We, the Eurocentralasian Lesbian* Community and TGEU, declare the trans and lesbian movements of Europe, Central Asia and the world united in solidarity.
As movements we strive to create safe spaces for us and, for this reason, between the 29 September and 1 October, TGEU has organised the European and Central Asia Trans Council in Berlin and EL*C the third European Lesbian* Conference in Budapest.
We call on our trans and non-binary siblings, dykes, lesbians, sisters and kin to join us in Budapest and Berlin and be our accomplices in celebrating the power and value of our communities, bringing our needs and demands to the attention of society and policymakers, and destroying heteronormativity, binarism and patriarchal oppressions.
The current challenging times exacerbate the oppressions that lesbian and trans communities have to face, while attacks multiply against trans and lesbian rights and lives. The anti-gender movement would have the world believe that the trans and lesbian communities are in opposition to each other, but we know this couldn’t be further from the truth. We are united by our struggles, by our hopes, by our joint his/her/their-story, and shared communities: we have lovers, friends, families in both communities, some lesbians are trans people and some trans people are lesbians.
We are fighting for self-determination and bodily autonomy, to dismantle social expectations around gender roles and gender expression. We are struggling together to challenge a socio-political system that is afraid of us, because we attack it at its core.
Our mutual solidarity is not new. We were together during the Stonewall riots, where Marsha, Stormé, Sylvia and many other trans, butch, lesbians, non-binary people, dykes threw the first stones and ignited the LGBT movement. We were together in building the reflections that developed trans-feminist and lesbo-feminist theories and practices. We are together now against the backlash, against those that strive to erase our identities and existences. We march together where pride and feminist demonstrations are banned or attacked, at Europride in Belgrade, in Turkey, Georgia or Kazhakstan.
We recognise that those of us affected by additional axes of oppression such as racism, ableism, whorephobia, xenophobia, among others, end up at the forefront of violence and abuses, and we strive to raise up our further marginalised communities.
We come together to build a movement that is more transfeminine, more lesbian, more transmasculine, more queer, more decolonising, and more intersectional. Together we write the story of this movement as we want to write it, not as the far-right wants to portray it. Together we are stronger.
CALL FOR LESBIAN VOLUNTEERS –> Apply by 15 Sept!
EL*C #3: LESBIAN RESISTANCE(BUDAPEST, 29 Sept –1 Oct 2022)
The EL*C, Labrisz and qLit look forward to welcoming you at the EL*C international lesbian conference 2022 taking place in Budapest (Hungary) between 29 September – 1 October 2022. For edition #3, the theme is “LESBIAN RESISTANCE: one lesbian is a blessing, hundreds coming together are a revolution!” and we cannot wait to gather and share, learn and solidarize with hundreds of lesbians.
Today we are glad to share our open call for lesbian volunteers! We are looking for eager and motivated individuals to help us organize an outstanding third edition of our international lesbian conference.
Basic information & criteria for being a volunteer:
- EL*C, Labrisz and qLit are feminist, intersectional and trans-inclusive organizations, we expect all volunteers to adhere to be like minded.
- The conference’s predominant language is English; therefore, knowledge of English is a strong plus!
- Familiarity with Budapest (transportation, venues) is useful to help inform foreign participants.
- Availability to volunteer at least one full day.
What type of support is needed:
For the Welcome reception (28 Sept)
Tasks:
- Space set up (banners, art installations, chairs)
- Welcome & early registration & Info point
- Support with social media
For the Conference (29 Sept – 1 Oct)
Tasks:
- Space set up (banners, art installations, chairs, room names)
- Welcome & registration & Info point
- Merchandise sale
- Note taking (plenaries & workshops)
- Support during coffee and lunch breaks
- Support with social media
For the Dyke March (1 Oct)
Tasks:
- Set up
- Security
- Banner making
- Sound / DJ
- Support with social media
- Hungarian lawyers (to note any illegal activity during the march)
For the Lesbian Party at Akvarium Klub (1 Oct)
Tasks:
- Set up
- Welcome & ticket collector
In exchange for your support, we offer:
- Free access to the conference
- A free ticket to the lesbian party at Akvarium Klub on 1 Oct
Besides, volunteering at the conference is a unique chance to meet extraordinary lesbian activists from across Europe and Central Asia!
Interested in becoming a volunteer for EL*C #3? Apply by 15 Sept!
CALL FOR LESBIAN VOLUNTEERS –> Apply by 15 Sept!
EL*C #3: LESBIAN RESISTANCE(BUDAPEST, 29 Sept –1 Oct 2022)
The EL*C, Labrisz and qLit look forward to welcoming you at the EL*C international lesbian conference 2022 taking place in Budapest (Hungary) between 29 September – 1 October 2022. For edition #3, the theme is “LESBIAN RESISTANCE: one lesbian is a blessing, hundreds coming together are a revolution!” and we cannot wait to gather and share, learn and solidarize with hundreds of lesbians.
