Chilli Pepper, Chicago trans icon and champion for LGBTQ+ rights, diesLink to Full ArticleWGNTV Chicago News - Sean Lewis, Gabriel Castillo
Posted: Sep 14, 2024 / 09:51 PM CDT
Updated: Sep 14, 2024 / 09:51 PM CDT
Chilli Pepper, a Chicago trans icon and champion for LGBTQ+ rights who was a beloved and influential leader in the fight for marriage equality and the AIDS crisis, died this week.
"You know, Chilli is one of those pillars of our movement. Someone who has been there almost since Stonewall, and active during that whole period of time," Tracy Baim said.
Baim is the co-founder of the Windy City Times, an LGBTQ+ newspaper that was first published in 1985.
"The trans performers of that era, of the late 70s and 80s, were really on the front lines for our community when a lot of other people stayed tightly in the closet," Baim said.
Smith said Chilli Pepper not only used her talents as a career, since coming to Chicago in the early 70s from Detroit, but also raised awareness and money for LGBTQ rights and HIV/AIDS as a guest on Oprah, Donohue and Jerry Springer.
Her final performance on stage took place in March during a benefit for Howard Brown Health.
Chilli Pepper's humor transcended politics and personalities finding humanity as the cornerstone of her life.
Chilli pepper passed away in her Gold Coast apartment ... after a battle with cancer.----------
