Thread by @TimeOutLondon

.@june_sh_lam is a working class, trans, Asian artist, and is running GGI, London’s only night for queer East and South East Asian (ESEA) people:

'There’s something really powerful about trans, marginalised people of colour taking up space this way'

timeout.com/london/news/me…

'It's been quite an intense year and a half for ESEA people because of the Atlanta shootings and all of the Covid racism. The times we’ve come together as a community have often been hard and sometimes depressing, so I really wanted to create a joyful space for our community'

So what can you expect?

⭐An arty, fun night of 'house music, techno, gabba and industrial punk'
⭐Film screenings by ESEA artists
⭐A performance by Zah
⭐DJ sets by Chooc Ly, Ms. G, and June Bellebono

🌈It's a club night without a catch:

'It’s about feeling safe, and like feeling you can celebrate your culture without being fetishized. Nights run by non-ESEA folks which are themed around ESEA culture usually inadvertently resort to orientalist stereotypes'

🌈GGI takes a stance on cultural costumes:

'Chopsticks in hair, geisha face paint, samurai swords and kimonos or cheongsams worn out of context are an example of reducing culture to a stereotype and will not be welcome in this space. This applies especially to white allies'

🌈The space also offers a safe haven:

'ESEA queer folks, especially femmes, are often fetishised by white gay men. You’ll often see profiles on Grindr specifically looking for Asian men who are 'smooth', 'slim' and 'femme' - fetishising East Asian features and body types'

🌈Lam has taken pains to ensure GGI is inclusive:

'There’s a lot of femme-phobia in gay male culture, and I wanted to make it very clear that this would not be welcome, by making my night explicitly femme focused'

🌈That’s something reflected in the name:

'끼 ‘ggi’ is korean slang, loosely translated to 'feminine energy and affection' - and used with other words loosely translates to 'femme'

🌈So what’s it like running a night for the first time?

'I'm having to wear all these different hats, but most of them I'm familiar with in some way...I used to bartend at @TheGloryLondon, I've done the door at @dsuperstore, I’m an artist liaison at @pxssypalace'

🌈How did the night come about?

It was a scheme by @YardTheatre that gave him the boost he needed to move into running a night:

'They had an opportunity called Night Draft, to fund a new night for a marginalised community. They’re providing mentorship, security, and a venue'

🌈It's a vital lifeline:

'As a trans Asian person who's working class, you're not going to have the resources to pay a bunch of DJs, to pay a venue, to pay the bar overhead. There's so many costs involved, especially in London, where there aren’t many venues that are affordable'