By Je’Don Holloway Talley | For The Birmingham Times
Many participants in Ballroom — an African American and Latino underground LGBTQ+ subculture — belong to groups known as “Houses,” a longstanding tradition where chosen families of friends form relationships and community, that often replace families of origin from which they may be estranged. Houses are led by “mothers” and “fathers” who are usually older or established members of the Ballroom scene, who provide guidance and support for their House “children.”
Houses — often named after fashion labels or iconic designers — also include leadership roles such as godmothers, overseers, a prince and princess, a treasurer, and in some Houses, a dean of pledges who serve as a recruiter (though the terminology varies) all working together to keep the House running smoothly.
In the Ballroom community, titles like Legendary and Iconic are earned. not claimed. Legendary status honors those who have achieved consistent excellence and recognition in a specific category over time. Iconic is a higher distinction, reserved for individuals whose influence has helped shape, expand, or preserve the culture.
Here’s a Pride Month look inside the family and founding chapter of “The Captivating House of Von Dutch” formed in May 2021, in Birmingham, Alabama.
Legendary Founding Mother
Za’Niya ‘Von Dutch’ Blanco, 34, Trussville native, and Hewitt Trussville High School grad, is one of four founding members of The Captivating House of Von Dutch.
“As a founding mother, anytime anybody calls, I try my best to always be there and help them in any way I can. They need to feel that I’m there, they’re loved, that they’re heard,” she said.
Blanco said she has an endearing term for her children. “I call them my butterflies,” she said. “My babies mean the world to me. If they weren’t here, hell, Von Dutch wouldn’t be here.”
One of the most important events for the House is the ballroom competition.
“Being a mother [while preparing] for a ball is hard… I help my sons prep, I help do my daughters hair, makeup, I put on lashes… The hard work pays off seeing the kids walking and showing off their talents, it makes you proud. I get a thrill watching my kids have fun on the floor. And it’s not about winning or losing. As long as they’re having fun and enjoying their moment on the floor,” said Blanco.
“I motivate them, I get them in that competitive mode to believe in themselves, and go out there and serve in their category. I help financially, sometimes I’m helping my butterflies [cover travel expenses] to be at the Balls…,” she said.
Established four years ago, what began as a vision for Von Dutch soon gained momentum, with the House launching Alabama and Atlanta chapters almost immediately. “Once we started, everything else just started flowing naturally,” said Blanco. Today, the House has expanded across the United States, Canada, and overseas. For Blanco, Ballroom is more than a showcase of talent, it is proof of the strength of chosen family.
While many find Ballrooms as a refuge after facing rejection or estrangement from their biological families, Blanco’s story is different. From an early age, her family embraced her identity with unconditional love and acceptance.
Unlike many in the LGBTQ+ community, Blanco never faced hardship at home because of her identity. “My family was very receptive, very loving. I didn’t go through a lot of that [rejection/hardship], Blanco said. Even her transition was met with ease and understanding. “My mom has been calling me her daughter since I was a flamboyant little boy.”
Blanco acknowledges how rare that experience is and feels a responsibility to create safe spaces for others. “I know some people have not had a mother and father [who accepted them] … a lot of people have come to me with their stories, and even though that wasn’t my experience, I can imagine how it feels not having family, that’s devastating.”
This vision helped shape House of Von Dutch’s mission. “We wanted to set a new standard and try something new,” Blanco said. “I wanted to set my own rules.”
Asked what she wants her legacy to be, Blanco said it’s about far more than categories and trophies from Ballroom.
“I’m just trying to leave behind a dynasty,” she said.
As for how they prepare for a ball, it takes strategy, said Von Dutch’s newly appointed Alabama Godmother, Karina ‘Ashanti Von Dutch’ Harris. “We have meetings way before the Balls and we pitch ideas and plan how to execute them. We [strategize] on ensemble, and where we’re gonna get the effect from, and who’s gonna make it,” she said. “And, yes, we do have practices.”
