I'm Maya a Mexican, Jewish, Queer woman! Loving yourself as a queer person of colour is a revolutionary act and is rooted in unlearning the way society has taught us to think about ourselves . The qpocproject aims to show us all what love looks like, whether that is love for yourself, love for your family be it chosen or biological, your friends, your partners and so on. Whether somebody is ‘out’ or ‘in’, everybody has the same basic human right to feel loved and this is something we really want to channel every single day
Hi friends! I’m the Chief Information Officer at the QPOCPROJECT and unfortunately I have to use this pseudonym to make sure I stay safe. And that’s precisely why I’m so motivated to working for this project and striving towards creating safe spaces for QPOC. One day I won’t have to use a pseudonym and hopefully, neither will any of you.
Everybody deserves to have a space where, for no matter how brief it may be, they can be their true authentic selves without fear of the violence of homophobia or racism nor what occurs at the intersection of those two. As such I hope that if you’re attending our events and getting involved that you’re able to find this space as a breather and a way to connect with other people who are just like you.
Please don’t hesitate to message me or get in contact especially if you’re struggling with Islam and your sexuality or gender identity, or even if you just want to chat! I’d love to hear from you
Hi! I'm Aaran, a South Asian designer and astrologer. As a queer non-binary person brought up in a Indian-Sikh household, I never knew how my future would pan out. There were no examples, all I saw was a heavily cis-gendered and patriarchal system based on whiteness that did not see me for who I am, in a society which continually silences and erases trans and queer people of colour.When my voice was constantly shut down, silenced or mocked for it's pitch and tone, I used art and design to express myself. When my body and appearance didn't match with my internal feeling of gender, I drew how I felt. I realised the power in visualising and manifesting our queer futures through art. It is a way to rebel against the white cis-heteronormative vision of the world, reclaim power and (re)insert ourselves into spaces where we've always existed. I used to think my life was about balancing out the equilibrium, but I’ve now come to realise it’s about disruption. I believe in the QPOC revolution, in deep expression which sees and values the plurality of our intersectional identities. I believe in QPOC infrastructure which (re)inserts our identities and lives into the world; and is our own support system of radical care and community
I am a queer Zambian artist and facilitator.
I am passionate about improving the quality of life through practical knowledge and destigmatisation and acceptance of what our cultures have told us is taboo, from sexuality to mental health.
I am keen to explore the various ways we can make room for joy pleasure and intimacy within our bodies and how we can begin to trust and communicate our needs to others. As the sexual health officer and with your presence I hope to create safe spaces to have these sometimes difficult conversations.
The Qpocproject has been an amazing space of connection and community!
Hey, I am Nikki a Black, disabled, working-class, queer woman.
Holding all of these various intersections of marginalisation in one
body has made me passionate about creating safe spaces for those who have been unfairly marginalised by society. Some might wonder why is there a need for a specific 30s+ Officer but the joint violence of rampantly overt homophobia and racism has meant many QPOC over 30 have been unable to enjoy the freedoms of being queer until recently. Even with the improvements we've witnessed over the years there is still a
way to go in many areas including removing a lot of the stigma we grew up with that has been internalised. Because so many of us have had to be closeted for our survival there are minimal examples of what QPOC ageing encompasses. This is not helped by an ageist society/qpoc identity that tends to focus on people under a certain age. I was really happy to be asked by Maya to take on this role as queer ageing/elders is a passion of mine. I come from a region of the Global South where ancestor reverence was a major spiritual practice before colonialism. I see my work here as potentially feeding into that as I want to give flowers to those who came before me and create spaces where they and those who are younger are able to just be themselves
with no judgement. 30+ means exactly that. I would welcome and want you to join whether your 30-something, 40-something and so on! Age should not be a barrier to finding your place in the world or your people.
Hi, I'm Maddie (she/her), one of the Executive Creative Officers for the QPOCPROJECT! I’m a university student based in London studying law and am originally from Hong Kong. I can’t wait to get to know the QPOC community here in London, meet my ESEA queer siblings, and meet all of you!!
Hi! I'm Stan, Director of Communications at the QPOCPROJECT! I'm a Culture and Media student from Mumbai, passionate about creating spaces and platforms centring queer people of colour. I'm glad to be a part of the project and help create such spaces for our community to thrive in. Look forward to seeing you all at our events!