Drago Renteria
Drago Renteria
Drago Renteria (born Dragonsani Renteria, 04 September 1967) is a Deaf Chicano transgender male and long-time resident of San Francisco. He is CEO of DeafVision and founder and executive director of Deaf Queer Resource Center (DQRC). He is a well-known LGBTQ/social justice activist, educator, historian, and artist. He spearheaded many DeafQueer advocacy efforts and took charge, in various capacities, of several LGBTQIA and organizations.
Early Life and Education
Renteria was born in El Paso, Texas to a lesbian mother, thus positing Drago as Second Generation (LGBTQIA-identified children who also have LGBTQIA-identified parent/s)[1] . He is of Mexican and Italian heritages and grew up exposed to Chicano culture. His first language is Spanish. He was stricken with spinal meningitis when he was 11 and, after two days of high fever, became deaf. He came out as a lesbian in the late 1970's when he was 12 and transitioned from female to male in the late 1990's, one of the very first deaf folks, and perhaps the first Deaf Person of Color, to have done so.
He attended Gallaudet University for two years (1986 to 1988) where he was president of the student LGBTQ group, the Lambda Society of Gallaudet University, Chief Justice of the Student Body Government, occupied various positions with the Buff & Blue, the school newspaper, and involved with Hispanos Unidos en Gallaudet, before transferring to the University of California at Berkeley and graduating with a bachelor's degree in 1993.
He suffered a motorcycle accident while still a student at UCB which left him with chronic back pain.
Career
LGBTQ Activism/Community Service
Renteria has expressed his passion for causes related to anti-gentrification and housing rights and is very involved in local movements to address these issues. He has served on the boards of FTM International, Transgender Law Center, Youth Gender Project, Rainbow Alliance of the Deaf, and California Center for Law and the Deaf.
Online Entrepreneurship and Advocacy
As CEO of DeafVision, one of the first Deaf-owned Internet companies, and founder and executive director since 1995 of Deaf Queer Resource Center (DQRC), one of the first Deaf-related websites on the web, he has spearheaded several deaf, especially deaf LGBTQIA, representation efforts online. After working as director of the Deaf Gay and Lesbian Center (DGLC) from 1992 to 1995, a now-defunct center that had served only Deaf LGBTQ in the San Francisco Bay Area, he has mentioned in an interview[2] that his stint there has made him come to a realization that "the people who needed support the very most were Deaf LGBTs who did not reside in big cities like San Francisco." A similar organization that operates on a national level
He also created the very first websites not just for Deaf LGBTQ folks, but also the very first website for Deaf women (Deaf Women Resources), the Deaf leather community (Deaf Leather Dungeon), and the Deaf Latinx community (Deaf Aztlan), among others. Virtually every single Deaf LGBTQ organization online prior to 2005 got its start online through DeafVision.
Aside from DQRC, he is also founder and coordinator of the National Deaf LGBTQ Archives from 1994 to present, editor of DCARA News from 1995 to 1996, director of Deaf Gay & Lesbian Center (DGLC) from 1992 to1995, and founder, publisher and editor of Coming Together Newsletter (CTN) from 1991 to 1995.
Photography
He is a photojournalist for El Tecolote since 2015.
Publications
Renteria has been mentioned in several publications, notably
Selected Awards and Honours
- Laurent Clerc Award, Gallaudet University, 2018
- Trailblazer Award, DeafHope, 2015
- 41 Latin@ LGBTQ role models, 2015
- 13 Trans Latinx Activists Who are Changing the World, 2015
- Honorary Grand Marshall, Seattle LGBT Pride, 2006
- Appreciation Award, Rainbow Alliance of the Deaf, 2005
- DCARA Hal Ramger Distinguish Service Award, 2003
- Appreciation Award, Rainbow Alliance of the Deaf, 2003
- LGBT Local Hero Award, KQED San Francisco, 2002
- Community Service Award, San Francisco Board of Supervisors, 2002
- Appreciation Award, California State Assembly, 2002
- Woman of the Year Award, Rainbow Alliance of the Deaf, 2001
- Deaf Queer Role Model, Youth Advocates, 2000
- Leadership Award, Rainbow Lambda Society of the Deaf, 1999
- Baltimore Leather Association of the Deaf Life Brother Emeritus, 1998
- Grand Marshall, San Francisco Freedom Day Parade, 1995
- Special Recognition Award, San Francisco Board of Supervisors, 1993
- Leadership Award, Lambda Society of Gallaudet University, 1987
The Drago Renteria Commitment to the LGBTQA Community Award
Every year, the LGBTQA Resource Center at Gallaudet University hosts the Lavender Graduation ceremony where graduating students who identify as part of the LGBTQIA community, advocates, allies, and role models are awarded for recognition of their efforts and contributions to promotion of equity, diversity, and inclusion for LGBTQIA-identified members on campus. The Drago Renteria Commitment to the LGBTQA Community Award is "the highest honor [...] awarded to an undergraduate or graduate student, typically a member of the graduating class, who has performed extraordinary service and outstanding leadership in helping to strengthen the LGBTQA+ community by encouraging awareness and understanding around LGBTQA+ issues and identities at Gallaudet University and in the wider Deaf community."[3]
Personal Life
Renteria has lived in the San Francisco Bay Area since 1989 and in the Mission since 1999. He lives with his long-time partner, Jennifer Mantle, a freelance ASL interpreter, priestess, and minister of herchurch, and their service dog and canine genius, Magnus, a Schnoodle.
References
- ^ admin (2013-01-28). "2nd Gen FAQ- For LGBTQ Folks with LGBTQ Parents". COLAGE: People with a Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, or Queer Parent. Retrieved 2019-03-18.
- ^ "Interview with Dragonsani Renteria, DQRC Founder". www.deafqueer.org. Retrieved 2019-04-12.
- ^ "Nominations wanted for annual Lavender Graduation awards | my.Gallaudet". my.gallaudet.edu. Retrieved 2019-03-18.