The DCFM Collective wishes to host a series of events that provide safe-space and celebration of/for Q***r & Trans People of Color. Our events will consist primarily of a monthly rotating house party called "DCFM Presents:" Though we hope to eventually bring a variety of events including skillshares, clothings swaps, and performances..! As a collective, we're interested in creating space in the q*
**r-events hemisphere that reflects a certain body of ethics:
*Celebrating Q***r and Trans People of Color. We are beautiful, amazing, fierce creatures, and a particular brand of resourceful, resilient folk... And our beauty and brilliance should be celebrated! But the racist, misogynist, homo/transphobic society we live in isn't gonna do that. That world beats us down on the daily, and does everything it can to keep us down. So it's up to us to celebrate ourselves! To give ourselves the love and attention we all deserve! The DCFM collective intends to create community-building spaces where we can do that safely and wholly.
*Party With A Cause. Everyone works hard for their money... real hard! And we feel it's important to keep our monies as a resource within the community. Therefore funds collected at every DCMF Collective event will go to a community member, group, or cause, in need. And every party will be a benefit. We are our own greatest resource!
*Bringing the Party Home There's nothing like a good ol' fashioned house party, right? There's something to be said for connecting with one another in our home-spaces, sharing our personal spaces as/with community. Also, It's important to us that we can claim our spaces as qtpoc, to have agency over what happens to us in our social spaces. And we can't always do that at a bar/club. How many times have you/your homie gotten into it with a bouncer over nothing? or over some racist/sexist bu****it? How often have you been at a party getting "toured" by a bunch of straight, white, hipsters? How often do you feel unsafe for one reason or the other at the club? ..And they don't give a s**t. They don't care about you.The bar is just trying to get their money, no matter what. When we bring the party home, we have agency over what goes down!
*De-emphasizing Bar/Alcohol Culture The bar/club is a real focal point of the way q***r-socializing happens. And while we're certainly not trying to shade anyone's substance usage, we are interested interrupting the extent to which q***r-socializing is mediated by alcohol, and bolstering community social spaces that happen outside of the bar. Therefore, also, our events are always byob.
*Platform for Emerging Artists As much as possible, we want to provide platform for new and developing djs, artists, and performers. To encourage, nurture, and serve as resource to an accessible and constantly expanding culture of qtpoc artistry.
*Safety / Looking Out For Fam As party-hosts and event organizers, it's important to to us that we be accountable to the safety of our folks who are coming through. Safety is a community effort, and we implement community-strategies to get folks to/from the party safely. We got yo back!
*Safe Space, Allies Stay Home As a means of interrupting the dominant paradigm of white supremacy in q***r spaces, we ask that you leave your white allies/homies/lovers at home. The DCFM Collective wishes to create space where qtpocs can celebrate and build community with one another, without that being mediated by whiteness. Because we know white supremacy is still in effect. Because everyday we resist internalized racism. Because dealing with exotification and appropriation contorts us into all sorts of compromising positions. And we wish to have claim space that is free from the pervasive, external white gaze. There are endless parties/events that welcome allies, or have been socially-gentrified. We believe it's important to claim this space for ourselves. The DCFM Collective is Vivian, Alok, Steph, Deloris, Cristóbal, Christopher, Tootles, Nevin, and Alette. We are a group of friends that came together to create the kind of parties we wanted to go to. We welcome your feedback!
