The London Queer Social Centre

and has been since july. sorry to see all your emails and messages asking where we are etc. hope you all had great summers.

HoB x

6pm Queering Disability – fun & interactive workshop by queer comrades from Disabled People Against Cuts

8pm Trans (& queer) healthcare access – discussion & action planning around how we get pissed around by doctors and gate keepers. We’ll talk about what barriers and problems queer/non-het & trans/gender non conforming people face in the health care system, rant unashamedly about our experiences, plan support and ideas on how to help each other in the future. Second half of the discussion will be closed and for trans people only. Discussion will be pretty informal and open to the suggestions of those who turn up.

8pm Queer tango workshop

9.30pm Dinner & film screening

We’d like to apologise again for Sunday night’s breach of the safer spaces policy during a performance piece by artist Jakamo. Due to a huge over sight on our part there was lack of communication about the nature of the piece which several of the crew would have objected to happening, had we known.

It’s against our politics and personal values to tolerate racism, cultural appropriation, transmisogyny and femmephobia. We also believe there should have been a previous warning for nudity. We are deeply sorry these things happened in a performance we arranged. We’d also like to thank the members of our crew who were able to speak out immediately after the performance and offer people a separate space for self care and validation.

This has prompted a long overdue re-evaluation of how we communicate and interact as a collective to ensure that marginalised voices aren’t overlooked and similar fuck ups don’t happen.

Today at Brag we have confirmed a bunch more events – YAY!

Wednesday 9th :

2pm
Electrical workshop for women and non binary people. Walpole will be teaching basic safety when doing electrics and stuff that may crop up in squats. And no men interfering – nice.

4pm
Computer security workshop (open to all genders). This will be for mobiles and laptops. Only bring laptops fully charged as we don’t have electricity. But bringing one isn’t necessary.

5pm
(Also Thursday & Friday – times to be decided) Martial Arts for all self-identifying women and also genderqueer/trans/non-binary people who feel they have a connection to women’s communities. Please bring comfortable practical clothing.

Friday 11th :

3pm
Radical History Walk with Carolyn – walk about Brixton and learn the amazing legacy of Olive Morris.

Check out the full programme for everything else going on those days and the rest xoxox

FRIDAY (that’s tonight!)

19:00 Informal Discussion on experiences of drugs and sobriety in queer spaces.

21:00 Delicious vegan dinner

22:00 Choose Your Own Adventure: queer sober dance party! CYOA is a queer+LGBT dance party for people who want a night out without alcohol/intoxicants – welcoming people of all genders & sexualities, all bodies & characters, and (because of no alcohol) all ages!
Femme pop, glittery electro, shouty riot grrrl songs &c. Robyn. Janelle Monáe. Le Tigre. Rihanna. Ladytron. Huggy Bear. MIA. Au Pairs. Kenickie. Katy B. 2NE1. Angel Haze. &so on.
https://www.facebook.com/events/903415053017742/

SATURDAY (that’s tomorrow)

We’re hoping to open at midday as planned for creative activities, zine library, pop-out hair & makeup salon and workshops. The evening’s gig has been changed to an acoustic jam session/open mic due to technical and ACAB issues. Bring an instrument and join us anytime from 8pm. Also for anyone who hasn’t visited the social centre yet WE HAVE A PIANO! So if you can play the piano you should definitely come over.

SUNDAY

Daytime events to run as planned! Also as part of the performance art evening we’ll be showing the three short films about queer squatting that we were unable to screen on opening night – Sass Squat, The Battle of Tutenhaus and Colorama 2.

The Bragsters have been working round the clock to get the space ready for tonight’s first event @7pm: Squatters Legal and Practical Workshop with dinner & queer squatting documentaries from 9pm.

Tonight’s programme is pretty relevant as the new space has been under constant police surveillance and our comrades have been subject to intimidation and this morning we had one of our crew arrested. The show of solidarity from fellow squatters, queer & trans peeps, local activists and the community of Brixton has been incredible.

We still need ongoing support as our electricity and water have been cut off and the cops are trying their best to make everything much harder since they can’t find any legit legal reason to shut us down. We are grateful for spare hands coming round to help clean, build and adapt the space to wheelchair users’ needs.

Luuurve & rAAAAge xoxo

Friends, followers, Brags: we are beyond delighted to announce the location of our next Queer Social Centre will be

432 COLDHARBOUR LANE, BRIXTON, SW9!

Brag is back where queer & radical squatting in London began – where the Brixton Fairies opened their squatted Gay Community Centre in 1974, where Olive Morris fought the police and cracked squats for black families, where squatted women’s centres offered space for feminist activism and refuge to women and kids fleeing domestic violence, where the squatted Sabaar Bookshop hosted Black Panthers meetings and the anarchist 121 Centre put on Queeruption, where whole streets and blocks of flats were reclaimed and turned into homes and community spaces.

But radical politics and community organising in Brixton isn’t just a thing of the past. Several people involved with Brag this year have lived and worked and partied and done art and activism in Brixton in recent years. We’re also excited to get involved and show solidarity with stuff happening here right now like Housing Action Southwark & Lambeth, the campaign to Save Brixton College, Black Activists Rising Against Cuts, the Ritzy Cinema workers’ strike for the living wage, anti-gentrification activists, fellow squatters and queers and queer squatters…

The building we’re occupying was previously a shop – it’s big, and bursting with potential, but we need your help to get it ready for opening day on Wednesday. Cleaning, carpentry, plumbing, electrics, art & design skills all welcome! As an incentive & a thankyou to anyone who wants to help out tomorrow (Sunday) we’ll be cooking a massive free vegan breakfast at midday so come down, tap on the window, get fed and get involved.