Queer Quarter for Leeds?

Interesting to see that Pink News is reporting on a campaign in Leeds to create a 'gay quarter'. The move apparently follows attempts to clearly establish a gay village in Liverpool. Followers of the Liverpool development might recall that it was in turn inspired by the Manchester gay village and proposals for development in Liverpool have been rumbling along for years. As with Liverpool, the creation of a queer space post Queer as Folk is symbolic of a progressive urban habitat. The possession of such spaces is a useful marketing technique and can hep re-position the city brand. It's therefore interesting to see that this seems a 'grass roots' campaign in Leeds, and not one coming from city officials or marketing consultants.

Nonetheless, gay campaigners are using the same the arguments. I'd be interested in hearing what really motivates people into this campaign. Is it merely as they say about making Leeds more welcoming, if so why choose this method. If it's something else, what?

The extension and creation of new queer spaces in our apparently transformed socio-legal culture suggests that these spaces continue to carry out a vital function(s), although whether that is the same function(s) as earlier queer space is something worthy of debate.

There's more on gayleeds.com

Queer Space and Commercial Blues

The ebb and flow of venues and trade (in ever sense) from Manchester's Canal Street always attracts a lot of attention and is seen as a key indicator in the struggle for spatial identity, attracting considerable academic and media coverage over the years. Mancunian resident and self-styled trolley dolly, Mickie Lawson discusses the current situation on his blog. As much as I enjoy the blog, I do wonder whether the praise for Nicksy and Essential is a reflection of Mickie's desire for publicity and getting another appearance on Nicksy's show. How are other Mancs finding things on Canal Street? Post your thoughts in comments. Check out Mickie's thoughts here.

It will be interesting how the ongoing economic difficulties will affect queer commercial spaces up and down the UK, and if leads to a lasting shift in spatial identity.

Queer Toon to Get a Little Straighter?

I'm sure I've mentioned before that each year I take my students on explorations of queer space, exploring the intersection of space, law and identity. The first one we always go on is down the road to Newcastle and the small 'Pink triangle' or village that is based aroudn the Centre for Life. It's not exactly Canal Street (which has its own problems) but it doesn't say "destination" either. I usually ask my students for the words that they immediately think of when in the space; "dark", "depressing", "run-down", "neglected" seem to come up every year. I've long wished that the council, community and queer businesses would come together to really sort the space out and create somewhere that the LGBTQ community can be proud of. That seems further sunk by the story reported today in the Chronicle that Traflagur Leisure wants to convert an abandoned warehouse into a straight lap Dancing Club - thus severely damaging this queer space.

There has been much academic literature on the impact of these sort of venues and the de-queering of space. We also have lots of personal experiences from Manchester about the damage an influx of straights can have. Anyone who knows anything in the queer community should be declaring firm 'no' to these unwise proposals.

Yet, that isn't happening. The owner of the Eagle and the Yard is described as 'understanding' why the owner of Trafalgar Leisure wouldant to open such a venue. So, no resistance there then. Interestingly, Trafalgar Leisure already has a foothold in the queer space (as noted in the Chronicle piece) as they own Twist, the Baron and Baroness - venues that are mixed but can become predominately gay at night, and the gay club Powerhouse.

Thankfully, the ward councillor, Nick Forbes is fighting the application stating: “My concern is that it would have a big negative impact on the gay village and I’m concerned that it would destroy the concept of a safe area by introducing all sorts of undesirables.” Forbes is a Labour councillor and leader of the Labour group.

I've got no objections to the presence of lap dancing clubs but this isn't the right location - and the focus needs to move to creating a successful and safe village.

Liverpool Gay Village Plans

Spooky or what. Exactly a year ago on the 12 November 2007 I blogged about plans to create a 'gay village' in Liverpool. Today, Pink News is reports: 'a leading councillor has attacked Liverpool's City Council over plans for a gay village.' It goes on to state that the plans ignore the wishes of the 'gay community'. Whoever and whatever that is. It is interesting to note the ongoing controversy. Given Manchester has lost Manto and AXM in the last two months the idea of following the successful Manchester model seems increasingly controversial. Twelve months ago you could perhaps have argues economically sound as a tool to encourage regeneration but socially questionable is (as we saw with the Skeggs and Moran research) if there is an influx of 'straights' and the 'gay space' becomes less gay as a result of these developments.

Politics and Legal Reform

Apologies for more politics on the blog but there is just so much going on at the mo. Obviously over in the States we have Clinton determined to derail the Democrats hopes of winning (and with it any hope for a more progressive policy and law agenda) as she drifts into megalomania. Over here we have the new London mayor who can be described as many things, though not I think a megalomaniac (feel free to comment below if you disagree!). He has now announced (or rather a rep has) that he will indeed be attending London pride this year and of greater importance for me, continues to make use of high profile out gay men. Pink News, reporting on this provide a link to the brilliant blog of Ian Dale (in my view a name everyone will be familiar with in the future as I'm sure he will eventually be a Cabinet Minister in a Tory government) who provided pics of Tory candidate for Brighton Dr David Bull (also bit of a media celeb) and his float at Brighton Pride last August along with some topless male dancers. Yes sexy gay men can now be Tories. Pink News speculates that the Tories might have a float at London Pride. I hope they will, but I hope even more they will adopt a genuinely progressive freedom based agenda.

