We started a fund raising campaign on July 1st asking our community for $2500. that will pay a little of on Queer Burners and give us enough money to create the legal entity needed for the fulfillment of Queer Burners under “Life Grand Brilliant Triumphant Production” as an umbrella. Our mission is:
To create and curate events & spaces for intentional development of community and leadership based on the Burning Man 10 Principles. To give members of the community the space to rise into roles that let them become leaders and creators and drive the wake that makes, creates and promotes radical creativity. Promote projects and collaboration.
– 7/22/2016 undergoing revision
Since the campaign began, on days 1, we received a wonderful donation of $20 but since then it has been rather quiet. Mama may not get that raincoat after all.
Hope still reigns that over the next 10 days or more that things might turn around and goals will be achieved. The money has vert specific goals meant for it as noted above.
Our bank balance is $20. The 2016 Queer Burner Retreat was not meant to be profitable, but neither was it meant to dig into my pockets especially as deeply as it did. There was some overflow from 2015 that went into gifts for the community.
As for 2017 the plan is a lot more stable and we are already building a frame work so that finances are well managed and there is a bank balance in the end with a marvelous team and there are resources as companies like ir35 umbrella that help managing finances in business since accounting services are not that easy to find. In fact we had our first meeting last night signing the contract for the 2017 Event.
Burning Man co-founder Larry Harvey wrote the Ten Principles in 2004 as guidelines for the newly-formed Regional Network. They were crafted not as a dictate of how people should be and act, but as a reflection of the community’s ethos and culture as it had organically developed since the event’s inception.
The 10 Principles were drilled into me when I first came into the community and I adopted them whole-heartedly. As a camp and community leader it is vital I embody these, but is the meaning of these being diluted with the ever growing commercial access of TTITD?
Radical Inclusion Anyone may be a part of Burning Man. We welcome and respect the stranger. No prerequisites exist for participation in our community.
QB: exclusion is something we as a community know well as being excluded and a large part of the LGBTQAI population consider themselves MARGINALIZED in society. This is one of the Principles that holds an extremely important characteristic we value and are attracted to.
Gifting Burning Man is devoted to acts of gift giving. The value of a gift is unconditional. Gifting does not contemplate a return or an exchange for something of equal value.
QB: Gifting is not Bartering. Accepting a gift with kindness and appreciation without expectation of exchange is also a key part of this Principle.
Decommodification In order to preserve the spirit of gifting, our community seeks to create social environments that are unmediated by commercial sponsorships, transactions, or advertising. We stand ready to protect our culture from such exploitation. We resist the substitution of consumption for participatory experience.
QB: This is about taking the commercial and mass marketed part of products out of the experience.
Radical Self-reliance Burning Man encourages the individual to discover, exercise and rely on his or her inner resources.
QB: Do not be a “Sparkle Pony” – come to the burn prepared to survive long enough to not die.
Join the conversation in the 10 Principles blog series.
Radical Self-expression Radical self-expression arises from the unique gifts of the individual. No one other than the individual or a collaborating group can determine its content. It is offered as a gift to others. In this spirit, the giver should respect the rights and liberties of the recipient.
QB: “Don’t dream it, be it…” – Dr Frankenfurter
Communal Effort Our community values creative cooperation and collaboration. We strive to produce, promote and protect social networks, public spaces, works of art, and methods of communication that support such interaction.
QB: Some camps have this down like a fine art, some camps seem to be struggling with getting people rallied to make a camp happen. It seems that the larger the event gets, the more accessible by the bucket list crowd, the more attendees are looking at theme camps as hotels for the weekend where everything is set up for their pleasure. Getting some people engaged is a struggle while some get very motivated participants.
Civic Responsibility We value civil society. Community members who organize events should assume responsibility for public welfare and endeavor to communicate civic responsibilities to participants. They must also assume responsibility for conducting events in accordance with local, state and federal laws.
QB: Part of this is the responsibility of the camp to provide an attraction for the city residents. It includes making sure that our spaces and streets are safe and clean. In fact there is a lot that falls under this umbrella. I think some camps are not evolving and working on making their presentations fresh for the years as they progress.
Leaving No Trace Our community respects the environment. We are committed to leaving no physical trace of our activities wherever we gather. We clean up after ourselves and endeavor, whenever possible, to leave such places in a better state than when we found them.
