Audacia Ray's Blog, page 32
July 12, 2012
The Red Umbrella Project is proud to announce that we are now...
The Red Umbrella Project is proud to announce that we are now accepting applications for our inaugural Becoming Writers workshop , a FREE, eight-week long, creative nonfiction writing course for individuals with experience in the sex trade. This workshop is intended for both experienced and first-time writers and will cover the fundamentals of memoir writing. Becoming Writers will be taught by Melissa Petro, published writer, experienced teacher and former sex worker, who has written extensively about her experiences as a stripper and call girl for places like Salon, Daily Beast, Bitch Magazine, xoJane, Rumpus.net, and elsewhere. The workshop will take place on Tuesday evenings from 6 to 9 pm in a New School classroom in NYC, starting September 4 and ending October 30. Workshop participants will have the opportunity to showcase their work in a reading at the Red Umbrella Diaries on December 6, 2012 and a publication of a literary journal (hard copy and ebook) that includes the writing of class participants.
We are able to provide roundtrip MetroCards to some participants as well as computers to those who do not have access to a computer to write on – please indicate on your application if this support would make the course more accessible to you, or if there are other things we can do ot make it more accessible.
Participants will:
Discuss how to choose moments for material
Explore how elements of fiction-writing are used to tell true stories in memoir (including dialogue, description, voice, etc.). We will not be writing cultural commentary or pieces that are solely political in this class
Complete writing exercises as well as a 5-10 page manuscript for publication in program anthology, bring typed pages to class
Read assigned texts and come to class prepared to discuss them
Read and critique one another’s writing and participate in the process of revision
Continue after the course ends to be mentored towards individual professional and/or artistic goals
Show up on time and participate in scheduled classes
Respect the class as a safe space and treat personal disclosures made in class as strictly confidential
Learn more and apply here: http://www.redumbrellaproject.org/workshops/becoming-writers/
The deadline is August 9 at 10 pm.
July 3, 2012
RH Reality Check: Why Are Sex Workers Being Banned From Participating in the International AIDS Conference? A Call to Action on Sex Work...
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Written by Darby Hickey and Cassandra Warren for RH Reality Check. This diary is cross-posted; commenters wishing to engage directly with the author should do so at the original post.
In July, the International AIDS Conference is being held in the United States for the first time…
June 28, 2012
Red Umbrella Project is hiring a PT Program Assistant in NYC
I am so very excited to be putting this out into the world: Red Umbrella Project is hiring! We are looking for a part time Program Assistant to help run the Red Umbrella Diaries, our workshops, and other projects.
Program Assistant, Red Umbrella Project
Part Time Fellowship, entry level with training available
About 5 hours per week at $20 per hour (with possibility for growth/more hours depending on workload)
3 month independent contractor position (potentially renewable)
Work remotely (but be based in NYC area), make your own schedule, need access to computer internet
Application deadline: Sunday, July 8 at 9 pm EST
WAY more info about the job and application process here
About Red Umbrella Project
The Red Umbrella Project (RedUP) reframes public dialogue about the impact of stigma and discrimination on people who trade sex for things they need, through the lens of lived experiences. We provide training and support to people who wish to engage with media and in public forums to tell their stories and make change around issues that affect them.
Our projects for July – December of 2012 include:
Red Umbrella Diaries: storytelling events which take place the first Thursday of the month at Happy Ending Lounge (302 Broome St, NYC)
Red Umbrella Diaries podcast: published weekly on Sundays
Audio installation of Red Umbrella Diaries stories at the International AIDS Conference (IAC) in Washington, DC in July
Speak Up! Media Trainings: ½ day training on July 21 in Washington, DC, preceding the IAC and full weekend-long intensive training in October in NYC
Becoming Writers: 8 week writing workshop, taking place from September through November, with a publication of writings by participants in late 2012.
Cooking in Heels: memoir cookbook by a RedUP community member. Book production during late summer and promotion throughout the fall.