Today we are glad to share our open call for lesbian volunteers! We are looking for eager and motivated individuals to help us organize an outstanding third edition of our international lesbian conference.
Basic information & criteria for being a volunteer:
- EL*C, Labrisz and qLit are feminist, intersectional and trans-inclusive organizations, we expect all volunteers to adhere to be like minded.
- The conference’s predominant language is English; therefore, knowledge of English is a strong plus!
- Familiarity with Budapest (transportation, venues) is useful to help inform foreign participants.
- Availability to volunteer at least one full day.
What type of support is needed:
For the Welcome reception (28 Sept)
Tasks:
- Space set up (banners, art installations, chairs)
- Welcome & early registration & Info point
- Support with social media
For the Conference (29 Sept – 1 Oct)
Tasks:
- Space set up (banners, art installations, chairs, room names)
- Welcome & registration & Info point
- Merchandise sale
- Note taking (plenaries & workshops)
- Support during coffee and lunch breaks
- Support with social media
For the Dyke March (1 Oct)
Tasks:
- Set up
- Security
- Banner making
- Sound / DJ
- Support with social media
- Hungarian lawyers (to note any illegal activity during the march)
For the Lesbian Party at Akvarium Klub (1 Oct)
Tasks:
- Set up
- Welcome & ticket collector
In exchange for your support, we offer:
- Free access to the conference
- A free ticket to the lesbian party at Akvarium Klub on 1 Oct
Besides, volunteering at the conference is a unique chance to meet extraordinary lesbian activists from across Europe and Central Asia!
Interested in becoming a volunteer for EL*C #3? Apply by 15 Sept!
EL*C is launching a call for tender to recruit a consultant (or a company) to build its new website.
The time has come to restructure our web page. We started in a totally DIY and independent way with a simple WordPress template and now we need a better organised website, clear and leasable for a bigger audience with additional functionalities.
Needs for the EL*C new website ⤵️
#Visual Identity:
– Logo, colors, fonts, documents layout, business cards, etc..
#Showcase EL*C:
– Info sharing: upcoming events, news
– Membership:
– About: Presentation of the organisation
– Who we are: Staff, board, NGO members, Milestones
– Showcase EL*C projects: Advocacy reports, Lesbophobia Observatory, Lesbian Chamber of commerce, Regranting, Lesbian archives (EL*C and ILIS as eg.), and the future ones..
– Donations
#Archive of the EL*C work:
– Archive of all the previous informations from the website used up until now
– Archive of the 2 conferences: sessions, speakers, program, visuals, etc..
#Membership management:
– fees collection and invoices,
– database for membership management: mailing lists following different criteria
#Intranet:
– A login only part for members (membership processing, votes, General Assembly, membership fee processing)
– Resource platform with reports, capacity building materials (podcasts, videos)
In order to apply please submit via email at info@lesbiangenius.org the following documents ⤵️
➢ CV detailing past and current professional experience;
➢ The technical proposal by filling the template provided below;
➢ The Provider, shall also send a quote (Pro Forma invoice), including:
> the Service Provider’s name and address;
> its VAT number;
> the full list of services;
> the fee per type of deliverables (in EUR, tax exclusive);
> the total amount per type of deliverables (in EUR, tax exclusive);
> the total amount, tax exclusive, the applicable VAT rate, the amount of VAT and the amount VAT inclusive
> the bugdet should include all costs related to this consultancy, including for example travel costs.
All documents shall be submitted in English, failure to do so will result in the exclusion of the tender. If any of the documents listed above are missing, EL*C reserve the right to reject the tender.
DOWNLOAD THE CALL FOR TENDER HERE – Call for tenders
DOWNLOAD THE TEMPLATE FOR THE TECHNICAL PROPOSAL HERE – Technical Proposal Template
Deadline: All documents should be submitted via e-mail to the following email address: info@lesbiangenius.org by 15 August 2022
EL*C is launching a call for tender to recruit a consultant (or a company) to build its new website.
The time has come to restructure our web page. We started in a totally DIY and independent way with a simple WordPress template and now we need a better organised website, clear and leasable for a bigger audience with additional functionalities.
Needs for the EL*C new website ⤵️
#Visual Identity:
– Logo, colors, fonts, documents layout, business cards, etc..
#Showcase EL*C:
– Info sharing: upcoming events, news
– Membership:
– About: Presentation of the organisation
– Who we are: Staff, board, NGO members, Milestones
– Showcase EL*C projects: Advocacy reports, Lesbophobia Observatory, Lesbian Chamber of commerce, Regranting, Lesbian archives (EL*C and ILIS as eg.), and the future ones..
