Letter From The Editor

It didn’t take me long to arrive at the realization that what was “against culture” or counterculture was really just the people and ideas that American culture refuses to see. People don’t join a counterculture in the ways of the past when lenses were clouded by the influence of a hegemony, which made the counterculture anything white kids “discovered” from any civilization outside that of their eurocentric purview. Counterculture of the past was a sea of Columbusing, while finding out sex, female orgasms, rhythm and herbs — that had been enjoyed for thousands of years — were fun. 

The real counterculture has always been where the people — relegated to the fringes or existing in any space outside of the white, male gaze —found home, work, power and understanding. In this issue of TAUNT, these are the women breaking into industries that had slammed doors in their faces, the researchers creating and fixing data that didn’t center or consider their communities, the people in transition discovering that their celebrated freedom comes also with grief, the bodies that offered real flesh and pleasure to feed and care for themselves, the artist exploring the paradigm of power and sex, and the folks who found ways to build bridges in protest and by telling truthful stories. 

This issue explores the things and people that society overlooks, ignores and relegates to the point of endangerment and how innovation creates opportunity. 

The writers took vastly different looks at what it is to run counter to the programming we’ve been given where we’re told what is “normal,” which really only means acceptable. It is my hope that we broaden folks' definition of counterculture and expand it past hippies and LSD.

One more note: For the cover we chose the image of the legendary Sweet Evening Breeze because her life and work made space for the very people we share in our issue. She cared for so many, wherever one was on any number of spectrums. So we honor that legacy and hope this issue does the same. 

Want to honor Sweet Evening Breeze yourself? Make a donation to the Sweet Evening Breeze Center for LGBTQ+ Youth in Louisville, KY.

<3 Erica

Food, Protest,
and Podcasting

By Kelly Nusz and
Darryl Goodner

This idea first started to develop when we began working together in Darryl’s ice cream shop. We had talked about podcasts, shared recommendations, and even discussed different ideas for podcasts that we would do. We also talked about food. Our go-to conversation topic is always, What are you making for dinner? We shared recipes, the process of making certain dishes, what went right, and what we did when things went horribly wrong. Working with and serving food always led to more conversations about the subject, but it wasn’t until these topics merged with the racial justice movement last summer that we came up with the idea for our podcast.

Spencer Jenkins
Spencer graciously welcomed TAUNT under his umbrella at Queer Kentucky to help us launch. This is a partnership, a friendship, and a momentum that cannot be stopped. Please visit and support Queer Kentucky’s fight for LGBTQ+ visibility in the Bluegrass State.

David Welker
David Welker designed our TAUNT logo and the STATUS QUO social media teasers. He is also designing our upcoming merch (Crop tops are coming, y’all!).

Jon Fleischaker & Michael Abate

Jon and Michael were unbelievably generous with their time and encouraging of TAUNT’s mission to toy with what Louisville’s media scene should look like.

Josh Moss
Thank you to Joss Moss for his mentorship and early enthusiasm for TAUNT. TAUNT appreciate’s Louisville Magazine’s collaborative spirit in helping spread the word about the new kid on the scene.