QAIA @ PRIDE: March with us! (Meet-up details now posted.)

We are seriously everywhere. You can march with QAIA five times this weekend!

Fri 6/22 - Trans Day of Action - 3-7pm @ Washington Sq. Park - QAIA has wholeheartedly endorsed this event, and a few of us will be there, but no contingent. It's at Washington Square Park, but we also heard there's a march down Christopher Street?

Fri 6/22 - Queer Ball - 6:30pm starting @ Washington Sq. Park - anti-corporate ki-ki from the end of the Trans march to the start of the Drag march, at Tompkins Square Park.

Fri 6/22 - Drag March - 7pm @ Tompkins Sq. Park - QueersAIA will be there! Look for us with signs, t-shirts and all the drama. Introduce yourselves!

Sat 6/23 - Dyke March - 4:30 @ Bryant Park, see details below.

Sun 6/24 - Manhattan/NYC/Corporate Pride - 11:30am at 39th St/6th Ave, see details below.


DYKE MARCH: QAIA will be at the Dyke March this Saturday 6/23! We'll meet at the Bryant Park fountain (south side) at 4:30 to stencil t-shirts, and then bio-boys/non-dykes will split off to cheer their sisters from the sidelines.

MANHATTAN PRIDE: Hope you can take the stand of "no pride in occupation" by joining our contingent for at least some of the march on Sunday. We're in Section 4 which lines up between 5th and 6th, near 6th on W 39th St. We have various politicians supporters leading the section, first for Kristen Gillibrand, followed by Nadler. We're it appears at the end of the section (order # 27), behind Act Up (#26) which is behind the AXIOS Eastern Orthodox LGBT Christians. Rest assured, Coca-Cola is in the lead Section. Line up at 11:30am. Pride steps off at noon.

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Trans Day of Action takes on the Center, links queer/justice struggles

The NYC Trans Day of Action takes place next Friday, June 24th. This year, as every year, it makes strong links between the rights of trans people and other queers; demands to end racism, anti-immigrant  and "war on terror" policy and repressive policing, and battles on other social and economic justice fronts. This year, the points of unity include specific support for the push to open the LGBT Center back up to the community, and end censorship there.

In the wake of protests against the Center's exclusion of queers and its odd community forum in March, many folks noted that the board (particularly Board President Mario Palumbo and Tom Kirdahy, the only board members who showed up at the forum) and director Glennda Testone seemed oblivious to the depth and history of LGBT organizing -- particularly queer work on issues they seemed to deem "not queer enough," like racial and economic justice, and human rights.

Maybe the Center bigs only attend Manhattan pride, where they could -- if blinded by beads tossed from club floats and given enough promotional Absolut cocktails -- convince themselves that all queers do is dance and join support groups. (And many of us do!) But they'd be better advised to check out the Trans March, the Dyke March, and pride marches in Harlem, Queens and Brooklyn that show the vastly wider reach, and the deep political engagement, of the queer movement.

If the Center's decision-makers were really part of the larger community, we wouldn't have to explain it to them. And they wouldn't be in so very much trouble right now.

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