Macon Magazine

SCOTT MITCHELL (He, His, Him) Activist, Business Owner, Radio Host Scott is the founder of Macon Pride and the current president of the organization. He has been an outspoken LGBT activist for 25 years. Scott started the Middle Georgia Reconciling Community in 2018, which advocates for the inclusion and full participation of LGBT people in the ministry and life of the Methodist Church. In 2019, he helped draft the Macon Comprehensive Civil Rights Ordinance and formed a coalition of concerned citizens to get the ordinance passed. In 2021, Scott became the only nationally certified LGBT business enterprise in Macon, Georgia, and created the Macon LGBTQIA+ Youth Group. He is also the co-host of a weekly radio show Deconstructing Divas on 100.9 The Creek. DEMARCUS BECKHAM (He, His, Him) Activist For almost a decade, DeMarcus has been passionate about civic engagement and advocacy for underserved communities in Macon and Middle Georgia. He has helped lead advocacy efforts to mobilize Georgia voters, enforce criminal justice reform and end Georgia's HIV/AIDS epidemic. His latest focus has been advancing justice for the LGBTQIA+ community within the realm of lobbying, campaigning for and achieving policy changes regarding housing, public accommodation, workplace discrimination protections and harm reduction ordinances. He helped draft and advocate for the Macon Comprehensive Civil Rights Ordinance and formed a coalition of citizens to get the ordinance passed. JOHNNY FAMBRO (He, His, Him) Activist, Humanitarian, DJ Johnny was a fixture in this community. He was the Macon man who fought for gay rights as far back as the late 1970s and was among the first to sound a call to action when the AIDS epidemic hit in the early 1980s. He was heavily involved in the mid-1980s with Middle Georgia People Living With AIDS, which merged with the Central City AIDS Network in the early 1990s. At the merger, Fambro became its executive director. Johnny also had a career as a nightclub DJ, spinning records at gay nightclubs like We Three Lounge, Topaz and the Pegasus. He was also an executive member of the previous iterations of the Macon pride festival. Johnny is celebrated as the first openly gay candidate to seek election in the Macon Board of Commissioners. SUBMITTED PHOTO AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2022 | maconmagazine.com 67

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