QB: Pack it in and Pack it out… if you bring it with you take it with you when you leave. LNT is vital for camps and individuals and is perhaps one of the most abused and bruised Principles on the list. e.g.:
ever see the trash left along the side of the road on your way out of burning man?
campers who dump their excess on follow campers and leave without taking any trash with them?
Participation Our community is committed to a radically participatory ethic. We believe that transformative change, whether in the individual or in society, can occur only through the medium of deeply personal participation. We achieve being through doing. Everyone is invited to work. Everyone is invited to play. We make the world real through actions that open the heart.
QB: We have layers of community and it is important that each one supports the other with near seamless lines. From our group of friends, our camps, our queer neighborhood and the city at large.
Immediacy Immediate experience is, in many ways, the most important touchstone of value in our culture. We seek to overcome barriers that stand between us and a recognition of our inner selves, the reality of those around us, participation in society, and contact with a natural world exceeding human powers. No idea can substitute for this experience.
QB: That means now. Your team needs to get a goal accomplished that means that people are needed to spring into action.
EVERYTHING in Gray is written by the author/presenter: Toaster
Depending on where you are in this community of Burning Man participants you might see the 10 Principles and how they can be applied. As camp leaders, community leaders or individual participants perspective is perhaps very different.
I think we are in trouble of loosing some very important ties to the 10 Principles in the wake of a tourist/festival mentality that is filtering into a culture that many of us have really opted into. As a camp builder and community leader, I personally see a lot of holes that participants are not filling in while leaders scramble to make up the difference.
Some leaders are really good at reaching into the assets of the community and asking for, selecting people, that are perfect for filling those spaces where someone is needed. On one hand it might seem like a lack of immediacy and civic responsibility when that volunteer is asked for, but on the other hand I hear participants say “I’ve done my share.”
Another area I think we are loosing ground is in the area of LNT. Leave No Trace is a case for the environment and the ability of our community to show we are reducing our impact on the very precious land we gather upon. This is something that has a point of view as well.
As a camp leader and community leader we often see participants unconsciously leaving their footprint on people in those roles. While it is not seen as a direct assault on the idea of LNT the importance of a camp leader is to get that green and hopefully the entire camp can feel proud about getting that green on the MOOP map.
Campers departing from the event often abandon furniture, food or other items with the assumption that someone else will take care of it. This is the biggest complain heard by camp leaders year after year. It takes the community minded collective to see the project from built to breakdown and leaving the space clean upon departure.
The real answer is Acculturation Training. While it will come from a variety of perspectives having a clear understanding of the 10 Principles and how they apply to the burn experience on and off the playa is the key to success in the culture.
The theme this year was : “Incusivity”. The production team form the 2016 Retreat worked very hard to make the event itself safe, welcoming and desirable for people of mixed gender and race. We had a significant amount of success depending on your point of view.
Another gay, white, male member of this community met with another gay, white, male of this community this week and they talked about the work being done to include those who have been marginalized in the LGBTQQ construct and both had wondered the same thing. How are they continually dismissed for being gay, white, males – thus dismissed – by people not wanting to be marginalized?
There is no right answer, because agreeing or disagreeing is an ‘us versus them‘ thinking that benefits no one. If it is under the LGBTQQ construct then we are eating ourselves from the inside out. Understanding and patience has to be the banner and hopefully it was a rainbow banner.
It’s clear that gay, white males are the overwhelming participants and camps at Burning Man so that is the demographic that carries that loudest voice by volume. Whatever entitlement and perspective came with that no one has to be marginalized and everyone in this community has a voice.
Out of 150 attendees we got 42 people who answered a survey about the weekend. Overall it looks like people love GroundSwell, but not their plumbing or the cabins so much. But overall people seem to love it very much. The goal was to capture the general feeling of the event as a whole.
There is little doubt that GroundSwell was very appreciated by everyone attending. While we love the property the production team is already looking at a place that can hold for a larger population next year. The Queer Burner Retreat is not looking to grow significantly, but we feel that the new venue will allow us some growth and the ability to expand what we are offering.
We had no injuries this year, thank goodness. We had no need for any medical assistance or problems with behavior. Everyone was safe and not a single incident was raised that except for 2 minor abrasions that were treated with the first aide kit.
