Empowered LGBTQIA+ Zine

TITLE

Contents: 3 // Intro 4 // Garron 5 // Hameed Khan 6 // Anon 7 // Gareth Savage 8 // Sophie Powell @lofieye 9 // @KTShepherdpermaculture 10// Sonia Sandhu 11// mandla @mandlamx 12// Anas Data 13-16 Tammy Tsang @possiblytammy 17// I Wish - Charlie Myers @chalriedesign 18-19 Becky Glendenning 20// Gareth Savage 21// Sonia Sandhu 22-23 Garron 24// Gareth Savage 25-33 Jiayi Chen 34// Jenn Wilson @irregularjenn 35// Jenn Wilson’s Consent Compass 36-38 LGBTQ+ Empowered Manifesto 39// Suriya Aisha, Systems of Oppression - York University 39// BPH Credit BP// Say Yes - Chris Campbell

2

Bradford Producing Hub presents:

Empowered: LGBTQIA+ Artists - part of a wider series focussing on supporting, responding to the needs of, and ultimately empowering marginalised artists.

A cohort of 12 LGBTQIA+ identifying artists and creatives from various art forms, with an ambition to become future creative leaders, attended three sessions led by 4 facilitators, Sonia Sandhu, mandla rae, Jenn Wilson and Sophie Powell, across 26th, 27th and 28th April 2023.

The sessions covered: - Consent - working out what we’re really willing to do for each other, ourselves, and the wider world we are shaping through making conscious choices, deliberate decisions and intentional actions.

- Finding producing ways to hold space for collective and individual lived experiences of LGBTQIA+ artists.

- Discussing what works in the arts sector and what needs to change, and how to reach those goals collectively and individually.

- Creating community: how we nurture the creativity of ourselves and each other.

- Talks and Q&As with leading LGBTQIA+ artists from across the arts sector: Jaivant Patel, Kate O’Donnell, Gilly Roche and Suriya Aisha.

- A creative zine making workshop which captured themes and discussions from across the programme. This zine is acting as a legacy document for the project and also houses our manifesto, conceived during the workshop with Gilly.

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28

29

30

31

32

33

34

Jenn Wilson’s Consent Compass Human beings are wired for love, belonging and connection.

Consent is an ongoing practice for navigating our relationships to one another.

As we move and grow and connect, we use our agency to make choices, and we hold accountability for the impact our choices make.

Consent requires choices to be: Responsive to the changes happening within and around us -

Informed by curiosity and not assumptions

Specific and limited by the situation and people involved - Explicit so that everyone involved understands and chooses Some of us choose to be more conscious of our consent. Perhaps we don’t follow the mainstream routes laid out for us… or we find we are pushed to the margins. Noticing our choices and practicing consent can help us to ARISE and connect in the ways we really want to: with safety, trust and mutual benefit. #IDoConsent 35

LGBTQ+ EMPOWERED MANIFESTO 36

//WE WILL BE GENUINELY INTERESTED & INVESTED IN EACH OTHER’S PROGRESSION AND CHAMPION EACH OTHER//

//WE WILL HELP FOSTER A SENSE OF STABILITY, TO HELP FACILITATE OUR IDEAS, WITH TANGIBLE OUTCOMES//

//WE WILL DEFINE NON-NEGOTIABLES AND OUR OWN PRACTICAL NEEDS AND EXPENSES UPFRONT//

//WE WILL HELP EACH OTHER BUILD AND GROW OUR OWN INDIVIDUAL AND COLLECTIVE CREATIVE PRACTICES, AND IN TURN OUR INDIVIDUAL JOY AND COLLECTIVE CONSCIOUSNESS//

37

//WE WILL GATHER ONCE A MONTH TO MAKE SOMETHING. WE WILL SHOW IT WHATEVER THE OUTCOME// //WE WILL WORK TOGETHER TO CREATE, CELEBRATING EACH OTHER’S STRENGTHS & HELPING WITH WEAKNESSES, SIMPLY BY ACKNOWLEDGING THESE OR SHARING SKILLS TO IMPROVE// //WE WILL SHINE A LIGHT ON STORIES THAT WOULD OTHERWISE GO UNTOLD// 38

HOW CAN WE CREATE SPACES, WHERE PEOPLE BRING THEIR WHOLE SELVES TO WORK? ©Suriya Aisha, Systems of Oppression - York University

The Empowered programmes for marginalised artists, and series of care workshops to support artists, have been radical in letting artists have the space and time to grow.

Specifically artists have utilised their identity as a strength, found community, confidence and resistance, in a safe and supportive way in Bradford.

We want this change to have a legacy and for our cohorts of artists this legacy to be marked and sustained. Make The Change is a chance for our Empowered artists to use their voice, take their space to lead in Bradford and share their art.

We have granted micro commissions to our artists responding to ‘What does change mean to you?’ as part of an event taking place in September 2023.

This will be digitally archived on the BPH website bdproducinghub.co.uk/ 39