Ms. Mayhem

25/07/2022

LA-based, English interior designer Melanie Rose worked with Denver metro area residents for her new Netflix show, “How to Build a S*x Room,” which premiered July 8.

Ms. Mayhem caught up with her to ask about shooting the show in Denver, how couples can start introducing more flavor into their s*x lives and why she’s just so damn lovable.

This will be Ms. Mayhem’s last story before suspending publication. Until we get back, continue following us on social media for updates!

Q&A by Madison Lauterbach.

LA-based designer Melanie Rose worked with Denver residents on her new Netflix show "How to Build a S*x Room," which premiered July 8.

22/07/2022

Usually, our coverage focuses solely on women and nonbinary folks. But for one of our last stories, we branched out a bit to talk about cisgender men’s mental health.

The Denver-based nonprofit Fishing the Good Fight has set out to democratize the river and mental healthcare. The organization’s mission is to improve all lives by serving men facing mental health challenges, using fly fishing as a tool to get them in the door.

“Because of the butterfly effect, [the impact] a man improving his mental health has on a spouse, his family, his friends, his coworkers, really the entire community [is significant],” said Founder and Executive Director Jennings Hester. “When we have depressed men, and men that are struggling with substance abuse throughout the community at the level that we do, it has a negative impact on everyone.”

Story by Madison Lauterbach.

As men's mental health becomes a topic of national conversation, Fishing the Good Fight is working to expand access for men in Colorado.

15/07/2022

Sad news everyone. We are announcing that publication will be suspended at least temporarily starting July 31 due to lack of funding.

Thank you so much for allowing us to serve the Denver community for the last two years and we hope to be back at some point. Our website will remain operational, so keep sharing our stories! And continue following us for the last few stories and future updates.

Ms. Mayhem editor Madison Lauterbach announced the Denver outlet is halting publication. The last stories will be published by July 31.

08/07/2022

In 2021, over 47 million Americans voluntarily walked away from their jobs—an unprecedented mass exit from the workforce that is now widely referred to as the Great Resignation. What followed next was a mass labor movement, with workers banding together across different industries to call for unionization.

“This was a pivotal moment not only for the store but for me personally,” said Len Harris, a shift supervisor and lead organizer for the Superior Starbucks location, the first in Colorado to unionize.

Story by Alexandra Cummings. Photo by Esteban Fernandez.

The Great Resignation largely tipped the scales in workers' favor, and many in Colorado have seized the moment to begin unionizing.

02/07/2022

Abortion advocates in Colorado are contending with a multitude of issues in the fallout of a post-Roe nation. How will providers be able to accommodate an influx of patients from out of state, while abortion deserts in counties like Baca and Gunnison still exist? Will abortion funds like Cobalt continue to receive donations after media attention dwindles? And perhaps the biggest question is, how do they combat misinformation and disinformation, especially when it’s coming from other supporters?

“It’s so easy to share that viral tweet,” said Cobalt’s Strategic Communication Director Jaki Lawrence. “So be really intentional about what you’re resharing and make sure that it’s accurate, especially when you’re talking about anything related to where abortion is or is not legal right now.”

Story by Annie Burky. Photo by Esteban Fernandez.

Misinformation and disinformation are spreading fast throughout Colorado as advocates reckon with the fallout of a post-Roe nation.

24/06/2022

Blush & Blu is the last remaining le***an bar in Denver and one of only 21 in the country. While in this precarious position, it sits at the intersection of two debates embroiling the q***r community: racial inclusion and broad-spectrum q***r inclusion.

The Le***an Bar Project examined the role that Blush & Blu and other le***an bars play in the q***r community. The project raised a new question: Is the loss of le***an bars a true loss?

Story by Annie Burky. Photo by Madison Lauterbach.

As Blush & Blu and it's owner are embroiled in an ongoing lawsuit, questions circulate around the role le***an bars play in the LGBTQ+ community.

24/06/2022

On June 24, the United States Supreme Court overruled Roe. Now, Colorado prepares to be a bastion of abortion access in a sea of red states.

Story by Annie Burky. Photo by Esteban Fernandez.

On June 24, the United States Supreme Court overruled Roe. Now, Colorado prepares to be a bastion of abortion access in a sea of red states.

23/06/2022

Over the years, LGBTQ+ community members are increasingly elevating conversations of intersectionality during Pride Month. Intersectionality recognizes the multitude of different identities and backgrounds and how they influence how individuals navigate the world, even within the same community.

As June winds down, Masha Mikulinsky and Sheila Klein—two Denver artists with disabilities—are taking the Denver Fringe Festival stage with their new show of q***r, disabled survival, “ .”

Story by Keegan Williams.

Masha Mikulinsky and Sheila Klein of Amuse-Bouche productions are bringing disability and q***rness to the stage for Denver Fringe Festival.

