For Two Recent Transplants, Atlanta’s ‘Black Gay Mecca’ Designation Not the Draw But a Bonus

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J.J. McCorvey and friends

For years, Atlanta has claimed the official/unofficial moniker of the “Black Gay Mecca.” The city has been considered a top destination for countless queer-identifying people of color seeking refuge and acceptance. But is that still true today?

While Atlanta continues to be attractive to most, its official/unofficial Black Gay Mecca designation isn't all that continues to draw many to live here. Two recent transplants suggest the city's Black gay population is a bonus, but was an afterthought when considering making Atlanta their current home. 

"I never really saw myself living in Atlanta," LaDettria Miller, 35, told The Reckoning. "I just never had a desire to live here."

A native of Weir, Mississippi, Miller spent three weeks working in Atlanta on a temporary assignment as a certified nursing assistant.

"For whatever reason, I wasn't feeling it," he said. "In my adult life, I had only been to Atlanta twice before that. They were day trips, not really enough time to really get the feel of the city. But during those three weeks of being here, it didn't stick."

He returned to Mississippi and began thinking about where he wanted to go next. He considered many other cities known to have large Black gay communities: Washington, D.C, Dallas, and Houston, Texas, among them. But Atlanta wasn't on the list until an offer he couldn't refuse caught his attention. 

"It was more money than I had ever made in my life," he said. "I figured, let me try this out."

“Atlanta has its own atmosphere; its own genre. Being from Mississippi, there is no comparison. There are so many different things to do here and experience.”

- LaDettria Miller

For J.J. McCorvey, 36, a lot has played a part in his decision to move to Atlanta. A business reporter for NBC News, McCorvey lived in New York for 13 years before considering Atlanta. 

"When I was freelancing a few years back, I wrote a story for Fast Company about Atlanta and a lot of the companies that are moving here," he told The Reckoning. "A lot of economic growth was happening, and I think that was the first indication that maybe something is happening here that I hadn't totally tapped into before."

Having many friends, former classmates, and family living in Atlanta, he started to feel slightly disconnected from what was happening in their lives. And even though he knew Atlanta to be the "Black Mecca," it was not until the Fast Company story that he started to feel a pull. 

"All the opportunities for Black folks and Black professionals that seem to be growing was very alluring to me," he said. "So that was the first inkling." 

And then, COVID-19 happened.

"During the pandemic, New York became a very different city for me," he said. "I, like most millennials, began asking myself the existential question of 'what are we doing with our lives.'"

McCorvey began his own introspection. He could have stayed in New York, but there was more he needed. 

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LeDettria Miller (Facebook)

‘Atlanta is still developing’ 

In July, 5,000 more people moved to Atlanta than the year before, totaling roughly 65,000 more residents, according to the Atlanta Regional Commission. Of those moving, most transplants relocated from New York, Washington, D.C., and Miami. And most of them did so because of their careers, reports Axios. Some real estate experts suggest the cost of living, warmer climates, and cultural diversity are some of the top reasons many have chosen Atlanta. 

For McCorvey, it was all about community. The city is close to his alma mater, Tuskegee University, and his native state, Mississippi. Several of his family members are in the metro area, and if he needs to get back to Mississippi, it's just a five-hour drive. 

"When I talk about community, I think about a more holistic sense, where there are people who I know have my back and want to know that I am okay. People who have kids and birthday parties. People who have spades games and tournaments. People who want to celebrate birthdays and want to take trips together," he said. "Atlanta being Black and gay? If I think about the top three priorities, Atlanta being Black and gay were like number four or five."

The same, said Miller, is true for him and others he knows who have moved here.

"Atlanta has its own atmosphere; its own genre. Being from Mississippi, there is no comparison. There are so many different things to do here and experience," he said. "I can be in the grocery store and meet someone new. It's so easy. Talking to others who have moved here, they all talk about the fun they have had exploring, making connections, and experiencing things we would not or could have anywhere else."

And not only that, but for McCorvey and his work as a business reporter, he said Atlanta has many coverage opportunities. 

"I think NBC recognized that, in hiring me, there are so many implications of what Georgia represents for the entire country politically and economically here," he said. "Georgia will remain a very important state on the national scene when it comes to politics, business, and employment. I see a lot of opportunities to tell stories across the southeast region. My upbringing in Mississippi as a Black gay man informs a lot of my writing as a business reporter."

“When I talk about community, I think about a more holistic sense, where there are people who I know have my back and want to know that I am okay.”

- J.J. McCorvey

And while there are many opportunities for individuals migrating to Atlanta, one native foresees a change in the city's accessibility for transplants. 

"Atlanta is still developing, and it's still at a point where it is affordable. New York and Los Angeles are hard living. DC is hard living, and Chicago is too cold," NiiLee told The Reckoning. "Atlanta still gives the illusion where you can 'fake it until you make it.' But as far as programming and acceptance, New York and DC are far more progressive than Atlanta. We just turned blue."

NiiLee, 36, is a Black trans woman, born and raised in the metro Atlanta area. She and her brother, Cory L. Scott, founded Je Suis NiiLee Mutual Aid Collective. 

"Queer people are drawn to Atlanta to start anew. And why not? We have the biggest airport. Major businesses are moving here. Tech companies are calling Atlanta home. Media and entertainment production is booming. We have all the things a person needs to come here and start a new life," she said. “It’s affordable now. But two to five years from now? Maybe seven. Atlanta is undergoing a facelift. The cost of living will be like any other major metropolis."

Whether Atlanta is or is not affordable today is debatable; especially for African American residents. According to Money.com, Atlanta is the best place to live in the United States. However, in a 2020 article, the Atlanta Business Chronicle reports that Atlanta leads the nation in income inequality and lack of economic mobility. The article references an Atlanta Wealth Building Initiative report that states the median household income for a white family in the city is $83,722, compared to $28,105 for a Black family. And according to the Atlanta Regional Commission, a decade ago homeownership among African Americans was 25 points below whites and has continued to decline. 

“Queer people are drawn to Atlanta to start anew. And why not? We have the biggest airport. Major businesses are moving here. Tech companies are calling Atlanta home. Media and entertainment production is booming. We have all the things a person needs to come here and start a new life.”

— NiiLee

But for McCorvey, being in Atlanta now, he says, is good for him. 

"There is a coming back home narrative that I have been halfway ignoring. Mississippi and the South, in general, represent a lot for me as it does for a lot of Black gay men. A lot of opposing forces, a lot of dichotomous forces," he said. "It feels so loving and hospitable. But is also known for not being very welcoming to the LGBT community."

McCorvey says he has not fully grappled with what it means to be back in the south. 

"But I do know my inner child is kicking and screaming about me bringing him back. But, while 16-year-old JJ isn't sure about what we are doing here, the adult JJ is convinced this is good for us. There is that deeper inner purpose for myself. Outside of me, I do think I can be a good journalist here, and I look forward to putting that to work."

As for Miller, he is simply enjoying the ride for now. 

"As of right now, I can see myself staying here for a couple more years," he said. "I don't know if I want to live out my life here. I am still exploring."