Clearly, the Conservative party has changed, and is changing but the real test will be whether there is a shift in attitudes to an emerging rights agenda on transgender and other marginalised communities. For example, the Gender Recognition Act continues to rely on a binary interpretation of gender - you are male and become female or female and become male. Yet biology and psychology refuses to conform to this binary divide so why does the law (supposedly now reformed) insist on this. I've had a brilliant undergraduate dissertation student this year who has been exploring this very issue but there needs to be more debate at a national and international academic level.

Similarly, the Brown case remains in-force with regard to S&M behaviour, limiting consensual practices and the Tory party has given no clear sign that it would seek to repeal, if elected, the proposed new legislation on violent pornography. Both constitute an attack on a silent section of society, often unable to form large high profile political bodies for fear of encountering the prejudices of society. The work of groups like Outsiders, Backlash and the Sexual Freedom Coalition deserve credit for the campaigning they do.

Speaking of which the campaign group Backlash and their supporters planned to gather last night in Parliament Square with some planning to chain themselves to a headboard, to symbolise the state's unwarranted intrusion into people's private consensual activities. I've not seen any updates on the web about how the event went but I did flick through the news channels at 5pm (when it was scheduled) to see if anything was reported. Shock horror, not a sausage. I've also done a search through Lexis for all UK newspapers and media outlets and again nothing. It's a real shame that such an important community can not be heard when the miss-judged violent-pornography legislation will affect them the most. Madness.

Audrey, Her Dad and the Meat Market

I'm off to Montreal later this month for the Law and Society Conference and one bar I might encounter is Le Stud. The bar is the focus of a little piece in The Chronicle (a Montreal paper). The piece focuses upon one woman's campaign to have access to a gay bar. My favourite paragraph in the story reads:

'This is a place that promotes itself as a "manly meat market" where "men love men" and where TV screens display gay porn around the clock. THIS, Audrey, is where you decided to take your dad for a drink? You're fighting for your right to drink here, and dragging your dad along for the ride as well? Rosa Parks would be proud! '

Read the full story at: http://www.westislandchronicle.com/article-208402-Le-Stud-ruling-lacking-in-le-logic.html

In the UK the legal position is complicated by the ill-thought out Equality Act.

Liverpool Queer Space

Interesting story in the latest Pink Paper regarding Liverpool. There are plans to create a new "queer quarter" but the cost - £500,000 is causing a bit of a stir. Interestingly, once you get into the story it is about pedestrianising a couple of streets and closing one street to traffic in evenings. This will be built around the existing "quarter". The aim is to create a more clearly defined area. Those who are advocating the scheme are doing so on the basis of "spending a penny to make a pound", or to put it another way, cashing in on the 'pink pound'. The wider socio-legal issues around "queer space" and the ghetto debate seem worryingly absent from this debate. Read the fulls tory at:

http://www.pinkpaper.com/pinkpaper/story.asp?aid=353

Pink Planet Manchester

Time for another Manchester video. This is a Pink Planet video on the city.

Gay Village for Middlesbrough

Middlesbrough recently celebrated its first gay pride events (some pics at: http://www.gazettelive.co.uk/videos-pictures/2007/09/17/middlesbrough-s-first-gay-pride-event-84229-19803607/ ) but today PinkNews reports that the mayor of Middlesbrough wants to go further and at a recent Council Executive suggested (or so it reported) that he wanted to see a gay village. This raises the question about apartheid once again that perpetually haunts these ideas. Is it better to be "integrated" etc etc. My own view has fluctuated over the years. As a teen coming out, having an 'exclusive' gay space (and some of the gay bars in Sheffield were so dire in the late 1990s that you wouldn't really choose to be Attercliffe at 1am in the morning) was important in allowing me and so many others I knew to experiment and explore their sexuality. I think it remains important today. that said, the social stigma of being "gay" has changed dramatically in the decade that followed and it could be argued that the need for such "safe" space is less than it was. Nonetheless, particularly in northern and working class communities there remains a lot of prejudice that necessitates the need for "safe space".

These venues are also an important part of expressing identity. I am struck by the clear and distinct identity that is presented in the gay bars of cities like Berlin but which has lost out to greater commercialisation in cities like Manchester. At the moment I think there is a need for these spaces, and personally I prefer a village environment rather than the transient one night a week affair you get in smaller cities and towns but these spaces need to be clear about their identity and celebrate diversity.

Whatever form such space takes, I and many others will no doubt praise the Middlesbrough mayor for asking the question: "What are we going to do to cater for the gay community?".

Read the story at: http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-5502.html