We were fortunate to have a attendee who was a paramedic and he was not needed in that sense.
In regards to GroundSwell there were some comments:
“Cut down the tall grass in tent sites to decrease tick activity.“
“Time to upgrade that bathhouse! :)”
“…No real suggestions except possibly expanding volunteer roles a bit with like a “bathroom mop” daily or something. But people were super-cooperative and pitched in. It worked!”
Events
The next biggest area we got comments on was about the events that were offered and not offered. We had a limited program based on the amount of time available on the weekend. A few people asked about having an ice breaker on day 1 which is something we should definitely consider.
Day 1: Camp fire meet and greet at 9pm
Maybe they were suggesting some kind of exercise. We did have Dinner Circle wherein people were introduced but if someone has a suggestion in the future that is something that can be implemented please let us know.
4 workshops
Inclusivity workshop on Saturday at 10am
This seemed to be a well attended workshop and really took on the banner of the weekend as the Production Team wanted a gender and racially diverse weekend. We went to a lot of effort to try and make sure people felt comfortable.
Hats for the Playa on Saturday at 1pm
A nice afternoon crafting workshop with good attendance.
Being a Ranger on Sunday at 10am
While the rangers out-numbered the attendees it was really nice and we hope some people felt inspired to explore rangering. I know a few people understand what Rangers do more.
Acculturation Sunday at Noon
There were comments about workshops for people new to Burning Man. We did have this piece for newbies and encouraged all new people to attend.
The Food
The survey at the top was very well in favor of the food produced, but there were some people who noted some dissatisfaction. Clearly we need to do better with Vegetarian food as the chef was not as prepared as needed to handle those needs. This falls strictly on Toaster who will make sure that these needs are met next year significantly better.
Lessons Learned
Mistakes happen and the real failure is not doing better next time around. Here are a few areas of note in random order:
improved meals for vegetarian diets
more clearly defined workshops
better explanation of the requirements of consent and personal boundaries among the attendees
written agreement with staff
making sure property representatives are able to respond to the needs of their guests
Conclusion
The survey we put out was to get a general temperature of what people experienced and how we could do better in the future. There were places we fell down and hope people will give us a chance again next year. Please add comments to this page or continue the dialog in the Groups / Forums part of this web site.
In the wake of Orlando, many of us are just stunned. It is probably more surprising that something as bad as that did not happen before. Every week it seems we are hearing about some horrible tragedy with guns in the world, but Orlando hit close to home for all of us. Queers have been targets for years by zealots.
In recent weeks we have been talking to BMorg about safety on the playa and in the Queer parts of the city and how it is important. That reason exploded this week. Believe it or not: many BMorg leaders and community participants have this misshapen view that Burning Man is all hippies and hugs which is not true.
Safety everywhere is a real issue. Listen to our older members of the community; to those who grew up in rural, scary places, to those who could not come out of the closet. Gay marriage was not the golden rainbow bridge that made us all equal. The things we did to survive in a hostile world in a country where all people were never really equal.
When the BMorg asked us if the flood of 7:30 Sector requests was queer camps we figure out the answer was no. Camps want the 7:30 sector because of alleged reasons such as better weather, streets in good condition, energy and more entertainment. While queer camps coalesced for safety, we hear BMorg uttering the dull roar of breaking it up again. We can’t have that. Now more than ever we need to safety and security of a united community.
Does that exclude non-queer community members? Not at all. We are a radically inclusive community but we have not always felt that inclusivity. Many see themselves and have experienced clear and defined marginalism. Our strength is in our perseverance and our chosen family and our community pride.
NOTE: BMorg Placement has not said they are breaking up the area typically known as the Gayborhood. But they are talking about making two distinct spaces in future events. This year it looks like we are going to see a Rainbow Road scenario and many of us are excited for that. But as Placement is taking on new leadership this year we need to be vigilant that the dialog of integrating queer camps through the city simply does not happen to dissolute the magic we bring as an attraction year after year.
In a recent poll we took from our subscribing community asking LGBTQ++ people we asked about the reasons why the Gayborhood became a thing. We also knew from the Queer Burner Leadership Summits from 2012 and 2013 that Safety was the principle reason for queer camps coming together.
It was less so for gay, white males. The amount of people who felt threatened in the poll was nominal until your removed the gay, white male numbers from the report. Trans, woman and other gender identified persons went to 100%.
