When actress and activist Dominique Jackson recalls her fondest ballroom memories, she immediately thinks agency, survival, and most importantly: empowerment.
“I wasn’t looking for ballroom– ballroom found me,” Jackson said.
“It was the family component, being told that I was loved, being made to feel that I was beautiful. But there was more to it: it taught me resilience. It taught me strength. They saw all of me and wanted me to know that I am worthy of celebration.”
This year’s National LGBTQ Task Force signature gala, the Be You Ball, will be hosted by Jackson. The event will pay homage to ballroom culture and uplifting queer liberation and joy. It all happens on October 11 on National Coming Out Day at the Diplomat Beach Resort in Hollywood, Florida, and represents a show of resilience for Jackson. “When we all gather together, we’re saying to each other ‘It’s not only okay to be us, it’s our right to be us,’” she said. “When we dance and we celebrate in the midst of everything happening to us, it’s one of the biggest forms of protest.”
“It Was Therapy” Jackson’s Activism in Queer Justice
Jackson’s presence and impact in the queer rights movement is ubiquitous. On Instagram, she digitizes her activism in reshares of rising gay rapper Infinite Coles or memorializing ballroom icon Venus Xtravanganza, always with her lead message of the importance of self- love and kindness toward others. Venus’s legacy is personal to her, as an executive producer of the Netflix documentary “I’m Your Venus,” which tells the story behind Xtravanganza’s life, impact and cold case murder.
Throughout the East Coast, Jackson appears in mentorship programs as an active member of Garden State Equality, the largest queer-rights organization in New Jersey.
Jackson says her strong relationship with the Task Force and its mission make “hosting an honor.” With prior ties, Jackson was honored during the Task Force’s 2023 Gala with the National Leadership Award in its “Forever Strong, Unapologetically Queer” theme. “I already felt so closely knitted to the Task Force,” Jackson said. Hosting the Be You Ball Gala is an opportunity to leverage her power and build more connections between the Task Force and those who attend the gala.
“There should be a lot more support for the Task Force, and I’m hoping more relationships are formed where they’ll be invited into more spaces and provide help and support – which can be provided to them too,” Jackson said.
Task Force President Kierra Johnson showed gratitude for Jackson, expressing excitement for her return to the organization’s signature event. “Dominique’s alluring charisma and unapologetic love for the trans and queer community will shine brightly as she hosts this year’s gala for The Task Force,” Johnson said.
Fighting Through to Gather With
Hosting the Be You Ball Gala, Jackson says, is an honor but also a strategy to combat her fear of visibility. As attacks against trans people rise, and continuous harm against Black trans women steadies, Jackson recently reckoned with her agoraphobia, a fear commonly characterized as anxiety-filled paranoia of danger, violence, and hostility.
“I want to be more vocal than ever about my agoraphobia because I want to let people know that, even with the things that we may struggle with, we can do our best to show up, especially my trans sisters who have masked agoraphobia with ‘I just don’t like outside’ or ‘Everything comes to me.’ Part of my fight with agoraphobia is coming to the Gala, to show up and be present and show folks we can all push through.”
Coming to Florida, where anti-queer state laws are often “road-tested” before other states adapt them, is another task to combat Jackson’s agoraphobia, as she recalls previous requests to speak but declining over her safety. “But now? I understand you have to show up. You have to be there. It’s a profoundly huge statement because this Gala says ‘Yes, we celebrate and enjoy [our lives.]’ Am I fearful? Yes of course. But I’m not scared,” she said.
South Florida’s queer community will be in full throw for the Be You Ball Gala festivities. The Gay Men’s Chorus of South Florida will perform, as well as icons such as T.P. Lords, Joey Young, Athena Dion, and former Miss Florida Tayanna Love. Royalty will be present, too, as Gadfrie Arbulu, this year’s Miss Continental, is set to perform.
David Jobin, the CEO of South Florida’s queer-led Our Fund Foundation, will receive the Eddy McIntyre Community Service Award for over 20 years of activism through the lens of arts, humanities and performance. A silent auction, DJ and dancefloor, and purple carpet will be rolled out for a Be You Ball Gala night that celebrates queer authenticity and joy to its fullest.
“I’m hoping to bring a message of celebration about being solid in your truth,” Jackson said. “To know that things that have happened to you are not going to break you. These galas not only bring support to our community, but they also help us celebrate each other and give some kind of relief during all these difficult times.”