– Donations
#Archive of the EL*C work:
– Archive of all the previous informations from the website used up until now
– Archive of the 2 conferences: sessions, speakers, program, visuals, etc..
#Membership management:
– fees collection and invoices,
– database for membership management: mailing lists following different criteria
#Intranet:
– A login only part for members (membership processing, votes, General Assembly, membership fee processing)
– Resource platform with reports, capacity building materials (podcasts, videos)
In order to apply please submit via email at info@lesbiangenius.org the following documents ⤵️
➢ CV detailing past and current professional experience;
➢ The technical proposal by filling the template provided below;
➢ The Provider, shall also send a quote (Pro Forma invoice), including:
> the Service Provider’s name and address;
> its VAT number;
> the full list of services;
> the fee per type of deliverables (in EUR, tax exclusive);
> the total amount per type of deliverables (in EUR, tax exclusive);
> the total amount, tax exclusive, the applicable VAT rate, the amount of VAT and the amount VAT inclusive
> the bugdet should include all costs related to this consultancy, including for example travel costs.
All documents shall be submitted in English, failure to do so will result in the exclusion of the tender. If any of the documents listed above are missing, EL*C reserve the right to reject the tender.
DOWNLOAD THE CALL FOR TENDER HERE – Call for tenders
DOWNLOAD THE TEMPLATE FOR THE TECHNICAL PROPOSAL HERE – Technical Proposal Template
Deadline: All documents should be submitted via e-mail to the following email address: info@lesbiangenius.org by 15 August 2022
REGISTER FOR THE CONFERENCE, SCHOLARSHIPS AND WORKSHOPS -> HERE
Conference Venue (29 Sept – 1 Oct) :
Central European University (Budapest Campus, Nador utca 15)
Conference Hotel :
Hotel Danubius Hungaria (for EL*C scholars)
Other hotel suggestions :
Getting from the airport to the city center :
Airport shuttle bus 100E is in operation between Liszt Ferenc International Airport and Deák Ferenc tér, one of Budapest’s major transport hubs, running via Kálvin tér, another important location in the city. Operating every day of the week:
– with departures from Deák Ferenc tér in the city between 3:30 and 00:25 and from the airport between 4:10 and 1:05 past midnight
– the bus line with an average service frequency of 15-30 minutes on Mondays, Fridays and Sundays, and 20-30 minutes on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays provides a convenient, cost-efficient and fast connection between the airport and the city centre.
REGISTER FOR THE CONFERENCE, SCHOLARSHIPS AND WORKSHOPS -> HERE
Conference Venue (29 Sept – 1 Oct) :
Central European University (Budapest Campus, Nador utca 15)
Conference Hotel :
Hotel Danubius Hungaria (for EL*C scholars)
Other hotel suggestions :
Getting from the airport to the city center :
Airport shuttle bus 100E is in operation between Liszt Ferenc International Airport and Deák Ferenc tér, one of Budapest’s major transport hubs, running via Kálvin tér, another important location in the city. Operating every day of the week:
– with departures from Deák Ferenc tér in the city between 3:30 and 00:25 and from the airport between 4:10 and 1:05 past midnight
– the bus line with an average service frequency of 15-30 minutes on Mondays, Fridays and Sundays, and 20-30 minutes on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays provides a convenient, cost-efficient and fast connection between the airport and the city centre.
First time I heard her name was back in 2013. Brittney Griner had just played her debut game with the WNBA – and become the first woman to dunk twice in a game. In case you’re not into basketball: it’s a pretty cool thing to do. Reason enough for the global media to get excited about women’s sports.
As soon as I heard the news, I was eager to find out more about this basketball genius – so I googled her and I was not disappointed. Two thoughts immediately came to my mind. Thought number one? She’s a lesbian. Number two: I like the spots she picked for her nautical stars tattoos.
An empowering lesbian
It turned out my dykedar was right. Brittney Griner had come out as a lesbian three months before her memorable WNBA debut game. I then watched a video of the GLAAD Awards of that year, where she shared her coming out story to empower the queer youth. She had a great deal of humor – and a beautiful voice.
I was always more into playing myself than watching, but I got a WNBA pass to see Brittney Griner that season. Soon I started to concentrate on my own games again and forgot about American basketball. I didn’t follow Brittney Griner’s fantastic career. I didn’t hear about her tumultuous relationship with her fellow player Glory Johnson or about her marriage with Cherelle Watson.
‘Wrongfully detained’ in Russia
Her name popped up again when the media revealed her detention in Russia. Brittney Griner had been entering the country to play there during the WNBA offseason. Why would she do that? In a nutshell: sexism. Keyword: wage gap. In the United States, the WNBA athletes are making 1% of the salaries of their male counterparts. Brittney Griner is earning in Russia about four times her WNBA salary.