“We try to have practice probably two or three times out of the month, especially if we know that there’s a mandatory Ball coming up … then we try to have as many practices as possible,” Harris added.
Father
Raymond ‘Scorpio Von Dutch’ Billingsley, Von Dutch’s Alabama Father, holds meetings and practices at his Fairfield home. But while Von Dutch is run like a family it’s also a business, he said.
“We have protocols, dues, rules and regulations. We’re an LLC and 501c3. It’s not the typical family,” Billingsley said. “We have meetings when there’s an issue, there’s a chain of command you have to go by … There are a lot of things in place [operationally] that separate us from other Houses and families.”
Like a tightly run organization, Von Dutch’s leadership roles are structured to ensure both performance and personal growth. At the center is the House mother and father. Billingsley sees his job as both manager and mentor.
“As a father figure, one thing that I try to do is teach financial literacy and how to maintain money,” said the West End native and West End High School grad. “I’ve put some of my children on my credit cards to help build their credit to help prepare them to buy a car. We have young adults in our House (and some younger), so I just try to be the man that I would want my kids to become when they reach my age. I don’t want them to go through the things I went through and make some of the bad decisions that I’ve made.”
In Ballroom, “there’s a hierarchy,” Billingsley said, explaining that titles reflect experience and status. Icons are the highest rank, earned after years of competing and winning in Balls across states. Legends may have walked for a shorter time but have built a strong reputation.
Instead of pledgees, new members are called recruits or prospects. “In our family, we put them in a separate group [from the family] while we evaluate,” he explained. “You have to walk at least two Balls in your city and one out of state. It’s our way of hazing, but really it’s about figuring out who they are and why they want to join the family, to see if it’s genuine.”
Prospects pay dues, go through an interview process, and move into the full family group when they’re ready. “Some may move up faster than others,” he said. “It’s all based on how you show up and what you bring to the table.”
The hierarchy promotes and demotes, just like in the business world, he said.
“I have been [a father] for a year, and our roles are considered management, and sometimes roles change,” he said. “Sometimes you have members who are doing the roles of parents and [earn promotion], and sometimes people in management positions have things going on in their personal lives and they [step down/demoted].”
Godmother
Karina ‘Ashanti Von Dutch’ Harris, 30, a West End native, and Wenonah High School grad was once part of the Alabama chapter of House of Old Navy before stepping out on her own and going ‘007’, a term used in Ballroom that refers to people who compete independently of a House. Almost all people in houses spend time as a 007 before joining a house or when they are in between houses.
“I loved House of Old Navy… I left for personal growth reasons. [I was out for a year and a half] before I accepted the invitation to join House of Von Dutch in 2023. I love where I’m at now,” Harris said.
In Ballroom, Face celebrates beauty, skin, and confidence under close inspection, and the Kiki scene is a youth-centered, community-driven version of mainstream ballroom focused on growth, expression, and support.
Harris who has reached ‘legendary’ in the Face category on the KiKi scene, said [Von Dutch] “is the definition of family — point blank, period. Even though my previous House [also fit that description] this House is the exact definition of what a family is supposed to be.”
“Every family has their ups and downs but what separates us from the rest is we tend to keep our [grievances] under wraps, and we always find a solution. If it happens in the House, it stays in the House. … she said.
Asked what makes them unique on the Ballroom scene? Harris said, “Dominance. You always know when Von Dutch is in the building. The chanting, the [large] number of the members… Every function that I’ve been to we have never been minimal in number,” Harris said. “On top of that, the support we give each other when getting our members ready to walk their category, It’s a spotlight on everybody. It’s all hands-on deck.”
She continued, “I love that about this House. It [the support] has given me a boost of confidence and courage just to show up to be authentically me. One thing about our House is we each have a different type of swag and confidence that we bring, and how can you not grow and be more confident when you’re surrounded by that all the time?”
