🔥 6/15 Queer Agenda: June Meetup Invite & more
🔥 queer content overload 🔥
Sooo it’s mid-Pride month. How’s everyone doing? Staying hydrated, getting enough sleep?
Does Pride month hold a special place in your heart, or could you not be bothered by the crowds and the rainbow-washed corporations?
For me, Pride month has been a source of joy and pain. It reminds me of the complicated relationships I have with members of my blood family, but also the beautiful, intense, supportive relationships I have with my chosen fam. It’s the same month as my birthday, so I consider it an ongoing celebration. (Now that I think about it, I plan for and participate in Pride events with more gusto and enthusiasm than I celebrate on m birthday 🥴.)
Each year is different though. After a quiet year last year (too quiet, no thanks COVID-19) this year’s events have come roaring back, both in-person and on Zoom. Here’s to keeping these queer events and networks alive and thriving after June, because every month is Pride month if we want it to be!
A quick ask ::::: check out the Resources on the Queeries website and let me know what’s missing!!! I know there are way more queer orgs out there. If you’re a student group, that’s great too! Employee Resource Groups are welcome too.
Last but not least, you are invited to Queer Agenda June Meetup on Thursday, June 24, 2021, 8PM EDT / 7PM CDT / 6PM MDT / 5PM PDT.
We’ll be thinking together about queer icons and intersectionality, and any other queer things in our lives.
Comment if you can make it! And comment if you can’t—we’ll catch up some other way :)
Recommended Content~~~ as if you weren’t already overloaded with Pride content ~~~ ! I do know I’m kinda preaching to the choir here, but, if you’re feeling up to it, forward this to a friend/colleague/acquaintance/your LinkedIn network!🔥
From the American Society of Landscape Architects post: “Philip Dugdale, ASLA, Senior Associate, is notably the firm’s #Pride pioneer. In 2018, it was Dugdale’s idea to hang a rainbow flag in the lobby which sparked the company’s first Pride Week celebration that doubled in size the following year. For their 2nd annual Pride Week, Philip brought together a team of passionate organizers within the firm to create their biggest celebration of the LGBTQ+ community ever.
’I’m forever indebted to the LGBTQ+ community that opened up a world of incredible people and new experiences,’ Philip shared with ASLA recently. ‘This community has taught me to listen and empathize with others, has enabled me to grow as a person without fear of judgement, but above all, has shown me the joy of making space for people to be their authentic selves.’
Queer by Birth, Proud by Choice (QBBPBC) Podcast
Link above jumps to anchor.fm
A weekly podcast featuring conversations with queer folx that focus on what it means to be proud in and of our queer bodies. Hosted by Jake Fedorowski (they/them).
There are two episodes so far:
Episode 1 - Dr. Tracie Q. Gilbert (she/her)
@tracieg_the_phd
Episode 2 - Brock McGillis (he/him/his)
@brockmcgillis33
On Instagram at @qbbpbc!
I know much of the United States is reopening (for better or for worse), so here are some queer events & news this week (and beyond) ::::
(but also make space for everything that you’re feeling in this topsy-turvy transitional time—grief, joy, exhaustion, scared, just plain weird, etc.)
🔥
Model Minority Myth: Unpacking a Flawed Myth with AAPI Designers
TODAY, Tuesday, June 15, 2021, 4 PM Eastern
“Model Minority Myth” is specifically trying to unpack the problematic nature of that very myth, identify how it appears in the design field, and discuss ways to unbuild that myth’s oppressive nature. Our phenomenal lineup of panelists will unpack their experiences and perceptions as AAPI creators in design and architecture past, present, and future.
Who Are We? Queer Voices in Landscape Architecture
Wednesday, June 16, 4 PM Eastern
Join ASLA as three landscape architects discuss the necessity of community, diversity, advocacy, mentorship, sponsorship, love, and humanity in landscape architecture. They will share how their individual queer journeys impact the way they practice landscape architecture and explore how we can individually and collectively create a future full of brave and kind designers.
Presenters:
Kelley Oklesson, LEED AP, CBLP, CPH, ASLA, Principal, Groundsmith Collective
Laura Kendrick, Plant Healthcare Manager, Kevin Masters Arborist Services
Kelsey Moody, Student, Master of Landscape Architecture, University of Maryland
AIANY Women in Architecture Committee Meeting
Wednesday, June 16, 2021, 6:30 - 8 PM Eastern
After our regularly scheduled committee meeting and announcements, in celebration of Pride Month, WIA will facilitate a discussion around the use of the non-gendered linguistic identifier “Womxn.” The term can be used to signal the inclusion of those who have traditionally been excluded from the feminist discourse.
Sara Ngan, AIA, LEED AP will facilitate a discussion with LGBTQIA+ designers. The panelists, Vanessa Hill, A.L. Hu, and Sami Sikanas will share their experiences of being out in the industry, the effects of gendered terminology, and discuss how our community can become more inclusive. An interactive dialogue will follow.
Learn how gender identifiers impact everyone, and who has ownership of the term womxn.
LGBTQ+ Memorials: Design & Remembrance in the Landscape
Thursday, June 17, 2021, 6 - 7:30 PM Eastern
Public memorials help us remember and keep alive past events, stories, and loss. Only recently are LGBTQ+ histories, spaces, and places being honored and remembered in the landscape. During the HIV/AIDS crisis, the LGBTQ+ community suffered incredible, significant loss. In cities such as NYC and San Francisco, stories of LGBTQ+ community, those who survived, and those we have lost deserve to be honored and remembered.
Attendees will be introduced to LGBTQ+ memorials and placemaking and learn the role of telling untold LGBTQ+ histories and memorializing culturally significant sites. Our speakers, Jha D Williams of @massdesigngroup, Manisha Kaul @designworkshop, and Lily Lim and Mateo Paiva of @actofintuition will discuss how we currently memorialize LGBTQ+ history, and ideas for properly remembering and honoring the LGBTQ+ community into the future.
PrideScapes is free and open to the public.
Pride WIELD Event
Tuesday, June 22, 2021, 4-6 PM Eastern
The AIA|DC Equity Committee by WIELD is pleased to be hosting our first Pride month event. We are honored to celebrate the diverse stories of our speakers and their journeys to success through an afternoon of virtual storytelling and conversation.
Like our annual WIELD event, this inclusive storytelling event engages diverse industry leaders sharing their stories of empowerment and resilience through the lens of Justice, Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging. The stories will highlight how each individual overcame pinch points and career dynamics that hinder career progression while sharing the opportunities that encouraged their growth and success.
Panelists:
A.L. Hu, AIA, NOMA, Eco Districts AP
Gustavo Rodriguez, AIA, CODIA, LEED AP
Helen Bronston, AIA, Associate, Architecture Discipline Lead
Meghan Hottel-Cox, Associate, Goulston & Storrs
Lora Teagarden, AIA, LEED AP BD+C, L2 Design, LLC, Owner
Moderated by:
Tyler Brewer, Account Executive, Tarkett
Thank you for reading.
Until next time 🔥,
🔥 with a reminder that Pride was a riot,
A.L.