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| Dwight Harrison, the owner of a Snellville auto dealership, came under fire in
his campaign for the Gwinnett County Commission over advertising his business
in gay publications with popular drag queen Bubba D. Licious. (Photo courtesy
Dwight Harrison Volkswagen)
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HOME > NEWS > LOCAL
By: RYAN LEE
COMMENTS |
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Bubba D. Licious, one of the most well-known drag queens in Atlanta, became a
campaign issue recently in the Republican race for a Gwinnett County Commission
seat.
Opponents of Dwight Harrison, who owns Dwight Harrison Volkswagen in Snellville,
criticized his use of Bubba D. Licious in advertisements for the dealership
that appear in gay publications such as Southern Voice and David.
Harrison, 58, was also chided for contributing to Pets Are Loving Support,
a charity that helps people with AIDS and other terminal illnesses care for
their pets. Bubba D. Licious, a member of the board of directors for PALS,
serves as an honorary figurehead and performs fund-raisers for the agency,
including hosting its popular monthly bingo event.
But the man behind Bubba’s wig and make-up, Atlanta resident Jim Marks,
called such criticism “trivial campaign tricks.”
“I think it’s a pretty cheap tactic,” said Marks, who is
also chief financial officer of the Atlanta-based Names Project, which maintains
the AIDS Memorial Quilt.
“If Dwight Harrison’s worst fault is that he’s donated to
PALS, he’s probably the best man for the job because I’m sure everyone
else has more important faults,” Marks added.
Marks and a spokesperson for Harrison said the two men barely know each other,
having met only twice in the four years Bubba D. Licious has appeared in advertisements
for the auto dealership.
Harrison declined to be interviewed by Southern Voice. But during a March
8 candidate forum where he was criticized for the ads, Harrison said he “will
not dodge the media, or anyone,” according to The Weekly, a Gwinnett
newspaper.
Eric Christjansen, a gay salesperson at Dwight Harrison Volkswagen, said it
was his idea to feature Marks in advertisements after the two became friends
in 1999.
The dealership also targets other minority groups in its advertising, including
African Americans and Hispanics, Christjansen said.
Responding to a question at the March 8 candidate forum, Harrison said his
relationship with Marks is strictly business.
“I do not understand the gay lifestyle, but I do not discriminate in
my business,” Harrison said, according to The Weekly. “We don’t
have to agree or condone, but in business we serve everybody.”
But some of his opponents criticized the relationship between Harrison and
a drag queen as problematic.
“As a Republican and a conservative, I naturally believe family values
are of paramount importance,” said Mike Beaudreau, according to the Gwinnett
Daily Post. “People look at us as being the government, and I think they’d
be worried.”
Beaudreau, 29, declined comment to Southern Voice.
Bill McKinney, a consultant for incumbent Commissioner John Dunn, also criticized
Harrison for the advertisements.
“Bubba D. Licious dresses as a nun for some events, and as a Roman Catholic,
I’m offended by that,” McKinney told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “[Harrison]
supports that lifestyle just so he can sell cars.”
McKinney declined comment to Southern Voice. Terry Milton, also a GOP candidate
for the District 3 post, did not respond to an interview request.
Allen Thornell, executive director of statewide gay group Georgia Equality,
questioned the effectiveness of anti-gay campaigning by Harrison’s opponents.
“They think all gay people live inside the perimeter and don’t
know how many gay individuals and families live in these areas like Cobb or
Gwinnett County,” Thornell said. “I think using homophobia to get
elected doesn’t actually work, because it comes across as mean-spirited.”
The ads featuring Bubba D. Licious are on hold. But Christjansen said the
dealership scaled back its advertising in light of slumping sales — not
over the ads becoming a campaign issue for Harrison.
The primary election is scheduled for July 20. No Democrats have formally
entered the race.
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