On February 17 2022 Russian customs supposedly found vape cartridges containing hash oil in Brittney Griner’s luggage. Since then, she has been detained in Russia. And her wife is goddamn worried.
I have no clue if Brittney Griner was really carrying those cartridges. I have no clue if she is being used as a political pawn in the context of the strained relationship between the United States and Russia since the invasion of Ukraine. I have no clue how seriously the two countries are considering a prisoner swap. The fact is the Biden administration has stated Brittney Griner as ‘wrongfully detained’.
A black American lesbian in a Russian jail
Whatever the truth is, every effort should be made to free Brittney Griner. She’s an American woman. She’s black. And she’s a lesbian. If a Russian jail is never a good place to be, it currently sounds especially threatening for a queer American woman of color. How on earth can a regime who’s committing war crimes every day be trustworthy?
So, let’s hope that the American president and the White House will act on Cherelle Griner’s call to bring her wife home. Let’s hope that the Russian authorities will finally free this amazing lesbian athlete and let her do what she’s made for: playing basketball.
Text: Élie Chevillet
Illustration: Nontira Kigle
#WeAreBG #BrittneyGriner #CherelleGriner #lesbian #basketball #wnba #WageGap #WrongfullyDetained #BringBGHome
Petition to Secure Brittney Griner’s Swift and Safe Return to the U.S.:
https://www.change.org/p/secure-brittney-griner-s-swift-and-safe-return-to-the-u-s
EL*C #3 CONFERENCE, Budapest, 29 SEPT-1 OCT, 2022
“LESBIAN RESISTANCE: one lesbian is a blessing, hundreds coming together are a revolution!”
Registration, scholarships and workshops here
We are beyond thrilled to go out with our *save the date* for our third international lesbian conference, which will take place in BUDAPEST (Hungary) between 29 Sept-1 Oct, 2022.
For our third edition entitled: “LESBIAN RESISTANCE: one lesbian is a blessing, hundreds coming together are a revolution!” EL*C has chosen to bring its flagship event to Budapest, Hungary, and to collaborate with local lesbian organisations Labrisz Leszbikus Egyesület (one of the longest standing lesbian groups in Europe) and qLit.hu to show its solidarity to civil society and LGBTIQ+ communities on ground.
To counter recent government sponsored bashings and calls to boycott the works of activists (namely of the book ‘A Fairytale for All’), our goal is to help visibilise all efforts to spread positive messages about feminism and LGBTIQ+ communities, especially where these efforts are led by lesbian groups.
Bringing our biennial conference to Budapest (led by the Greens in opposition to Orban’s regime) is meant also to join all other resistance against the resurgence of far-right politics and of anti-human rights narratives in Europe and other parts of the world. Situated in the heart of Europe (geographically), Budapest (ironically coined ‘capital of freedom’) will attract easier access for activists wanting to join the event from both Europe and Central Asia; in the recent months organising the conference in a neighbouring country to Ukraine has added political value to hosting the event in Budapest!
This project is funded by the European Union.
#ELCBudapest2022 #lesbianresistance #ELC2022
EL*C #3 CONFERENCE, Budapest, 29 SEPT-1 OCT, 2022
“LESBIAN RESISTANCE: one lesbian is a blessing, hundreds coming together are a revolution!”
Registration, scholarships and workshops here
We are beyond thrilled to go out with our *save the date* for our third international lesbian conference, which will take place in BUDAPEST (Hungary) between 29 Sept-1 Oct, 2022.
For our third edition entitled: “LESBIAN RESISTANCE: one lesbian is a blessing, hundreds coming together are a revolution!” EL*C has chosen to bring its flagship event to Budapest, Hungary, and to collaborate with local lesbian organisations Labrisz Leszbikus Egyesület (one of the longest standing lesbian groups in Europe) and qLit.hu to show its solidarity to civil society and LGBTIQ+ communities on ground.
To counter recent government sponsored bashings and calls to boycott the works of activists (namely of the book ‘A Fairytale for All’), our goal is to help visibilise all efforts to spread positive messages about feminism and LGBTIQ+ communities, especially where these efforts are led by lesbian groups.
Bringing our biennial conference to Budapest (led by the Greens in opposition to Orban’s regime) is meant also to join all other resistance against the resurgence of far-right politics and of anti-human rights narratives in Europe and other parts of the world. Situated in the heart of Europe (geographically), Budapest (ironically coined ‘capital of freedom’) will attract easier access for activists wanting to join the event from both Europe and Central Asia; in the recent months organising the conference in a neighbouring country to Ukraine has added political value to hosting the event in Budapest!
This project is funded by the European Union.
#ELCBudapest2022 #lesbianresistance #ELC2022
