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Sister Lupita of the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence

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Sr. Lupita of the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence in dramatic yellow, red, and white face paint
In name, dress, and antics, the "Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence" are the personification of theatrical camp. But it's serious business. The order began in San Francisco's Castro District over Easter weekend in 1979, when a small group of gay men started appearing in public dressed as nuns. What started as street theater grew into an international network of largely autonomous houses — Wikipedia notes there are now houses and missions across the U.S. and chapters as far afield as Australia, Canada, and Europe, with hundreds of members worldwide. From the start, the order has raised money for HIV/AIDS causes, promoted safer-sex education, and supported LGBTQ community organizations — work that continues today. According to the website for the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, the Sisters' mission statement states:
The Sisters devote [themselves] to community service, ministry and outreach to those on the edges, and to promoting human rights, respect for diversity and spiritual enlightenment. The Sisters believe all people have a right to express their unique joy and beauty and use humor and irreverent wit to expose the forces of bigotry, complacency and guilt that chain the human spirit. The Sisters' state vows to promulgate universal joy and expiate stigmatic guilt while serving their respective communities.
My photo above is Sr. Lupita of the Los Angeles Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, taken at the 2008 Long Beach Pride Parade. See more from that day in my post on Long Beach Pride 2008: Faces of the Parade. P.S. Sr. Iona kindly identified this Sister for me after my original post — my thanks to her for that.
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Unknown said…
Sister Lupita from the LA Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence
July 14, 2008 at 3:01 PM
John Corney said…
Dear Sister Iona,

Thank you for whispering your sister's name even though I'm sure you have taken a vow of silence.

John
July 14, 2008 at 3:21 PM
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