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June 6, 2008 at 5:39 pm #625329
michelledMemberCool… we’ll try and make it on the 15th! Thanks to everyone for starting some kind of community thing over here :)
June 6, 2008 at 5:44 pm #625330
DKMemberJune 7, 2008 at 6:20 am #625331
ShibaguyzMemberYes, despite all of the extras, just clarifying:
Date: Sunday, June 15th
Time: 3pm
Place: C&P Coffee Company
Who: West Seattle LGBT* Community
*LGBT = Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender
See you all then!! WOOHOO!!
June 7, 2008 at 6:25 am #625332
AnonymousInactiveI thought “friends” were welcome as well???
June 7, 2008 at 7:47 am #625333
ShibaguyzMemberNR – scroll back and read the previous statements and resulting discussions if you still have questions about this. Thanks
June 7, 2008 at 9:19 pm #625334
soclwrkrinmotnMember3pm on the 15 at C&P Coffee? We’ll (Aim and I) be there…someone’s gotta represent the T. *wicked grin*
June 7, 2008 at 10:05 pm #625335
ShibaguyzMemberYou never know… part of creating “safe space” like this is the surprise of finding a lot more people showing up than are willing to actually post their presence in a public forum like this. That’s why I was trying to be fairly specific about this first meet up in particular.
In the past when we’ve done things like this, we’ve been pleasantly surprised. However, if you are the single representation of the “T” then we’ll have to give you some nifty nickname like “Mr. T” or “The Big T.” Maybe?? No??? Yes?? Okay… maybe not… LOL
Can’t wait to meet you all there!!
June 7, 2008 at 11:31 pm #625336
soclwrkrinmotnMemberMr. T? Considering I am all of 5’2″ on a good day, that’s really quite funny. (But I pity the fool…)
Seriously, I am hoping just that: a safe space may encourage others to say hello. I know full well I am not the only representative of the “T” in West Seattle…but I figured if I put it out there, maybe others may wish to prove me wrong. That’s the hope, anyway.
If I am the only one, I want everyone to buy me coffee. Quad skinny latte, please and thank you! *grin* Just kidding, of course…
June 8, 2008 at 12:03 am #625337
AnonymousInactiveShibaguyz – I guess it is still a little confusing, sorry!
In post #5, you answered someone that “friends” are welcome, after several posts regarding location and date, you reiterate in post #38 that it is for LGBT and you want to make that very clear, then, in post #53, you completely left out the “Friends” part.
So, being a “friend of”, would I be welcome at this gathering or is it something you want to do only for the LGBT community? I don’t want to rain on anyone’s parade.
If you could clarify exactly what you want this gathering to be, I would appreciate it. Again, I certainly don’t want to ruin anyone’s time or be an out-cast!
Thanks!
June 8, 2008 at 3:25 am #625338
ShibaguyzMember#5: “Friends of” are always good too.
#38: I’m totally open to LGBT & Friends but please understand what we are trying to create here is not a general meeting of folks but a specific group of people in the LGBT (& Friends) community here in West Seattle. So, come one, come all… I just want it clear what the main idea of this meet up is. :)
Weigh in here if you will be able to attend and this will be the first, official meeting of the WS LGBT (& Friends) Community!! WOOHOO!!
#53: Date: Sunday, June 15th
Time: 3pm
Place: C&P Coffee Company
Who: West Seattle LGBT* Community
*LGBT = Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender
NR – I’m sorry you are confused about this. You are correct that in post #53 I did use the traditional method of describing our community as LGBT. I followed up with an explanation of “LGBT” because some folks early on in the thread were confused what “LGBT” was and I wanted that confusion to not be so confusing. Again, I am sorry if this caused confusion with you, but I do, frankly, list “LGBT” because I, whether right or wrong, tend to not take on what our community calls “alphabet soup.”
Alphabet soup is what we jokingly refer to as the listing of every possible subculture of our community as a whole. An example would be “LGBTTIQQFFAO.” No kidding we were part of a discussion that involved passing some sort of legislation to change LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender) to LGBTTIQQFFAO = lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, transitioning, inter-sexed, queer, questioning, family, friends, allies, others. Again… no kidding. It was debated for days at this conference and is still being brought up on a regular basis wherever a group of folks in our community meet.
