I Am Queer, but Am I Safe?
Four interviews on the relationship between LGBTQ+ communities and public spaces in Chișinău bring to the fore the need for a safe and inclusive public landscape for all.
17 July 2023
Constanţa Dohotaru, Clara Abdullah, Mariana Agleanov
#OmulFaceLocul is a project of Constanta, Clara and Mariana who live in Chișinău. As architects and urban planners, they explore different aspects of community urbanism and formulate what we, as a society, can do together to make the cities we live in a bit friendlier. A sustainable city is a safe place, one that allows movement without fear of crime, victimization, or harassment, regardless of sexual orientation and gender identity. Under the tagline I am queer, but am I safe? the Loc de Dialog (The Place of Dialogue) series invites queer people of Chișinău to reflect upon what their city does to ensure the safety needs of LGBTQ+ individuals. The interviews explore Chișinău’s places of vulnerability and victimization, as well as places that represent queer resistance, activism, and empowerment, as they are experienced in everyday queer lives.
In this first episode, the Loc de Dialog talks to Katisch, a decolonial activist and independent researcher, about her experiences of in/visibility as a queer woman in Chișinău.
Noise pollution threatens us on every street corner. Chișinău is growing. But does this progress meet the needs of queer communities? In the second episode Marin, a civic activist, talks about his experiences of life in Chișinău and his own definition of an inclusive city.
In episode number three Constanta and Mariana talk to LGBTIQ+ activist Leo Zbancă about how he develops resilience to discrimination, but this is not the outcome he wants. It’s important to have an open dialogue about how we create a society where everyone will enjoy equal rights.
Chișinău became a second home for Anhelina, who was forced to run there after the full-scale war in Ukraine began. In the fourth episode, she talks about equal rights for all and shares her experiences as a queer refugee in Chișinău.
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Behind the Mask: Contemporary Drag Culture in Kazakhstan
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Three Stories from Moldova: Drag, Cinema, Literature
Interviews with drag dancer Jenny, film festival director Max Cârlan, and writer Sasha Zare.
Chemo Dao
A short film about the flourishing drag scene in Tbilisi.
Queer Self-Expression in Kyrgyzstan: Between Cultural Norms and Personal Values
An essay about the desire to live out queerness clashing with cultural context and family needs.
Drag in Armenia: An Evolution of the Artform
An interview with drag artists from Armenia.
Guess the Fact – Queer Artist Edition
In this video queer artists learn different facts about each other through a game called “Guess the Fact”.
“Discover Your Own Point of Tension and Pleasure. Trust Both”
Meet Ukrainian queer photographer Katherina Turenko and the Sapphic women* captured in her images.
Colourful Petals
A Belarusian poet reflects on the ways to create queer poetry using no historical precedent, and on finding that precedent, nonetheless.
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Peculiarities of Running LGBTQ Spaces in Kazakhstan
How and why do LGBTQ Spaces work in Kazakhstan, and are heterosexuals welcome there?
Defying Boundaries: Azerbaijan’s Drag Star
Lady Slim, an Azerbaijani drag queen, pushes back against growing anti-queer restrictions to perform at home and abroad.
“In Prison, They Named Me Rayhon”
In Uzbekistan, sex between men carries a prison sentence. Ex-inmates who were imprisoned under Article 120 share their stories.
From Street Violence to Stand-Up Scene
Meet Nata Talikishvili, a trans woman who started doing stand up after years of trailblazing activism in Georgia.
“The Most Important Thing For Me Is That My Son Is Happy”
A mother of a queer person from Kazakhstan shares her story on acceptance, love, and trust.
“There Are Things One Doesn’t Choose”
Three persons from Kyrgyzstan on the profound impact of queerness and disability on their life and worldview, and the things that help to carry on.
“I Was Told I Had Disgraced Kazakhstan”
Cases of police harassment, extortion, and surveillance of members of the queer community in Kazakhstan.
“If Your Protesting Hand Gets Tired, I’ll Be There To Take It”
Ali Malikov tells their story of self-discovery, fighting for their rights and queer activism in Azerbaijan.
Trans Solidarity Against Bigoted Institutions
Azad on his experience of transitioning in Turkey and Azerbaijan, lack of access to HRT, and potential allies of trans people.
“I Gave Up a Lot To Be Who I Am”
A personal story on internalized homophobia, self-acceptance, and the LGBTQ+ community in Kazakhstan.
Influence
The short documentary tells the story of Leo, a young stand-up comedian from Armenia.
A Story of One Migration
A story told between cities and refugee camps, between identities, vulnerability, and privileges.
“If We Call the Police, They Laugh at Us”
Queer people from Kyrgyzstan talk about their lives and the problems they face, personally and as a group.
In Armenia, Trans Community Faces Fear, Neglect
Transgender people in Armenia face discrimination both in hospitals and by psychological services and therapists. Trans activists fight the stigma every day.
No Trauma, No Drama. Rewriting Media LGBTQI+ Narratives
Nora Petrossian and Mischa Badasyan advocate for a more nuanced portrayal of queer individuals in media.
What if homophobia in Central Asia is a product of colonialism?
A look at Soviet prison culture, colonial experience and Orientalism as roots of homophobia in Kazakhstan.
Russian Propaganda’s Influence on Soviet and Post-Soviet Homophobic Narratives in South Caucasus
Examining the roots of anti-LGBTQI agenda propagated by present-day Russia, and how it spreads in the South Caucasus countries.
Russian Colonialism and Homophobia in Moldova
An attempt to see if homophobia in Moldova is linked to Russian colonialism and cultural policy since the annexation of Bessarabia in 1812.
Migration Is the Path to Freedom. A Photo Report about Sumaya
Sumaya fled Kyrgyzstan for Moscow, forced to hide from her family who didn’t accept her trans identity. This photo report tells about her life and dreams.
Russia’s Homophobic Law Inspires Azerbaijani Political Elites
Among political actors in Azerbaijan, the anti-queer sentiments are on the rise. How much of a role does the legacy of Russian colonialism play in this?
“I Put a Lid On My Sexual Orientation, I Buried It”: Life of LGBTQ+ People in the Temporarily Occupied Territories of Ukraine
After the start of Russia’s all-out war against Ukraine, Serhii’s identity became a deadly threat. Anna Vorobyova tells his story of evacuation from Mariupol.
Non-traditional Values: Did Uzbekistan Inherit Homophobia and Family Concepts from Soviet Union?
A review of changes in the LGBTIQ+ rights legislation over the last century and the roots of the homophobic paradigm the society lives in.
Gay Pride Parade, “Dazhynki” or White March: which holiday suits “Belarusians of the future”?
An observation of the words, signs and meanings that fill the media space at the conventional hash-tag #belarusian.
Beyond Blurred Existence
Meet the queer people disrupting the patterns of post-Soviet coloniality and imperialism and reconnecting with multicultural and inclusive roots of Georgia.
Kazakhstan’s and Russia’s LGBTIQ+ Legislation: Why It Matters
An analysis of the Kazakh and Russian realities and laws in regards to discrimination and lack of protection of queer people.