21/06/2022

S*x educator and co-founder of Chrysalis House Shanae Adams wants to help other q***r and transgender BIPOC explore the world of kink.

“Some people didn’t know if they had an interest in kink, but making it more palatable, making it something you could actually approach, and also providing some representation so, that way, people know kink is for Black people; kink is for women; kink is for femme-of-center folks, and that we can find liberation, joy, enjoyment, pleasure, power in this as well.”

Story by Keegan Williams. Photo by Sara Martin.

S*x educator and co-founder of Chrysalis House Shanae Adams wants to help other q***r and trans BIPOC explore the world of kink.

17/06/2022

On Dec. 30, 2021, Zoe Rogers, her husband, their three children and thousands of others on the front range left their homes unsure of when they would return. While Rogers and other Louisville residents were spared from the Marshall Fire, there was little to laugh about. Half a year later, Rogers is hosting the second-annual Boulder Comedy Festival June 23-26 with the hope of bringing laughter to the land still singed.

Check out Keegan Williams’ story for more details.

Boulder Comedy Festival is returning for its second year, bringing laughs to a community that has been through the wringer.

15/06/2022

The Two Cent Lion Theatre Company—co-founded by Izzy Chern, Gracie Jacobson and Kevin Douglas in January 2022—aims to platform theatrical works by LGBTQ+ playwrights. The group’s first production, “Yesterday/Today,” is an upbeat romantic comedy that features three q***r characters that riffs on the 2019 movie “Yesterday.”

Premiering as part of the Denver Fringe Festival, the production is set to run through Pride Weekend in Denver, with late-night presentations June 23-26.

Check out this guest article from Douglas to learn more about the troupe and details about tickets!

Q***rness and The Beatles collide in the multiverse show "Yesterday/Today," produced by 2¢ Lion Theatre Company.

13/06/2022

The Casting Forward story package is LIVE on our website! Make sure you subscribe to our email list to get the password. Go here to subscribe: https://www.msmayhem.com/subscribe/

We are SO proud to have this multimedia package out to the world. We hope you enjoy these stories, videos and photos. Maybe you’ll even learn something new!

Thank you to all the sources who participated in this project!

10/06/2022

We celebrate q***r folks year-round at Ms. Mayhem. Here are some of the great stories about LGBTQ+ Denverites we’ve done over the last year.

If you’d like to read these stories, head to the link in our bio and click on this post.

Happy Pride! 🌈

08/06/2022

Keep those peepers peeled for the next few days! And in the meantime, make sure to head to the link below to become a subscriber.

https://www.msmayhem.com/subscribe/

07/06/2022

“Inside Wire” is a 24/7 radio station produced by incarcerated people across Colorado and the first statewide prison radio station in the U.S. The station is heard by inmates through commissary-purchased television sets and by those on the “outside” through the Inside Wire app. DU Prison Arts Initiative supports the program created by 15 incarcerated producers at Denver Women's, Limon and Sterling Correctional Facilities.

Shows include podcasts, talk, interviews, music and original music broadcast to the 14,000 incarcerated people within Colorado, but those behind the station believe they have a broader reach. Producers like Cynthia Gonzales, Amber Pierce and Sarah Berry envision radio waves stretching across barbed wire, finding all Coloradans—prisoners, prison staff or otherwise.

Story by Annie Burky. Photos by Ali Mai.

“Inside Wire” is a 24/7 radio station produced by incarcerated people across Colorado and the first statewide prison radio station in the U.S.

20/05/2022

Denver musician Jaiel’s new five-song EP uses the fairytale narrative as a foundation to explore the power of Black girlhood, friendship and the importance of knowing oneself. She continues on the opening track to introduce the “Magical World of Black Girlhood,” where “there lived a beautiful and powerful princess named Peg.”

The story’s heroine, Peg, is based on her sixth-generation great-grandmother who was emancipated from slavery on April 12, 1800. Exploring her great-grandmother’s story through Peg soon became a formative experience in Jaiel’s life.

Story by Keegan Williams. Photos by Ali Mai.

Denver musician Jaiel drew inspiration for her new EP from fairytales, Afrofuturism and most importantly, the Black women in her life.

16/05/2022

Do you need a few more reasons to come to our Casting Forward event on May 18? How about a beautiful 8 wt rod from SaraBella Fishing? Or a great 5wt from Orvis Fly Fishing? Maybe a tech vest from fishpond to hold all your goodies and gadgets? A knit hat from Rep Your Water? Or maybe even a fillet kit from Flip "N" Fillet?

You must be present to win so make sure you get an in person ticket (and maybe a few extra door prize tickets while you’re at it!). Tickets can be found here: https://www.msmayhem.com/casting-forward/

Big thank you to all these companies for their support. We’ll see y’all on Wednesday!