So, it is not that I was trying to be exclusive in any way, shape or form. Simply, I was using a traditionally accepted reference to our community as a whole.
Any clarifications I was making in post number… wait… which one was that??? POST #38!! Any clarification I was making in post #38 was to make sure folks understood this was not a general meeting for everyone in West Seattle. Again, it seemed like there was confusion so I was trying to make the confusion less confusing. This is a meeting for a specific community here in West Seattle and not a general meeting of the folks here on the West Seattle Blog who are just interested in meeting new friends. And, as it was pointed out in post number… wait… oh nevermind!! LOL SOMEONE pointed out that there is, indeed, a general meet up of all folks WSB-ish next weekend as well. I was simply trying to add clarification that this was not a meet up in general but a meet up for a specific section of the WS community the same as if a group of knitters or gardeners got together with a common interest.
Thank you for pointing out my inconsistency and I can only hope the confusion is less confusing… now I need a cocktail!! LOL
*note: I’m just being a goofball… don’t take this post (#60) offensively. hehehehe…
June 8, 2008 at 4:34 am #625339
charlabobParticipantLGBTTIQQFFAO
ligbittyqueuefow ???
I’m sorry, unpronouncable acronyms are not allowed :-) I’m a little worried about including “other”…there’s a limit to my tolerance.
NR, if you want, the cb and you could go, sit at another table, and wait for the LGBTTIQQFFAO to invite us over …worse case, we’ll have great conversation AND coffee. :-)
On the topic to which I hijacked this thread before (45), we went to hear Billy Bragg last night and I got into a great discussion with an usher and two of the patrons, as I gingerly gimped down the aisle, about the Mariner’s Usher Travesty (MUT).
We all agreed it was a travesty and I wound up getting their names and emails for organizing any civil action — they especially liked idea of kissathons and kissing booths. I’m always amazed at the political awareness I stumble upon in Seattle, quite by accident, by keeping my ears and mouth open. It almost makes up for the @#$%^&* weather.
June 8, 2008 at 4:47 am #625340
JanSParticipantmy ex, who doesn’t pay me no mind nowadays, always said I was a really good kisser…can I be in the booth, too? ;-)
June 8, 2008 at 9:06 am #625341
ShibaguyzMembercharlabob… I tried to pronounce that and I think I sprained my tongue!! LOL
I love the weather here… good for peas and lettuce… just better warm up for my tomatoes later.
JanS – I think charlabob is pushing this kissing booth thing a little hard. hhhmmmm… wonder what’s up with that?? LOL
June 8, 2008 at 8:58 pm #625342
dunderpMemberI’m so excited!! I posted months ago requesting info on gatherings or clubs, without any response. Not a word from anyone, made me start wondering…..??? Potlucks,cafe,bike rides, Art West, Lincoln park, Colman pool all sound good to me. Just let me know when and where and I will be there. Take care and God bless you all. Pamela
June 9, 2008 at 4:10 am #625343
AnonymousInactiveShibaguyz – No, sorry, still confused.
How about this… Just answer this question: If I am straight, and I do not come with anyone else, but am willing to meet new friends (of any and all communities), will I be welcome?
June 9, 2008 at 7:28 am #625344
JanSParticipantI’m going to take some license here…I do this when it’s late – lol. Another way to look at this, NR…. When I was in chemo, there were support groups that one could take advantage of…one for breast cancer, one for colon cancer, one for lung cancer, one for ovarian cancer, one for caregivers….and then there was general support, where everyone could get together. There was even a support group for African-American breast cancer women, since breast cancer affects them differently, and one, called Verbena, for lesbian women. I would choose between breast and general…that’s how I was affected…although I’m sure that if I attended others to give support, find out about their particular interests, I’d be welcome…but I didn’t just jump in there right in the beginning…they were there for the support of their own segment of the cancer society overall. It’s sort of the same with the LGBT group. There is the genera;l forum group where we will all meet on June 14, everyone welcome, there is a gardening group, there may be an arts group, there could possibly be other splinter groups that will branch off from the overall general group depending on interests. I would probably be welcome, even if the specialized group’s topic wasn’t something I was knowledgeable about, or really interested in, but..I probably wouldn’t jump in there during their first meet-up. Same with LGBT…they would like to have their first meet-up be of people who make up that particular “community”, and I’m sure in future meet-ups they would of course welcome friends…and I’m sure that if you decided to show up at the first meet-up, they wouldn’t show you the door. You’ll probably meet quite a few of these people the day before at the general meet-up, so perhaps might not feel the need to meet them the next day…
OK…butting my nose out now..it’s all yours,S’guyz :)
June 9, 2008 at 7:14 pm #625345
andreaParticipantVery well said Jan
June 9, 2008 at 7:49 pm #625346
ShibaguyzMemberYou know… I wasn’t trying to start anything by suggesting that a group of the WS LGBT community get together any more than any other group is trying to start a fight when they suggest they get together. I’m not “in charge” of this meet up, we just brought it up.
