User:Icechrome/sandbox

 Ball Culture Article Evaluation: 

The current article includes a multitude of amazing sources, however it appears that they have not been used to their full potential. For example, a source detailing the rich history of ballroom culture is being used to only validate the existence of a house or a single event. The three main areas that I intend to edit the article in are: ball culture's international presence, the impact of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, and the music that fueled the balls. This page is worth editing because it is rated mid-importance, was apart of the Wiki Loves Pride campaign, and is relevant to me as a young black member of the LGBTQ+ community. The article does a good job at detailing the categories, lingo, and components of a ball, yet it fails to dig deeper on the subject. There is no mention of the grittiness that comes with the culture or the hardships that the participants face. I also believe that the article could benefit from more images. My plan for editing this page is to explore the existing sources and find ways to extract more information to make better use of them. I will also bring in a few sources that would allow me to construct new passages on the HIV/AIDS epidemic and expand existing passages on topics such as music.

 Intended Edits and Additions:  All of my edits can be identified by uppercase text.

Ball culture, the house system, drag ball culture, the HOUSE-ballroom community and similar terms describe an underground LGBT subculture THAT ORIGINATED in the United States in which people "walk" (i.e., compete) for trophies and prizes at events known as balls. Some who walk also dance; PARTICIPANTS WALK, DANCE, VOGUE AND/OR others compete in THE NUMEROUS drag categories THAT ARE designed to emulate other genders and social classes, WHILE OFFERING A SORT OF ESCAPE FROM REALITY. THE CULTURE EXTENDS BEYOND THESE EXTRAVAGANT EVENTS AS Most participants in ball culture belong to groups known as "houses" THAT MIMICK A FAMILY STRUCTURE AND OFFER SIMILAR GUIDANCE AND SUPPORT.[1][2]

In this section, my edits can be identified by bold text.

'''A key element of balls is also the music, which is typically characterized by distinct, up tempo beats that are overlaid with raps of the commentators. Historically, the music featured at balls has been whatever is popular within the black LGBT community at the time, ranging from disco, to club music, to house, and now even rap and R&B. House music, the primary sound of the balls, is always upwards of 120 beats per minute and has African roots, along with many other elements of ball culture.''' Ball culture has been fertile ground for new forms of house music and other genres of electronic dance music through its DJs.[33] The culture has also influenced a wave of queer hip hop artists such as Zebra Katz, House of Ladosha and Le1f .[34][35] These following sections were created by me

 Racism and Discrimination 

Although balls now feature mainly black and Latinx participants, the first known ball at the Hamilton Hill Lodge was integrated. This was uncommon because at the time, racial segregation was nearly universal. Although integrated, both covert and outright racism was present at the balls, which prevented many black performers from receiving prizes. There were no black judges and many conspirators believed that the balls were rigged so that only whites could win. This racial discrimination prompted black and Latinx attendees to form their own balls.

 HIV/AIDS Epidemic 

The ball community was, and continues to be, threatened by the HIV/AIDS epidemic since transgender people of color and men who sleep with men (MSM) are at one of the highest risks for contracting the virus in the U.S. Out of all estimated HIV diagnoses in men who are 13 years old and up, MSM make up 78%. Additionally, in the United States, MSM represent 61% of all diagnosis of HIV. Young black men are especially at risk for contracting the virus and in 2009 alone, the percentage of black MSM, aged 13-29, who were diagnosed with HIV increased by 48%. Many health care providers and medical service professionals have since reached out to the community to perform research, teach sex education, offer free testing, and host balls to promote safe sex. Notably is the Latex Ball that is hosted by the Gay Men's Health Crisis (GMHC) in New York. Researchers with ProjectVOGUE also reached out to the ball community for assistance with vaccine trials and testing because minority participation is generally very low. This stems from a historical distrust that African-Americans and Latinx's have had of the government, that results from government-sponsored projects such as the Tuskegee syphilis experiment. ProjectVOGUE is led by researchers and professionals from the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, Florida International University, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, and the MOCHA (Men of Color Health Association) Center. They aimed to create a partnership with the Western New York ball community and held monthly meetings where safe sex methods were taught along with information about the HIV trial vaccine. Community members were initially incentivized to attend with $25 gift cards and transportation vouchers. These joint meeting sessions also branched out to cover topics such as substance abuse, STI prevention, violence within the ball community, and more. ProjectVOGUE researchers utilized the House "family" structure by taking 15 "mothers", "fathers", founders, and more on a retreat to gauge the community's knowledge of HIV, while encouraging them to teach their "children" about HIV prevention. At the end of the study, participants had an increased knowledge about HIV, HIV vaccine research, and were more likely to participate in a study. This is just one of the many partnerships that have formed across the country between the health care industry and the ball community to encourage HIV prevention. Overall, HIV/AIDS took, and continues to take, the lives of many ball participants, but that trauma has caused the community to grow tighter as members mourned, grieved, and celebrated the lives of their friends together.