My project was to create a safe space for trans and gender-diverse folks to gather and connect in community. I teamed up with a couple of friends who were also motivated to make this happen.
We live in a small town, so we don’t have a queer centre or regular programming. We also have limited options for venues. So to have a place to gather that is both private and accessible here means it’s also expensive and has limited availability. Thanks to the Neighbourhood Small Grant and flexible scheduling. We were able to book a location to gather.
There’s also unfortunately a lot of misinformation and hate directed at transgender people. This is why we need safe spaces, and also why we decided not to post the event’s location publicly nor take photos of peoples’ faces.
Talking to people in other communities that have experience with creating these kinds of spaces was invaluable in knowing how to proceed confidently. And its lovely to see how communities come together to support marginalized and targeted populations. From these conversations I also found some great resources from queer and trans artists and authors to entertain and offer to participants.
During our first gathering, I learned that safe spaces are mostly about having a place to just be and don’t need to be organized to the extent that I was prepared for. Sometimes people just want to drink tea and play a board game. So that’s what we’re doing. This means I have a year’s worth of offerings instead of only a few meetings. Which is going to be very useful, as I’ve heard from participants that these safe spaces are deeply needed, especially now.
