Strange Fruit #55: Legendary Ballroom Photographer Gerard H. Gaskin

What this episode covers

_"My images try to show a more personal and intimate beauty, pride, dignity, courage, and grace that have been painfully challenged by mainstream society."_Photographer [Gerard H. Gaskin](http://gerardhgaskin.com/) has been documenting house ball life for twenty years. His latest book, "[Legendary: Inside the House Ball Scene](https://www.dukeupress.edu/Legendary/)" is a vivid and beautiful look at a subculture we usually only get to see when a mainstream entertainer co-opts it. We spoke with Gerard this week about the book, and about what the house ball scene means to him. In our Juicy Fruit segment, we talked about [George Zimmerman's latest arrest](http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/2013-11-18/news/os-george-zimmerman-arrested-20131118_1_george-zimmerman-murdering-17-year-old-trayvon-martin-deputies), this time for domestic violence. We also talked about the Colorado father who [shot his toddler daughter and himself](http://madamenoire.com/324535/horrendous-father-informs-facebook-friends-moments-shooting-toddler-daughter/), and how it raises questions about who can seek protection from dating violence. In other Juicy news this week, Jaison and Kaila loved [Best Man Holiday](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2083355/), Mayor Bloomberg said [you have to be 21 to buy cigarettes](http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/31/nyregion/new-york-approves-law-to-raise-tobacco-purchasing-age-to-21.html?_r=0) in New York City, and Jaison shared his thoughts on the [Trans Day of Remembrance](http://www.glaad.org/tdor?gclid=CMTyz87D-7oCFfA7MgodcRIAKA).

Distinct summary based on available episode metadata or transcript content.