FROM THE TEAM | Pocketmags.com

COPIED
2 mins

FROM THE TEAM

Keep up to date across our socials:

@gaycommunitynews

@GCNmag

@GCNmag

@GCNmag

Welcome, dear reader, to the March edition of GCN. Now, at the very moment we are producing this gorgeous issue for you all, we are celebrating a wonderful milestone- our 34th year in Irish queer publishing. On February 10, 1988, we hit the streets as an eight-page newspaper that would go on to become the paper of record for Ireland’s LGBTQ+ community. While many changes have taken place since that time, we still strive to educate, entertain, inform and connect our wonderful queer family, and we have no intention of going anywhere!

With that in mind, let’s chat about all the fantastic content coming your way in these very pages. You can expect a ton of content on the incredible Lesbian Lives Conference due to take place in Cork this March, including a trip down memory lane to where it all began alongside wonderful interviews with keynote speaker Susan Stryker and poet Julie Goo.

Members of Out in Kink fill us in on all we need to know about the world of kink, including advice on how you can get involved with their group. Filmmakers Shaun Dunne and Anna Rodgers dropped by to chat about How To Tell A Secret -their new film about disclosing your HIV status. We have a spicy and hilarious piece about the differences between porn and reality, as well as a chat with Paddy Smyth from the new inclusive clothing brand, Human Collective.

We talk to community members navigating the dating scene as neurodivergent people, while drag pioneer Dr Count Evil takes us on a trip to the wild side.

By now you’ll have seen the powerful image on the cover of this issue, a mural by the supremely talented artist Emmalene Blake. It confronts the harsh reality of the rise in Gender Based Violence in Ireland and the frustration of all women at the fact that to merely exist in this country is to struggle against a patriarchal system. The cover is a visual representation of the amazing activism happening on the island to tackle this serious issue and we have a vital series of interviews with marginalised members of our community who voice their own concerns over a system where those who are meant to protect are also sometimes a source of danger themselves. While suggestions are offered, all agree that this issue isn’t going to be solved anytime soon when structures have been in place for centuries that place the rights of women on a level of lower importance.

The theme of this year’s Lesbian Lives Conference is ‘Solidarity’, and while it might seem like a simple word it is anything but. Our communities must stand united in order to stand strong. Nothing can be achieved if we continue to ‘other’ or marginalise members of our family. It won’t be an easy fix, but it’s a beginning.

Much love ,

This article appears in 370

Go to Page View
This article appears in...
370
Go to Page View
FROM THE TEAM
Keep up to date across our socials:
AMBITIOUS FOR THE YEAR AHEAD
NXF – New Team - 2022
In Memory of EOIN COLLINS
In Memory – Eoin Collins – A Tribute
BODIES IN MOTION
Film – Art – Identity
RETURN FROM OZ
Australia - Ireland - Return
LIVE BOLDLY
Drag - Monsters - Art
FOR THE LOVE OF KINK
Kink - OinK - All You Need To Know
How to tell a secret
Disclosure - Documentary - VMDIFF
Forward Fashion
In November 2021, Irish urban clothing brand, The Human Collective, burst onto the scene proudly wearing a message of equality on its sleeve. Speaking with Oisin Kenny, disability activist and Head of Community, Paddy Smyth, details what makes inclusive fashion
GENDER BASED VIOLENCE & THE IRISH STATE
Emily O’Connell talked to some of the most marginalised members of the queer community about their experiences with GBV, how it intersects with other facets of violence and oppression, and asks if policing works for them
MEETING OF LIKE MINDS
The Lesbian Lives Conference returns this March for its 25th edition, taking up residency in University College Cork (UCC) for the first time. Han Tiernan takes a look back at the origins of the conference and why Cork is the perfect place to host it
SOLIDARITY
Susan Stryker will be a keynote speaker at the 25th Lesbian Lives Conference. Lilith Ferreyra-Carroll spoke to her about her life, community, work, and what to expect from her upcoming talk
THE BOLD TYPE
Performing as part of the unmissable Lesbian Lives Conference, poet Julie Goo shares with Peter Dunne how the Irish language has helped her work reach new depths and how poetry helps her make sense of things
Dating & Difference: NEURODIVERGENCE
When thinking about the myriad personal reasons we disregard potential partners, longterm or short-term, romantic or sexual, it would be naive to think that these reasons are not affected by more universal influences like racism, classism, body shaming, ableism and ageism, writes Adrian Colwell
In remembrance of OLIVER HEGARTY
GCN was extremely saddened to learn of the
THANK YOU FOR BEING A FRIEND
George Robotham’s recent departure as long serving Chair of Outhouse marks the end of an era for the vital community space. Outhouse Board Member David Carroll thanks a beloved teammate. Portrait of George by Paul Connell from his Path Finders exhibition
After the Cameras Stop
Cam_Stop? @atcs
HIGHLIGHTING LGBTQ+ CREATIVES
Luis Noguera Benitez and Ciaran Gildea of PShirts, and founders of the Quirk Market
Looking for back issues?
Browse the Archive >

Next Article
370
CONTENTS
Page 4
PAGE VIEW