NYC Gaymers presents Pride School Festival – 20 June
NYC Gaymers are going full anime for their digital pride celebrations this year with a school festival on 20 June!
NYC Gaymers was founded with the mission of uplifting the greater LGBTQIA+ community, and despite the ongoing global pandemic, while also acknowledging the struggles of allies who are currently protesting, they continue to strive towards that goal. This resulted in them creating a digital space to celebrate Pride on Saturday June 20th from 3pm to approximately 6pm in the geekiest, nerdiest way possible: a school festival, just like you’ve seen in your favourite anime!
If you’re not an anime fan, you may not be familiar with the idea of a school festival. It’s a cultural experience every high-school-aged anime character goes through during a filler arc! Typically there are sizzling snacks, dynamic dancing, a spectacular stage show, and a phantasmal fortune teller! Unfortunately, the global pandemic has us all stuck inside, but this isn’t stopping NYC Gaymers from celebrating their own cultural festival!
The school festival grounds will be built on Discord and guests will find spaces to mingle, such as at the front gates, a channel designed simply to greet guests and have administrative volunteers answer questions and help guests navigate the virtual space.
In order to truly uplift the LGBTQIA+ community, NYC Gaymers are providing specialised experiences in their digital classrooms, all staffed by self-identified members of the LGBTQIA+ community. Guests are strongly encouraged to tip performers via social spending apps (Cashapp, Paypal, Venmo, etc). Furthermore, they are accepting applications to create or help run classroom festival booths through their Contributor Application, and will prioritise providing opportunities to those who describe themselves as financially insecure.
NYC Gaymers will not release any information gathered through this process except details that relate directly to the content of the booths. They are hoping the community will help them craft content that encapsulates the theming, but also provides unique experiences. They are expecting to include activities such as tarot reading sessions, cooking segments, and live performances.
NYC Gaymers also recognise that the community is vibrant and includes many creatives. To help uplift those with physical and digital wares to sell, they’re creating an Artists’ Alley. This section will allow merchants and hobbyists to speak directly with attendees and take a direct role in how they present their channel. Artists and crafters will be expressly encouraged to link any existing online stores they already have enabled. They are accepting applications for artists through the Contributor Application. NYC Gaymers is striving to accept all interested artist contributors and also wish to stand in solidarity with allies at Flame Con, the in-person elements of which were recently canceled. As such, NYC Gaymers are extending an offer to all Flame Con exhibitors to join them.
NYC Gaymers are also seeking volunteers to help join their “Student Council” by working as administrators and crowd control during the event itself. Please use the Contributor Application to apply. Although this Pride will be a much more somber one than previous years, the aim is to spend a few hours in celebration.
In trying to keep this event accessible, there will be no cost to “enroll” as an attendee. It is open to all guests aged 13+.
You can find more details and pre-register at the NYC Gaymers website: www.gaymers.nyc
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