Join us for a day of intensive workshops, starting with an exploration of how white supremacist Christian nationalism drives anti-trans and anti-Palestine legislation, the establishment of police cities, anti-abortion bills, and other movements pushing us toward fascism. The first hour will be led by Mx. Yaffa, followed by breakout sessions into the tracks below. There will be an hour-long break from 2:30-3:30, during which you can get a signed copy of Mx. Yaffa’s latest book, “Desecrated Poppies,” to be released on June 19th.

Track One

Building Power and Strategy With Mx. Yaffa and Avé

Explore the meaning of grassroots power-building and strategies for the future. This session will delve into practical ways to find your role in this movement and how to progress towards utopia.

Track Two

Art as Resistance With Mama Ganuush and Leila

Leila will discuss the historical role of Zionism in US contemporary dance and examine its ongoing influence on today’s concert stages. She will also explore how the Zionist state uses the arts to portray itself as a cultural hub promoting peace, and how this intersects with various forms of washing.

Mama Ganuush will discuss pinkwashing and practical strategies to disrupt this narrative. They will also delve into the power of claiming our stories through their drag performance.

About the facilitators:

Mx. Yaffa (They/She) is an acclaimed disabled, autistic, trans, queer, Muslim, and indigenous Palestinian. Yaffa is the executive Director of the Muslim Alliance for Sexual and Gender Diversity (MASGD) and has received multiple awards for their transformative work around displacement, decolonization, equity, and centering the lived experiences of individuals most impacted by injustice. Yaffa is an engineer, peer support specialist, death doula, birthing doula, and yoga teacher. Yaffa is the author of Blood Orange, a poetry collection about displacement, colonization, and hope building and the editor “Inara: light of Utopia,” about the current genocide and a free Falasteen, are out now.

Oriented towards justice, Avé chooses transformation, With over three decades of multidisciplinary yoga practice, they have committed their life to sharing wellness. Most commonly known for their political, environmental, and social justice work in the LGBTQ+ community, their methods are rooted in health through Black Liberation. From birthwork to peer support to end of life care, Avé enjoys serving as a witness of becoming.

A student of life, Avé is a writer, full spectrum doula, public scholar, and wellness guide. Inspired by traditional healing and aerial perspective, the goal is guiding life with abundance towards death in solace.

Mama Ganuush is a liberated, multifaceted Trans Drag Artist, community organizer, and social justice activist. @mamaganuush https://www.mamaganuush.com/

Leila Mire (she/her) is a researcher, performer, choreographer, community organizer, educator, and writer. Her studies focus on the role of imperialism and Zionism in modern dance and problematize how folk dance is used to advance neoliberal agendas. She is currently in the Theatre, Dance, Performance Studies PhD program at UC Berkeley and is a graduate of NYU (MA in Performance Studies) and George Mason (BFA in Dance Performance.) You can find out more about her work through insta @leila.posts or through her website leilamiredance.co

Accessibility:

These events are free for Palestinians and others directly impacted by the ongoing genocide. We ask that all other attendees contribute a sliding-scale donation between $10 to $100. No one will be turned away for lack of funds, and larger donations will offset the cost of other attendees’ tickets. 50% of ticket sales will benefit QCC’s programming, while the remaining 50% will directly benefit queer and trans Palestinians in Palestine and throughout the diaspora through Muslim Alliance for Sexual and Gender Diversity (MASGD) mutual aid work.

We are very grateful for the support of Mx. Yaffa and the Muslim Alliance for Gender and Sexual Diversity (MAGSD) for their input on the curatorial process. Their expertise and guidance have been invaluable in shaping our efforts

ASL interpretation is available at all events and by request. If you are interested in attending an event and require ASL interpretation, please send your request to production@queerculturalcenter.org.

SOMArts is wheelchair/ADA accessible. Bathrooms are gender-neutral and ADA accessible.