If it hasn’t been made clear yet and if NewResident has a problem with feeling excluded, it is beyond me. I thought it was pretty clear that friends of the LGBT community were welcome. I also thought it was pretty clear that having a meeting of the LGBT community was about creating safe space for those folks to meet in where they didn’t have to feel self conscious about who they were.
While I understand that there are LGBT people out there who do not feel uncomfortable in everyday life, there are plenty who do. And, while we feel totally comfortable in our skin in public, not everyone does. To this end, it is important sometimes to have meet ups where people DO feel safe and accepted.
Use whatever alphabet soup you want to describe this meet up of folks. But don’t take a perfectly innocent meet up and try to turn it into something political and exclusive. Yes, I’m speaking to NR. If you don’t like it that we are having an LGBT meet up during Pride Month, then I suggest you not show up. If you just want to stir up trouble, then leave the rest of these folks out of it and address us directly and we’ll have as much discussion as you want to have about this. Frankly, I don’t see your point in being “confused” at all. You were acting confused trying to cause a problem and whine that someone was trying to leave you out of something.
There, are you happy? You did it. You turned this totally innocent meet up into a HUGE political statement. If that’s what you want, then take it up someplace else. That is NOT what this original meet up was about and I, personally, will NOT let it be about that now.
If anyone is still interested in getting together on the 15th, contact us via email on our website and we’ll send you the information on an alternative location. Or, we can still meet at C&P Coffee if you feel like it isn’t going to turn into something it was never intended to be. Please let us know what the rest of you want to do. Thanks.
June 9, 2008 at 8:33 pm #625347
ShibaguyzMemberOkay… I’m not as mad now… but still as passionate!! LOL We will NOT be labeled as discriminatory or as having a political agenda for this meet up. If you are a member of the WS LGBT community and would like to get together with other LGBT(alphabet soup here – LOL) people, we WILL still be meeting at the same time and same place as designated before.
This WILL be a safe place for all members of our community and we recognize that different people will be coming for different reasons. Maybe you aren’t comfortable being out right now and want/need the presence of like-minded individuals. You will find that. Maybe you are totally comfortable in your skin and just want to hang out with others who are as well. You will find that. Maybe you are interested in showing those who don’t feel safe or who don’t feel accepted or who have been beaten, abused, ostracized, discriminated against, abandoned or otherwise feel oppressed that it is okay to be who they are. You can do that simply by showing up and being comfortable and just being yourself.
Whatever you are looking for, you will find it. We will be there. Others will be there as well. You will be safe, we’ll have coffee (beer? wine?). We’ll have a good time and find out that there are others right here in our own neighborhood who are just like us. We will find strength in that (if that is what you are looking for) and we will make friends.
That’s all this is for. Nothing more, nothing less. Oh yeah… it’s Pride Month as well… in case there is anyone who missed that. Seems like a good time to get together as an expression of just how far we’ve come. If that is what you want to get out of this… you will find that too.
See you next Sunday afternoon, my friends.
peace…
June 9, 2008 at 8:56 pm #625348
angelrParticipantOkay, let’s just pull back and calm down!!
I for one do not care if this person NR wants to be in out meet up or not, the more “straight” people that befriends us the better chance we have of been treated equally in society. We want this to be a happy occasion for everybody.
We can still plan our events with or without his presence.
If some people are not confortable with the decession of this meeting been open to others than WS LBGT only, then he(NR)should understand and bow out!
June 9, 2008 at 9:28 pm #625349
soclwrkrinmotnMemberWell spoken.