Several other campaigns and projects, TBD
June 18, 2012
Last summer, I became a runner (and this spring I ran my first...
Last summer, I became a runner (and this spring I ran my first half marathon). This summer, I’ve got my sights set on a triathlon. I’m doing the Huntington sprint triathlon race (swim 1/2 mile, bike 9.8 miles, run 3.3 miles) in September. This past weekend I gave open water swimming, in the cold waters of the Atlantic, a try. I’m also running two more half marathons before the season is over, and thinking about my plan for next year. I have surprised myself by how much I’ve taken to this athlete thing. I like pushing myself in this way, and its been pretty awesome to learn about and hone a different kind of strength in myself.
June 6, 2012
June 7: God, The Devil, and Sex Work
Hosted and Curated by...
June 7: God, The Devil, and Sex Work
Hosted and Curated by Audacia Ray
Happy Ending, 302 Broome Street between Forsyth and Eldridge, in New York City
Doors at 7 pm, event from 8-10
21 and up – FREE
Join us for a night of stories about religion!
Kate Bornstein is a performance artist and playwright who has authored several award-winning books, including Gender Outlaw: On Men, Women, and The Rest of Us, My Gender Workbook, and Hello, Cruel World: 101 Alternatives to Suicide for Teens, Freaks, and Other Outlaws. Her recent memoir, A Queer and Pleasant Danger, has been widely lauded, and landed her on the cover of the Village Voice. She has earned two citations of honor from the New York City Council and garnered praise from civil rights groups around the globe. Kate lives in New York City with her girlfriend, three cats, two dogs, and a turtle.
Ceyenne Doroshow was born in Park Slope, Brooklyn and raised by two very homophobic and transphobic parents. She fought very hard for her day to day survival in this world as a transgender girl. Her journey was wickedly hard but needed to build character and a back bone in this world of confusion when it comes to gender awareness or the lack thereof. People often back in the day looked away or simply closed their eyes. She finished school and graduated with a B.A. in social science. Now a grown trans lady from Brooklyn, she has been blessed to be an advocate, caseworker, program coordinator, advisor, parent, grandparent, ex-escort, lover, and friend. Her first book, Cooking in Heels, was recently funded on Kickstarter and will be published by the Red Umbrella Project in September 2012.
Casper Pussy can be found loitering outside of men’s lavatories, public parks, and also at delis at inappropriate times of the night, just as any lady of questionable motives and provenance would. She is also the multimedia artist Xena Semjonova who has been in and out of trouble since the time she was born, but more specifically, who has in the last 5 years of her time in New York been actively making people generally slightly uncomfortable in her pursuit of heartbreak, money, fame, and fortune. She welcomes all of your free money, and asks you to please talk to her after the show, because in all honesty, she is, after all, just an attention whore.
May 16, 2012
(via youarepriceless | Young Women’s Empowerment...
(via youarepriceless | Young Women’s Empowerment Project)
We are so excited to release our NEW RESEARCH on our BAD ENCOUNTER LINE which shows how and why young people in the sex trade and street economy are being TURNED AWAY from social services and helping systems!
This interactive, multi media event will tell you about our findings, our healing justice work, and about how YWEP is organizing young people to change the way Chicago see’s and treats it’s homeless, home-free and street based youth who do what they have to do to survive!
THERE ARE 2 OPTIONS TO LEARN ABOUT THIS GROUND BREAKING RESEARCH
LIVE RELEASE in CHICAGO MAY 31, 2012
Time: 3pm-5pm CST
HULL HOUSE
800 South Halsted Street Chicago, IL 60607
or for our out of town allies and all media
you can attend our WEBINAR
on May 29th, 2012
Time: 3pm-4pm CST/4pm-5pmEST/1pm-2pm PST
RSVP & Questions: RSVP@YOUAREPRICELESS.ORG
YOU DON’T WANT TO MISS THIS!!!
