International Festival of Queer Culture is Back to Russia
18/08/2010
Submitted by
The St. Petersburg LGBT organization Coming Out
September of 16-25, 2010, the second International Festival of Queer Culture is going to take place in St. Petersburg. This is a non-commercial social and cultural project with the goal of promoting tolerance and values of diversity, introducing queer culture to the city, and attracting society’s attention to the problems of homophobia, transphobia and other forms of discrimination.
Our Festival unites artists and groups who care about social problems of society. It creates a space where every visitor can learn and understand that diversity enriches the world and respect for differences is the basis for creating a healthy and strong civil society.
Program of the Festival includes seminars and discussions with participation by experts from various countries, musical concerts, poetical slam, photo exhibition, and other events. This year, guest star of the Festival, Swedish rock artist Jay-Jay Johanson, will perform at the Rock Fest on September 25. Sweden, Germany, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Israel, Armenia and other countries will be represented at the Festival.
Queer Culture Festival is one of the largest openly queer events in Russia. Last year, it attracted over 3000 people and went on without any obstacles from the Russian authorities, right extremist groups, or any other interruptions. This year, the organizers hope to attract even more attention, peacefully and lawfully, to the issues that affect LGBT people. “We think the Festival is positive and valuable experience for all of St. Petersburg and Russia. Our goal is to make it happen. If it’s not allowed to proceed, it would be a loss for the city. Our message is that of tolerance and respect for human rights and each other – that should not be too scary,” says Polina Savchenko, the Festival coordinator.
“When a question if I wanted to participate in the Festival came up, there was no hesitation. I definitely said yes directly,” says Jay-Jay Johanson. “I wish the Festival good luck and I hope their voice will be heard all over the world.”
The organizer of the Festival is the St. Petersburg LGBT organization Coming Out (http://piter.lgbtnet.ru ) with the financial support by the Swedish human rights organization Civil Rights Defenders (http://www.civilrightsdefenders.org).
You can find more detailed information on the Festival’s website: http://queerfest.ru/?lang=en
Our Festival unites artists and groups who care about social problems of society. It creates a space where every visitor can learn and understand that diversity enriches the world and respect for differences is the basis for creating a healthy and strong civil society.
Program of the Festival includes seminars and discussions with participation by experts from various countries, musical concerts, poetical slam, photo exhibition, and other events. This year, guest star of the Festival, Swedish rock artist Jay-Jay Johanson, will perform at the Rock Fest on September 25. Sweden, Germany, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Israel, Armenia and other countries will be represented at the Festival.
Queer Culture Festival is one of the largest openly queer events in Russia. Last year, it attracted over 3000 people and went on without any obstacles from the Russian authorities, right extremist groups, or any other interruptions. This year, the organizers hope to attract even more attention, peacefully and lawfully, to the issues that affect LGBT people. “We think the Festival is positive and valuable experience for all of St. Petersburg and Russia. Our goal is to make it happen. If it’s not allowed to proceed, it would be a loss for the city. Our message is that of tolerance and respect for human rights and each other – that should not be too scary,” says Polina Savchenko, the Festival coordinator.
“When a question if I wanted to participate in the Festival came up, there was no hesitation. I definitely said yes directly,” says Jay-Jay Johanson. “I wish the Festival good luck and I hope their voice will be heard all over the world.”
The organizer of the Festival is the St. Petersburg LGBT organization Coming Out (http://piter.lgbtnet.ru ) with the financial support by the Swedish human rights organization Civil Rights Defenders (http://www.civilrightsdefenders.org).
You can find more detailed information on the Festival’s website: http://queerfest.ru/?lang=en