June 9, 2008 at 11:10 pm #625350
AnonymousInactiveFirst of all, I am insulted, Shibaguyz, that you have alluded to the possibility that your “get-together” is no longer safe. I was never, in any of my posts, rude or demeaning to you, I never displayed any kind of prejudice or hatred.
Had you started out with the attitude of, everyone is welcome; if you would like to meet people from our community, we would love to meet you, this all would have been an non-issue. None of these posts today would have happened.
You chose, actually, to never answer my question of whether I would be welcome. Even when I flat out said, “Answer this question….”. You never answered. You referred me back to the thread. By refusing to give me a straight answer, or answer me at all, you were, basically, telling me that I was not welcome. I think at one point someone even said that I should not join this meeting of people until the next get-together.
I actually would love to meet people, any people, all kinds of people. I genuinely felt excluded by the vagueness of your responses. I wasn’t trying to prove any kind of “point” until you continuously refused to answer me. At that point, because I felt so excluded, I started thinking about how you might feel had it been turned around. I then realized that it was hurtful, to every kind of person, to exclude someone because they do not meet “your” requirements.
As far as ALL the other posts and responses regarding this issue, I really have no comment other than, who truly is tolerant of ALL people? If you read back through all the posts, it may surprise you.
June 9, 2008 at 11:14 pm #625351
AnonymousInactiveNR, for what it’s worth, I think your perception is as valid as anyone else’s. I didn’t find you to be rude and I think respectful dialog is always a good thing.
June 9, 2008 at 11:34 pm #625352
ShibaguyzMemberNR – once again, you aren’t reading correctly. I did not, in any way, allude that the meeting was no longer safe. “Safe space” is a commonly used term in most marginalized groups of society. I certainly didn’t allude that you had anything to do with making me or anyone I would be around unsafe. As a matter of fact, none of this thread has been about you other than after you decided to come in and try to start something by “making a point.” Instead of stating your original question as the actual point you wanted to make, you decided to try to bait me into making a statement that I was not trying to make. So again, here you are. You even stated in the other threads that are about this thread that you were trying to make the point that we were being exclusive by saying LGBT.
If that’s how you feel… don’t show up! It’s that simple! If I, for whatever reason, thought that people didn’t want me around, I certainly wouldn’t try to make a point of just shoving myself in amongst them. Again, I’m not saying you can not come. I’m just saying that I don’t understand what the point is that you are trying to make. Any social group of any sort can get together for any reason they darn well please as far as I know.
“Had you started out with the attitude of, everyone is welcome; if you would like to meet people from our community, we would love to meet you, this all would have been an non-issue. None of these posts today would have happened.” – To that I would respond that this was not started as “come meet a queer.” This was started as a simple coffee gathering of people in the LGBT community who might like to get together as a group. Nothing more, nothing less. You are correct, if I had wanted to set up a meeting where people could come and “meet LGBT people” I could have started that thread. I did not.
As far as whether or not you want to come to a meeting of LGBT people, I could care less. I said “and friends” over and over again. How is that being vague?
If you wanted to know if I specifically wanted you there. Personally, I don’t own the entire LGBT community so I have no right to say whether or not you can be there. Also, I don’t own C&P so I can’t tell you not to come in there either. My personal feelings about you as an individual is not something I would imagine would/should matter to you at all so I find it hard to believe you were actually looking for MY permission to be there.
What problem do you have with us meeting separately? I have stated very clearly my reasoning and my feelings about it. I have not been vague.
Finally, there was NEVER “intolerance” toward anyone in any of these posts. Again, you are trying to focus this thread on something it is not.
June 9, 2008 at 11:49 pm #625353
AnonymousInactiveYou obviously didn’t read my post.
It was hurtful, to me, that you wouldn’t directly answer me on whether I would be welcome or not. And in your above post, you are stating that you would rather I not come (which I believe, now, was your answer all along) by saying that if you had wanted it to be about meeting people of the LGBT community, you would have posted such.
Most of my very best friends are gay/lesbian and, being new here, I thought I could meet more good friends. You’ve made it clear that is not what you are looking for this get-together to be about. You’ve made it clear that I would not be welcome and you’ve made it clear that you are excluding me from this get-together. That’s hurtful.
So, who’s tolerant?
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