“Are you Sophia fromThe Golden Girls?” a young woman says as she approaches. “Can we get our picture with you?”
A group of women wearing sashes readingGirls Weekend!gather around. Leo is game and takes the photo.
“We loved that show!” they yell as they take off toward Marilyn.
“Then you should go seeThe Golden Gays,” Leo says. “He and his friends do a tribute show to them. It’s amazing.”
“We will!” they yell back.
I watch the tourists and ponder Leo’s questions.
“Speaking of controversy...” Leo says gingerly as if reading my mind. “Are you ready?”
“Yes,” I say.
He nods at the cameraman standing beside us.
“Tell me about what happened at the library,” he asks.
I shut my eyes and take a deep breath. I tell my story.
“How did that make you feel?” he asks when I finish.
“Violated. Scared. Worthless. As if I had done something wrong.” I pause. “As ifIwere wrong.”
My voice breaks.
“Do you need to stop?”
I shake my head. “No.”
“Go on.”
“If something like this can happen in Palm Springs, it can happen anywhere. And it is happening right now. This very instant. Across the world. Someone, somewhere is experiencing a hate crime. Being victimized for simply being different.” I speak in halting sentences. “I am eighty-one years old. I have experienced anti-Semitism, job discrimination based on my sexual orientation. I have been an outcast from my family. I am often an outcast in my own community simply for being old.”
I look into the blue sky and continue.
“Eight decades of life, and we are still fighting the same hate in this world. When will this stop? How does it stop? One voice at a time. That’s why—even though I am scared—I don’t want to remain silent about what happened. Children will be the change. They will be, I hope, what saves us from one another. I am reading the same stories to kids in this community that I read to my own children in Chicago decades ago. I’m just doing it in a dress as Sophia Petrillo because kids connect with her. Kids love costumed characters, be it me or those at Disneyland. They let down their guards. We should be focusing on the fact that kids are going to the library and reading. We should be thankful they do not judge at this age. I have to believe the next generation will simply see that we have more in common with the person standing before us than what divides us.”
I look at Leo. A soft smile crosses my lips. He nods at me to keep going.
“I doubt I’ll be around to see this change, but if standing up for myself right now allows someone watching this to value their identity and stand up for themselves, or a child, mother or grandmother sees this and has a little more compassion, then this will all have been worth it.”
Leo turns to the cameraman.
“We good?” he asks him.
“All good.”
“Is that it?” I ask.
“Yep,” Leo says. “It should air in a few weeks. The station wants to do a lot of promo in advance of this first segment.”
“Very exciting.”
Leo stands.
“We will interview your friends at your home in a few days, if that’s okay?”
