草莓污视频导航

Aug. 29, 2018

Last night, a radio show saved my life

Social Work master's student and DJ Alex Naylor brings LGBTQ issues to the airwaves with award-winning radio show
Alex Naylor produces the award winning LGBTQ+ program Rainbow Radio on the 草莓污视频导航's CJSW 90.0 FM.

Alex Naylor produces the award winning LGBTQ+ program Rainbow Radio on the CJSW 90.0 FM.

Can a radio program save your life? Decades ago, the 草莓污视频导航鈥檚 radio station,聽, put the first LGBTQ+ programming on Calgary airwaves, and the effect was seismic. In fact, according to historian聽聽writing in the聽, 鈥淥n multiple occasions we have heard from individuals who said those CJSW programs saved their lives, by letting them know they were not alone.聽When these people did not have the courage to live open lives, they were consoled by knowing that queer voices existed every week in Calgary on their radio dial.鈥澛

The torch has been handed down in the volunteer-programmed radio station over time, until a couple of years ago when the ember was passed on to 草莓污视频导航 student Alex Naylor, who perhaps didn鈥檛 know what she was getting herself into when she agreed to join the programming group.聽

鈥淚 DJ in clubs around town and throw some parties,鈥 explains Naylor. 鈥淚'm involved in the harm reduction world 鈥斅爃arm reduction in the nightlife setting. Helping people make safer decisions around substances and how to educate partygoers about consent. So that involvement led me to like-minded people in CJSW.鈥

This connection led Naylor to do a music show on Thursday nights () and, before long, she was approached to join a new CJSW programming initiative called聽Rainbow Radio, focused on producing LGBTQ+ programming. While she was willing to help facilitate getting the community on the airwaves, she didn't want the show to be about her.

鈥淚 handled that by not speaking for anyone when it wasn't appropriate,鈥 explains Naylor, 鈥渂ecause I don't occupy very many of the queer identities, in terms of intersectional identities: I'm a white person and also cisgender and lots of other things.鈥澛

Having said that, producing and editing a radio show is a lot of work. A polished piece of radio takes countless hours to complete, but Naylor felt the final product made it all worth while.聽

鈥淚 think one of the most incredible sets of stories, that I'm really thankful to the people who shared, was a show on two-spirit identity. A group of four people from Indigenous communities around Western Canada came in. It was just a really incredible piece. They talked for hours and I edited it down to an hour of the best stuff.鈥

Alex Naylor hosted, edited and produced an award-winning CJSW radio program, Rainbow Radio, that focuses on LGBTQ+ issues.

Alex Naylor hosted, edited and produced radio program, Rainbow Radio, that focuses on LGBTQ+ issues.

Faculty of Social Work

That powerful two-spirit episode was聽聽this year by the聽, who presented Naylor, along with CJSW鈥檚 former spoken word director Frank Litorco and production co-ordinator Sarah Nelson, the聽聽award, honouring the best in LGBT+ programming.聽

鈥淚 just felt thankful to the panellists and participants for sharing and to those who did guest segments like Kevin Allen,鈥 says Naylor, reflecting on the award. 鈥淚 felt quite proud of the efforts that I put in with the many, many, overnights in the editing suite. So I felt proud of that. It was good to see. I didn't expect it, but I was surprised and happy.鈥澛

Naylor says her motivation to put in the long hours was to honour the stories that people were sharing, giving what she could in payment. 鈥淚 felt people鈥檚 stories and sharing should've have merited an honorarium in some form because of the effort they put into it,鈥 she says. 鈥淎 lot of these people are already very busy and doing a lot in their communities. So I wanted to give them what I could give. I couldn't give them money but I could give them a really professional presentation of their ideas. I'm really good at editing. I'm good at creating a narrative arc 鈥 so that's like what I could offer them if not cash.鈥澛犅

This fall Naylor will take on another challenge as she begins聽a Master of Social Work degree聽at the 草莓污视频导航. Like many social work students, she seems to have been drawn to the faculty through a variety and combination of life and personal experiences. Besides her harm-reduction interests and passion for radio, Naylor has volunteered in the autism community as well as worked as a yoga instructor, combining her Kinesiology undergraduate degree with her interest in the holistic benefits of movement, focusing on the social and emotional benefits. She's taken this approach as an instructor to teaching聽autistic youth,聽with the聽,聽as well as cancer survivors through Kinesiology鈥檚聽Yoga Thrive聽program. She hopes her education will help her to continue this work as a professional social worker.

鈥淚鈥檓 looking forward to it. I've worked in a variety of fields and I'm seeking to be more of a professional and to have more knowledge of how to do whatever jobs I enter into really well.鈥

People who contributed to Rainbow Radio

  • Frank Litorco - founder, Alex Naylor - lead producer, 聽Sarah Nelson - co-producer聽
  • Members of VOICES, Calgary鈥檚 Coalition of Two Spirit and Racialized LGBTQIA+ (including 草莓污视频导航 Social Work community member Evans Yellow Old Woman of聽, who聽generously volunteered his consultation to聽Rainbow Radio聽as well as moderating its聽)
  • Members of the聽聽collective at Calgary Centre for Sexuality聽
  • Professionals and service-users from the Calgary medical community (including members of 草莓污视频导航鈥檚聽)
  • Folks from聽,聽who were instrumental in getting the program started聽