About

straight talk in a queer world Jive in the [415]

Jive in the [415] is one of your best sources of gay LGBT news, information, and political commentary.

The blog “Jive in the [415]” is dedicated to advancing equality and gay LGBT civil rights, by examining the socio-political, religious, and cultural challenges confronting the gay community today. We are strong advocates for women’s rights and racial equality, and promote anti-bullying programs because we believe that every student has a right to be educated in an environment that’s conducive to learning --- free of harassment and devoid of bullying.

This San Francisco, California, based queer-centric and progressive blog focuses on Gay Lesbian Bisexual and Transgender national news and information that you care about. With incisive and thought provoking writing and commentary, you’ll want to come back for more.

For straight talk in a queer world, bookmark Jive in the [415].

Roy Steele

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Roy is one of our country's leading experts on LGBT History, and American politics.

Roy is a blogger, writer, queer activist, equality advocate, anti-bullying evangelist.

He's worked as an actor, voice-over artist, and singer.

He spent nearly 20 years as a corporate financial analyst. He's been a political meteorologist, gadfly, and world traveler, all his life.

Roy writes here at Jive in the [415].

The blog "Tie-dyed Jive in the (415)"

I originally called this blog "Tie-dyed Jive in the (415)." While I offically dropped "Tie-dyed" for making people too tongue-tied, I settled on Jive in the [415] , to signify that the blog originates in San Francisco.

When I came up with the name "Tie-dyed Jive in the (415)", it was to honor my late brother Jay, my dear friend Robin, and my brother-in-law Dave, 3 people who couldn't be more different, and they all shared a passion for the Grateful Dead; As devoted Deadheads, they followed the band all over the country.

While I never shared their enthusiasm for the Grateful Dead, I came to love and appreciate their dedication to the Dead, and their vivid memories full of infectious music and melodies, and a scene that I often turned my nose up to - and didn't appreciate until I moved to ground zero in San Francisco, where it all began.

Any reference to "Tie-dyed" you might see scattered around this blog, is a reflection of the love and respect I have for them.

Education And Professional Experience

A northern New Jersey native, I grew up a WASP (White Anglo-Saxon Protestant) in a dyed -in-the-wool Republican activist household, with strong family ties to the US Navy.

My interest in politics started when I was very young. My start in GOP party politics began with delivering campaign materials door to door as a kid. I then started making phone calls to voters, and as a teenager in high school found myself in Washington, DC where I spent 4 summers as an intern, working in the office of my Congresswoman. During my time in the trenches, I worked on successful campaigns for town council, county freeholder, the state assembly, state senate, and New Jersey governor. I was a college campaign coordinator for a victorious presidential candidate.

After majoring in English at Rutgers College in New Brunswick, where I sang in the Rutgers Glee Club, I moved to Manhattan to work in New York City, and was a Financial Analyst for a Fortune 100 Corporation for over 10 years. I decided to change careers, and I studied acting at the Guildford School of Acting (GSA), University of Surrey, with an emphasis on Musical Theatre. GSA is located in Guildford, Surrey, England just south west of London.

I worked as an actor in several productions upon returning to the states, and despite steady work, decided that I enjoyed the stability of a corporate job, and found a position as a financial analyst, and returned to working in the private sector.

When I was able to vote in the first election I could cast a ballot, I started looking more closely at both party platforms, and developed my own views, and realized that as an adult, the anti-gay Republican party that my family had been devoted to for decades, didn't represent my point of view.