Lift Up Season 1 - Sylvia Bentley and Matthew A. Jonassaint

Pride Month is a time to celebrate and honor the impact the LGBTQ+ community has on our shared history. So during this final week of June, KZMU News is revisiting Season 1 of Lift Up: LGBTQ+ Visibility. We’ll hear many local stories and perspectives, including thoughts on creating and protecting queer joy in our community. // Our final storytellers this week are Sylvia Bentley and Matthew A. Jonassaint. Sylvia was born and raised in Moab but left when she was 18 to pursue a degree at the base of the Wasatch Mountains in Utah County. Later she found herself in the dry north coast of Peru digging up bones, which somehow landed her in the rainy north coast of Spain teaching English. She later returned to the desert where her essence, soul and DNA feels at home. Sylvia spends her time with family and loved ones and occasionally wanders the desert, wondering how to chase the horizon and put down roots at the same time. Matthew was born in the Utah Valley to Caribbean parents. As an undergrad he co-chaired his university’s queer student association, and his capstone project involved archiving queer history, literature, philosophy and films. His work has been published in various places including peculiar – the first queer literary journal in Utah. He first landed in Moab during Pride Week in October 2012 and has been living here permanently since 2018. // Lift Up Season 1 https://www.kzmu.org/lift-up/ // Lift Up Season 2 https://www.kzmu.org/lift-up-season-2/