Dec. 7th of 2021 – Turning 75 and you can’t throw a party… we won’t be the only ones this has happened to in the past 21 months, and our thoughts go out to everyone in our community who has been affected by the COVID virus or the loneliness that comes with it.
Fortunately we were able, through COC’s Shakespeare Club, to organize a number of activities in the past six months to strengthen the visibility and empowerment of the LGBTIQ+ community in Amsterdam. In October, for example, we organized a pop-up exhibition with Wereldcafe and Respect2Love (here), and in July we had a wonderful dance with the seniors during our Pink Danspaleis (here). And that is perhaps the best way to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the oldest surviving LGBTIQ+ rights organization in the world: to create a safe and cheerful place, despite adverse circumstances, where people can be and express who they are.
During Pride we also organized such an event, entitled “All that glitters is not gold”. We got together with Cocktail Events, CaribbeanQueerSalon and AMSGMC for a full evening’s program where we looked beyond the glitter to identify what really matters, what needs to be protected or changed in our society, and that Pride isn’t about a party but about a necessity. The Transketeers made a beautiful aftermovie of this evening, which we would like to share with you today in honor of our 75th anniversary:
https://youtu.be/0e56QxOxxP0
the history of the shakespeare club
Why did we start out as the Shakespeare Club? What has happened in those 75 years? And where are we now? Take a look once more:
Check back regularly to read our articles with background information on the speakers, makers, organizers, artists, creatives and freethinkers at COC’s Shakespeare Club last year.
But also various perspectives on current affairs and history around LGBTIQ + related themes!
Lang voordat de huidige modewoord intersectionaliteit in 1989 werd bedacht door Kimberlé Crenshaw, was de zelfbenoemde ‘zwarte, lesbische, moeder, krijger,……