So we brought up a project from 2014 in a new form and held a discussion about it. Here is the video. But for notes and documentation see:
There is new blood running the Gay Pride event at Burning Man this year. Justin is part of Camp Proper and he is taking a whole new perspective on the Gay Pride Parade which has historically taken place on Friday of burn week.
The Gay Pride Parade started more than a decade ago under Mario Cisneros (formerly Moonbow Camp / RIP) whom we lost in 2012. Since then Toaster took over the Pride event, but in 2015 participation was at an all time low and the thought was that it needed new imagination, new eyes and new ideas.
Burner Buddies has been the other end of that event and have generously invited attendees to their camp with Nacho Daddies and others to an after party in their camp.
The pride parade is still done in honor of the memory of Mario and is driven by community support. This is really important to people who knew and felt the loving support and brotherhood with Mario in his day.
This is important to rally and support this project. If everyone would commit to giving a couple hours to Justin and help make this a success it would be a great way of helping build community.
Many community members were given a jolt with the news that BMorg’s Placement wanted to talk to LGBTQQ leaders about the state of the Gayborhood. Was it getting too big? Why are there 350 applications for the 7:30 sector and is it because they were from queer Camps? Is the high number of self identified queer attendees a correlation of these applications to the sector?
A majority of our community have been marginalized in society and it was still prevalent in the Burning Man event except in the Gayborhood; which is not 100% true. Burning Man queers are predominantly gay, white males which to some are still vilified on some level for the same reasons as our straight, white part of society.
At the 2016 Queer Burner Retreat we were part of a well attended workshop about inclusivity and how simply respecting basic pronouns for people of various gender identification make a huge difference in the area of respect.
The popularity and attraction of the Gayborhood provides 1 outstanding feature for many people of all orientation and gender identity and that is Safety.
gender queer people (people of other ethnicity as well) are more vigilant about their environment in the world and will react and go to the aide of other queers who might be in trouble.
that environment of awareness and networked safety has attracted people outside that demographic seeking the safe spaces just like they do in gay communities in cities all over the world.
The 7:30 sector, in this burners 8 years, has been a zone with the best camps with the best attractions including but not limited to the Gayborhood. Camps like Orphan Endorphine, Party Naked Tiki Bar, AEZ, Playfully Yours, Suspended Animation and so many more have been based in that same zone.
The 3:00 zone tends to be a popular zone as well with camps known for making that space highly entertaining.
The 10:00 and 2:00 zones speak for themselves.
So the Gayborhood is just one part of the attraction that makes that sector so big and under demand. It is close to Center Camp. It is a hub of activity and entertainment especially at night.
So when members of the BMorg talk about a dream that one day all of Burning Man will be integrated and there is no need for a Gayborhood, I see this as fundamentally offensive. We are not always welcomed with open arms and we have been faced with threatening behavior by other burners. We have the numbers showing that. And many of us do not want to turned into processed cheese slices that fit nicely into someone’s bland world where we are all marching around in our gray suits.
Out of 302 respondents on a survey about personal safety in the gayborhood:
14.57% say they were threatened or felt endangered at Burning Man
21.67% say they knew someone in the same circumstance
IMPORTANT: removed the white, gay male respondents and the numbers jump up to nearly 100%.
Based on our conversation with Placement this week we can anticipate the Rainbow Road layout of what we have been calling the Gayborhood. However, with changes coming in 2017, there is a chance the Gayborhood will be split into 2 sectors or Rainbow Road might be extended; although we want the community to be prepared for both possibilities.
To see the results of the recent survey follow the following links:
Footnote: “Gayborhood” is a term a lot of people are looking to see retired. Queerborhood has been thrown around but it is not a marketable phrase. Neither is “Gayburbs” (the 4:30 & J mini queer collective). As Placement releases the placement of camps that we consider a new brand; like Rainbow Road or something else that might better represent our community as a whole.
We did it! A collective of local queer camp leaders met with Placement at BMHQ to discuss how to manage the number of request for 7:30 sector, which are almost double the number requesting any other sector of Burning Man. Besides providing a safe space for LGBTQIA folks, we’ve created a tight-knit community that produces amazing art and a powerful experience on the playa. Other burners have responded, and queers and allies alike are flocking to our rainbow colored beacon.
