admin In today’s world of queer pop-ups and circuit parties, it’s easy to assume that any LGBTQ+ space is a safe or inclusive one. The reality, however, is that far too many gay and lesbian bars and clubs still perpetuate racist, transphobic, and fatphobic ideas about who really belongs there—a dichotomy perhaps best represented by Fire Island, the East Coast vacation spot that has long functioned as a haven for mostly white, mostly wealthy, mostly cis gay men and lesbians. Andrew Ahn’s 2022 film of the same name took care to skewer that phenomenon, but unfortunately, it persists…or at least it did, until last weekend’s Doll Invasion brought dozens of trans, nonbinary, and gender-nonconforming beachgoers to the island. The daylong party ran from 1 p.m. to sunset, offering everything from flash tattoos to glam shots by Hunter Abrams and D.I.Y. Willie Norris T-shirts.
The stated goal of the event—which attracted attention and funds with a Barbie-pink Instagram post—was to “make the island accessible to more than just the ‘G’ in LGBT,” and it more than delivered, using donations to cover travel and labor costs for attendees. (Extra money was redirected to For the Gworls, a Black, trans-led mutual aid fund.) “Some of the worst people on the planet live and thrive in Fire Island, but it’s also this extremely lush, beautiful, remote, magical vacation town with the richest queer historical context,” organizer Fran Tirado said. “It’s been a gay safe haven since the 1920s or ’30s, and then, in the ’80s and ’90s, it was an immense refuge for people that were experiencing the AIDS crisis in real time, and looking for a place where they could convene and find joy in the midst of it all.”
Hari Nef, Geena Rocero, and Cecilia Gentili were among the revelers who flocked to Fire Island for Doll Invasion, with Rocero describing the experience as “life-affirming.” One of her favorite moments came at a dinner the night before the main event: “With the help of my sous-chef, I made a Filipino kamayan dinner, which means eating with your hands. Seventy people were there, and it really set the tone for the weekend, which was all about community. We were eating shrimp, coconut fried rice, vegetables, butternut squash, garlic bok choy…I loved sharing that with everyone.” Indeed, community—in all its myriad, beautiful, inevitably messy forms—was the centerpiece of the daylong event, hosted at Froot Falls, in the posh Fire Island Pines.
And for anyone who missed it? Tirado already has plans to make Doll Invasion a yearly thing, telling Vogue: “There are a lot of things we’re definitely working toward for future events, including more travel stipends, but I’m not going to lie—this one was perfect.” Below, take a peek at the action through Abrams’s lens.
