together we raised 250.00 each for : 

Vancouver Black Therapy and Advocacy Foundation

VBT&AF is a non-profit organization committed to connecting black community members to mental health resources such as free therapy and advocacy services

Western Aboriginal Harm Reduction Society

Western Aboriginal Harm Reduction Society’s mission is to improve the quality of life for Aboriginal people who use illicit drugs and/or alcohol by encouraging the development of support, education, and training programs that reflect the values of Aboriginal people.

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Curators note:

I grew up, a mixed up / mixed race Xicanx, in East Van. I moved to East London, UK soon after graduating high school. This zine has ended up being somewhat autobiographical, in the sense that most of the contributors live in or near those places. And like me, quite a few of them like a night out but many have felt racism (and other forms of structural oppression) when they were just trying to have fun.

Working on this zine has reminded me of what it was like to grow up in Vancouver. The highs were really high and the lows got pretty fucking low. Growing up in the punk scene was kinda magic, there was a lot of unity and looking out for each other. But it wasn’t perfect, it also reflected what mainstream society was like, it still had a lot of sexism and misogyny. And as much “anti-racist” sloganering on everyone’s t-shirts and patches there was, there wasn’t really room to speak about experiencing racism, the nuances and the complexities, never mind space to speak out against it happening.

This zine attempts to start a bit of the conversation by sharing lived-experiences of nightlife from Black, Indigenous and People of Colour. The call-out was focused on BIPOC experiences, but you know, intersectionality, so all types of marginalization are discussed. I hope this zine makes some space to say, yeah we are here, partying, getting drunk, falling in love or lust, making mistakes, and being silly. Sometimes we have each others’ back, my friends have literally saved my life. But sometimes there’s some extra shit going on that isn’t being talked about, so let’s talk about it. Sometimes I’m not even sure when or how much these things really played a role? Sometimes your denial / gas lighting hurts 1000 times more than the initial act of racism / sexism / homophobia / etc.

This zine is a love letter to all the BIPOCs out having fun. All those exploring Pleasure Activism whether they’ve heard of adrienne maree brown or not. Hope you enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed putting it together.

In Love & Solidarity,

Diana Muertos