As I often say in my own drag history work, “drag history is American history.” This phenomenon is alive and well on the Gerber/Hart Library & Archive’s Instagram. Here, once a week, the renowned Midwest LGBTQ+ library and archive celebrates “Tillie Tuesday” in honor of famed Chicago drag queen Miss Tillie, “The Dirty Old Lady of Chicago.” Tillie worked as a drag artist for some 50 years, between the 1940s and the 1990s. Drag has faced pushback throughout history and in our current moment, with lives both underground and aboveground, so this was a rare feat then and remains one now.
As Gerber/Hart shares on their podcast Unboxing Queer History, what became the Miss Tillie archive was dropped off by a friend of the drag artist after her passing. There was a wealth of photos and memorabilia in this woman’s trunk–professional images, snapshots, flyers, and more–all highlighting the five decades of Tillie’s career, a majority of which were spent in the Chicago area.
While few biographical details are known about Tillie herself, historian Owen Keehnan and the archive were able to put together some of them. She had a 9-5 job at a uniform company, for example, and lived a very separate life in drag–at the popular drag bar Club Chesterfield, for example she worked two nights a week, making $9 a night plus tips in the 1960s. She also loved to deck herself out in jewelry, and many of her photographs chronicle a treasure trove of wigs, gowns, feather boas, and fishnets. And the nickname? It comes from the younger men she kept around, who often lined up to buy her drinks after her shows. Tillie’s archive remains a favorite of the Gerber/Hart staff.
To have such photographs chronicling Tillie’s life in these eras is practically unheard of, the podcast shares. This was a time when, if people were found out to be queer, let alone in drag, they could lose everything. Raids of gay bars were frequent and frightening, “with patrons being arrested, jailed overnight, and typically having their names printed in the newspapers,” the archive writes. “Even if the charges were later dropped, this caused many individuals (especially individuals who were teachers or worked for the government) to lose their jobs. Some even committed suicide.”
If you appeared to violate what were then Chicago’s laws against cross-dressing, you were often singled out early on. So the fact that so many photos of Tillie’s exist situates her and drag in the context of not just drag history, but American history and the queer community’s ongoing fight for equality. “When we see these joyful photos of Tillie and her friends, it’s important to remember that these gatherings were critical acts of resistance at a time of hostile legal oppression of LGBTQ+ people,” the archive writes.
The Gerber/Hart Library & Archives first opened in 1981 and is named after the early 20th century queer activists Henry Gerber and Pearl S. Hart. Based in Chicago, it specifically chronicles LGBTQ+ life from the Midwest. Among their main missions is to “collect, preserve, and make accessible [this] history… in order to advance the larger goal of achieving justice and equality.” They also have a lending library, exhibits, and public programming that offer insight into LGBTQ+ Chicagoan and Midwestern life. Archives like Gerber/Hart are essential at a cultural moment like this and serve as a reminder of the queer community’s neverending contributions to history.
To learn more about LGBTQ+ history from this region, check out their Instagram and their website, and stay tuned for more “Tillie Tuesdays” in the future.
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Ketel Marte was brought to tears during an MLB game after facing a shameful fan taunt.
Baseball manager's poignant support for a player brought to tears after shameful fan taunt
Whether they’re expecting perfection from their favorite players or, worse, behaving callously toward opposing teams, sports fans often forget that athletes are human beings. But athletic competition has the ability to unify and uplift, even amid such painful and unpleasant encounters. Take, for example, a major-league baseball game held June 24, 2025 between the home team Chicago White Sox and visiting Arizona Diamondbacks.
A shameful low point occurred when Diamondbacks second baseman Ketel Marte was at bat in the seventh inning. Per ESPN, a fan reportedly yelled out a comment regarding Marte’s late mother, Elpidia Valdez, who died in a 2017 car accident in the Dominican Republic. Team personnel, including manager Torey Lovullo, then requested the 22-year-old fan be ejected. (Though he was remorseful and admitted his actions were inappropriate, according to an ESPN source, he was nonetheless banned indefinitely from all MLB ballparks.) "We commend the White Sox for taking immediate action in removing the fan," the MLB said in a statement. Marte reportedly declined to comment.
- YouTubewww.youtube.com
While the fan’s behavior is inexcusable, it did spark a powerful and inspiring moment. After hearing the comment, Marte was visibly upset, prompting Lovullo to walk on the field, put his arm around him, and offer some words of encouragement. "[I said,] 'I love you, and I’m with you, and we’re all together, and you’re not alone,'" Lovullo said in a post-game interview, as documented by The Rich Eisen Show. "'No matter what happens, no matter what was said or what you’re heard, that guy is an idiot.’"
According to Arizona Republic, Lovullo heard the fan’s comment but didn’t want to repeat it. “I looked right at [Marte] when I heard,” he said. “I looked right at him, and he looked at the person, as well. He put his head down and I could tell it had an immediate impact on him, for sure."
Elsewhere in the post-game interview, the manager called the moment "terrible" and reflected on why he stood up for Marte. "Fans are nasty, and fans go too far sometimes," he said. "I love my players, and I’m gonna protect them…I’ve known Ketel for nine years. He’s had some unbelievably great moments and some hardships as well and some really tough moments in his life. I know those. At the end of the day, we’re human beings, and we have emotions. I saw him hurting, and I wanted to protect him."
- YouTubewww.youtube.com
The following day, the Chicago White Sox X account sent out a message in support of Marte, writing, "We’re with you" and "Baseball is family." On The Rich Eisen Show, the show's host addressed the need to eradicate this kind of toxic athlete-fan interaction: "I was hearing [people saying], 'There’s no place for this in major league baseball.' There isn’t. There’s no place for this in our society. I understand that people are saying the MLB has got to do something about this. Fans have a right to heckle players—this is something that has happened forever…But there is a line."
In another recent, depressing sports moment with a beautiful coda, let’s look to Game 7 of the NBA Finals between the Indiana Pacers and the eventual champions, the Oklahoma City Thunder. During the first quarter, Pacers point guard Tyrese Haliburton tore his right Achilles tendon—a devastating injury that could potentially sideline him for most of the 2025-2026 season. Following the game, in a lovely display of sportsmanship, Thunder point-guard and league MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander went to the Pacers locker room to check on his competitor. In a press conference, he said, "You just hate to see it, in sports in general. But in this moment, my heart dropped for him. I can't imagine playing the biggest game of my life and something like that happening. It’s so unfortunate."
- YouTubewww.youtube.com