Hornet’s February Man of the Month Organizes São Paulo, Brazil’s Gay Dodgeball League
This post is also available in: Português
Meet Hornet’s February Man of the Month: Bruno Kawagoe, a 25-year-old resident of São Paulo currently working as a publicist, also one of the organizers of GaymadaSP, a gay dodgeball event that Hornet happens to love. We spoke to Bruno about his life in Brazil, finding love (he’s currently seeing someone he met on Hornet!) and his work in organizing LGBT fun for fellow Brazilians. And thanks to Leonardo Santos, we took some sensational, sexy photos in advance of Carnival — complete with a tutu!
Bruno tells us, “Gaymada is a sport that’s been around for a long time. While no one knows exactly when it started, there are records almost a decade old of gay dodgeball teams throughout Brazil. We wanted to create an event that occupied public spaces to show the world that the LGBT population existed during the day and not just at nighttime parties.”
Our February Man of the Month adds, “One thing we’ve noticed over the last two years is how Gaymada’s audience has been getting younger and younger. It’s incredible to see new bonds of friendship forming. And I love that a new generation is realizing through GaymadaSP that all spaces are — and always were — ours.”
Bruno also speaks to us about romance. “A date with me depends a lot on who you are,” he says. “I’ve been monogamous, non-monogamous and polyamorous. The important thing is to find out what works for you and your relationship. I don’t know if I’d necessarily say I have a ‘sweetheart,’ but yes, I’m dating someone. And we met on Hornet!”
“I hope my mother doesn’t read this,” he adds, “but once I met a guy and chatted through Hornet. We had a beer and went to his place. I knew he had an open relationship with a woman. But what I didn’t know was that she wanted to watch! And I don’t mean Netflix!”
Our conversation also dipped into the future. “My most immediate future plans are to continue with GaymadaSP and the Tamanduas-Flag Rugby Club, the LGBT-inclusive rugby team I founded with two friends,” Bruno says. “I want to continue growing professionally and travel around the world. I also want to learn to cook, because I can’t keep eating popcorn for dinner.”
