner center is a black man wearing a leather vest, chest harness and holding a title patch and trophy. The runner up is a taller black man wearing a leather collar with leash and a chest harness and chaps. The third man is white and wearing a leather vest and cap.

International Mr. Deaf Leather 1997, Patrick Richardson, with runners-up Paul O'Rourke and William "Barn "Coleman. Photo by Paul Putnam from the Leather Journal No 95 (Dec 1997). #LeatherMen

HAPPY #painslave showing the results of serving its OWNER, SIR @tygeryoshi.bsky.social.
#slavetraining #ownedslave #slaveforuse

Development is always possible

Bald Black person covering their face with a leather jacket and string of pearls. Headlines: title holders of color, Don pierces everything, los lesborados, ebony in leather, cutting edge pictorial, clips and clamps, submissions to the Mistress, home coming, art by raven.

The premiere issue of Black Leather In Color, the first SM/Leather magazine created by and for people of color. BLIC was founded by a collective led by Michele Buchanan, S. Guy Giumento, Lidell Jackson and Darrell Perry in 1994. BLIC was revived by Ms D Dom in 2024 @blicmagazine.bsky.social

In today's newsletter 👨🏻 Myles to Go and more from Honcho / September 1980 🔞 Subscribe here: autoerotica.substack.com

Romance and fet!sh - we’ve got you covered this Valentine’s Day ❤️

Some say diamonds are forever - we say leather is forever.

Shop our range online or in store, we are here to help you find the perfect gift.

PHOTO: From the L&D archives circa 1995

Gay powers restored. #patrickstonebarber

Mark is white, bald, and has a gray mustache and glasses. He is wearing a T-shirt and leather vest with pins and patches and holding a cat. He has a large, horizontal horn nose ring.

Mark Ensinger, born today on January 22, 1935, operated a private play space called Fountains of Pleasure No 6 outside of Detroit. He hosted monthly play parties for men and organized an annual event called Algolagnic Atelier from 1985-2005.

Keystone shaped patch with a profile illustration of a man wearing a helmet with a mohawk adornment, and the word, Argonauts.

The Argonauts of Wisconsin (est. 1974) is a gay leather club and the oldest gay organization in the state. The Argonauts raise funds for charities at their annual 9-day Easter Egg fundraiser. Patch from the LA&M club colors library. #LeatherClubs

That’s fit too

[Mr. GDI. James A. Leuer aka Golda born March 13, 1938 died January 10, 1993. Baptized March 27, 1928; high school, buffalo, NY. Service: USN, August 22, 1957 - August 21, 1961. USNR August 21, 1961 - August 21, 1963. Moved to San Francisco 1973. Founding member SFGDI Club, January 1974. President SFGDI Club: 1975-76; 1980-81; 1990-91. President, SF Forum. Chairman, Interclub Fund of San Francisco. President Emeritus, SFGDI Club Jan 92-Jan93. Star performer, SFGDI Club's annual "A Date at Minsky's," run shows and casualty capers, 1975-1990. Well-known and much loved by many, many friends and admirers in the San Francisco gay community, both north and south of market, his circle of friends included people from coast to coast, Canada, Europe and Australia. He was a respected member of the leather community and a tireless worker in its endeavros for the charitable causes. Jim loved life and lived it to its fullest. He will be greatly missed by all who knew him. At Jim's request, there will be no service and his ashes will be scattered at sea. Rest in peace, Jim!]

James A. Leuer (aka Golda) was a founding member of the San Francisco God Damn Independents Club and served three terms as president between 1975 and 1991. He was a president of the SF Forum and chairman of the Inter-Club Fund, a mutual aid group.

@sampsonnightly.bsky.social @doctorcarlton.bsky.social
@timo-of-finland.bsky.social

youtube.com/@realclearfe...

In today's newsletter 💜 Dusty: A Man of Intense Passions 🔞 Subscribe here: autoerotica.substack.com

In today's newsletter ⛓️‍💥 GBM: Genaro and more 🔞 Subscribe here: autoerotica.substack.com

Close-up image of a man with medium brown skin resting with his forearms and cheek against the sand. He is wearing a Muir style leather cap with a chain. Text: [Fortunately, no taboo was ever capable of erasing what it sought to obliterate, and this is true of both sex and cognition. On the contrary, to impose a taboo on something offers a sure-fire guarantee that whatever is thus put under erasure, is sustained as an object of desire.]

Quote from For a Pornoscape by Paul Willemen (in More Dirty Looks, 2004). Photo from Heat (Nov 1991).

Who's getting in?

Black man wearing a leather head mask and a collar with a D ring. Text: [Consensual submission is about making a choice. It’s not about weakness. Even before you face the enormous tasks of surrendering power to your lover, living out your submissive needs requires that you go against the grain, that you do something unconventional, and that you make a choice for yourself that most people in your position are too terrified ever to make. Indeed, considering the social stigma, making the choice to be submissive demands courage.]

Quote from Come Hither by Gloria G. Brame (2000). Photo from Toy No 44 (1985).

Close-up image of a white person with their wrist tied to a tree trunk with rope above their head. Text: [Most people who condemn public sex do not seem to know that the legal difference between public and private sex is not a simple matter of choosing either the bushes or your bedroom. There are many zones in between - a motel room, a bathhouse, a bar, an adult bookstore, a car, a public toilet, a dark and deserted alley - that are contested territory where police battle with perverts for control. The problem is that the state always wishes the zone of privacy to be as narrow as possible.]

Quote from Patrick Califia's Public Sex (first pub. 1982). Image from Bondage Photo Treasures No 12 (1986).