Using survey data you, the Queer Burner community, provided us, we discussed what makes the Gayborhood (or more inclusively “Queerborhood”) such an important place for our community and for Burning Man in general. We tried to tackle issues of safety, inclusion, freedom, self-expression, and all the powerful themes that you all wrote to us about!
The Placement Team also brought data of their own. Using the BRC census data, almost a third of the BRC population self-identify as “LGBTQQ”.
And, now, BURNING MAN PLACEMENT needs actionable information so as to not break up the Gayborhood/Queerborhood and still solve the logistics challenge of cramming too many camps in a limited amount of space. So…
Answering the questions above will directly guide the ongoing logistics discussion with Placement. You and your camp leaders are invited to participate so that we can continue to create a supportive space for those who want to share in the community.
This year we anticipate seeing a Gayborhood “Rainbow Road” scenario much like 2016 (possibly extending beyond the bounds of 7:30 and into the adjacent sectors). However, in the not so distant future, we are likely to see TWO Gayborhoods and new questions in the Placement Questionnaire for camps to self-identify as queer and wanting to be in the Gayborhood/Queerborhood (rather than just requesting 7:30).
For now, use the Queer Burners [dot] Com Forums to share your opinions. Help us continue the dialog by letting us know what you need!
Leaders of Queer Camps facilitating the discussion:
– *Tiger (Glamcocks) – *Christian (BAAAHS) – *Cyndi NoPants (Gender Blender) – *Toaster (Sun Guardians / Queer Burners) – *Indigo (Astropups) – *Dare (Glamcocks) – *Foxy (Beaverton) – *Ariel (Gender Blender) – Terry Grossman (Gaylactic Village / Time to Burn) – Ed Edmond (Burner Buddies) – Zach Bunker (BloAsis) *in attendance at meeting w/ Placement Team
Placement @ Burning Man wants to hear from the community about the role of the Gayborhood. We need feedback from the community NOW as we are meeting with the BMorg on June 1st. Please complete this Survey Monkey post right away and give us your feedback. [link here to survey – UPDATED]
Some of the collective leaders of queer camps are being asked to communicate with Placement @ Burning Man about the logistics and purpose of The Gayborhood. The Gayborhood has become a huge presence. Now Burning Man is asking us questions about HOW to manage requests to camp in the 7:30 sector and HOW to fit the concept of the Gayborhood into their current policies.
Toaster reached out to some of the most active leaders he knew about creating a survey so we can come to the meeting better prepared with data. What we have surmised from the Queer Burner Leadership Summit discussions is that there are clear and compelling reasons for the gayborhoods that have appeared on playa.
Did you know there are 2 annual Gayborhoods? One is the Gayborhood usually falling in the 7:30 sector most people seem familiar with. Another is the 4:30 and J self placed camps like Burner Buddies and Nacho Daddies that have made that area their own space. In 2010 there was also a Gay Ghetto. (Yes, they called it that) It appeared over on the entire block of 3:00 & C. A group of campers independently made that happen.
Safe Place: You will see reference to the term “safe place” in the questionnaire. This is not the same things as the project “Safe Place.” Some camps are going to be implementing a project called Safe Place for people under duress to retreat to while at the burn where they can be safe from predators or the effects of “too much.” A meeting about “Safe Place” the project will occur on June 8th if you would like to learn more. [Facebook Event]
The HIVE mind behind the survey includes: Toaster (Sun Guardians / Queer Burners Admin) Foxy (Beaverton / Ranger Torchwood) Cyndi Vee & Ariel (Gender Blender) Terry Grossman (Gaylactic Village / Time to Burn) John Pacheco (GlamCocks) Russ Smith (AstroPups) Ed Edmond (Burner Buddies) and there were others included in the discussion who may or may not have added but were included in the conversation: Yogen Kushi (GlamCocks) Jered Floyd (HIVE Boston) Micheal Cooper (Comfort & Joy) Brian Busta (Comfort & Joy) and Zach Bunker (BloAsis)
There is little doubt that GroundSwell was very appreciated by everyone attending. While we love the property the production team is already looking at a place that can hold for a larger population next year. The Queer Burner Retreat is not looking to grow significantly, but we feel that the new venue will allow us some growth and the ability to expand what we are offering.