May 10, 2012
Interview: Hawk Kinkaid, founder of HookOnline.org
Hawk Kinkaid of HookOnline.org interview via KeepTheLightsOn.com
Hawk Kinkaid is speaking to me between meetings. He is the creator of HookOnline.org, a website devoted to harm reduction and fostering dialogue between male sex workers, and Rent U, a teaching program he created as an off-shoot of Hook.
Adam: How did you first get the idea to do Hook Online?
Hawk: I started the project over a decade ago, and the initial reason for starting it was that there were no resources for men in the industry to assist in the learning curve, in other words, the site serves to help keep people from making some of the more common mistakes that people make in the industry. It’s also a way to foster some conversation about the business so that we are helping people to understand it better. A lot of people, especially gay men who are working in the industry will take a kind of laissez faire approach. They think having sex and having sex for money is not very complicated, but there are effects and decisions you have to make when you work in the industry. Many people have made many mistakes in doing that. So what we try and do is give people an opportunity to better understand it when making that decision. We are a harm reduction program. Our goal is not to prevent people from being in the industry, and a lot of the people who work on the project are people who do very well in the business. They pay their taxes, they pay for their healthcare, they make all sorts of practical decisions. But many people don’t. They’re in the industry very temporarily, as a result of a bad situation or emergency or they just see an opportunity for a period of time so they take it on. So what we want to do is get them to think practically and occupationally about the decision they make.
What are some of the most common complications people face in the industry?
On a professional level there are always issues surrounding physical violence, drug and alcohol usage, especially when they’re working and people end up being taken advantage of that way. There’s also implications in their personal lives, in their friends and their support system. As far as social behaviors, as I mentioned, there’s often significant drug and alcohol usage in their free time – which can become an addiction.
Yay Hawk!
Black Girl Dangerous: Obama Loves Queers! (Except Not)
by Mia McKenzie
President Obama just “endorsed” gay marriage. And guess what? I barely give a damn.
I mean, don’t get me wrong, it’s okay. It’s fine. There’s nothing inherently wrong with it. Saying that gay people who want to get married to each other should be able to do so is basically a…
Are you celebrating Obama’s weak endorsement of marriage equality? You should be reading this instead.
May 9, 2012
Last night I had a glass of wine with Ceyenne to celebrate being...
Last night I had a glass of wine with Ceyenne to celebrate being so close to the finishing line for the Cooking in Heels Kickstarter campaign. We have 11 hours left, and we just hit $9200, which is truly stunning and amazing.
This means we’ll definitely be able to produce a photo shoot and add full color photos of some of the dishes to the book. And if the pledges continue to climb over the next few hours, we will be looking at the possibility of creating a few episodes of a Cooking in Heels online cooking show, which will be available for free and would launch alongside the book in August or September.
Folks here on Tumblr have been instrumental in making this book possible - not just by pledging, but by spreading the word about this project and making Ceyenne’s project visible. Thanks so much for your support! If you have already donated, it would be amazing if you could increase your pledge today (if just half of our backers chip in an additional $10, we’ll easily pass the $10,000 mark) - or just share the Kickstarter page and the amazing video that captures Ceyenne’s story.
April 30, 2012
Yesterday, I ran my first half marathon with my dear friend Lia,...
Yesterday, I ran my first half marathon with my dear friend Lia, through the many hills of Columbia, Maryland. It was awesome. I finished in 2:36:17, keeping a nice steady pace just under 12 minute miles. Not the fastest, but better than I hoped, and damn there were a lot of hills. I feel good today - sore but not achey. And I want to do it again. I still remember that first day I started the couch to 5K program at the end of last May, how horrible it felt to run for a full minute. And I remember the first time I ran for 20 minutes straight without stopping, and how amazed I felt. I love that I’ve discovered the possibilities and strength of my body in my early thirties. It has been so so good for both my body (I’m fitter than I’ve ever been, and lost 40 pounds in the past year) and my brain. Yes, I am an overachiever, and I do a million things. But running (and the other sports I’ve been adding, like boxing and this summer, triathlon) is the only thing I do solely for my own benefit. And I am so very glad I’ve made this commitment to myself.
