WHY F.A.G.?
For us as queer abolitionists, faggotry is an explicit rejection of liberal assimilationist strategies that seek legitimacy through the state. We understand that racialized anti-trans/queer violence is not antagonistic to the democratic state – it is integral to its foundations. FAG is an acknowledgement of the deep and essential ties between abolition and queer liberation. Because seeking safety and security under a violent, white-supremacist state will never save us, and we aren’t free until we all are.
STATEMENT OF INTENT
As a collective of organizers, we acknowledge the complexity and nuance of navigating hierarchies of power and privilege that exist in society because of capitalism, colonialism, state power, and numerous interconnected systems of oppression. We also know that these forms of power replicate themselves in radical spaces, even when the participants are committed to liberation. As a collective we cannot guarantee that this free, open to the public event will be a safe space, however, we ask everyone who is showing up to commit to a shared vision of solidarity and collective care.
We have zero tolerance for racism, misogyny, queer/transphobia, ableism, Zionism, fatphobia, or any other form of violence. We support and encourage autonomous action to raise consciousness and co-create a world free from these systems of oppression. Thus, we invite all participants to directly address concerning behaviors that occur during the gathering, while striving not to treat others as disposable. Organizers will not act as police or arbiters of external conflicts, however we reserve the right to ask anyone to leave if their actions are harmful to the gathering, to other participants, or to the venues.
We want this event to be accessible to anyone who is genuinely interested, and some attendees will be new to abolition, lacking the language and experience to gracefully navigate politically charged conversations. When possible, we believe that an open-minded and welcoming approach to such encounters serves to strengthen and grow our movement. If you experience harassment, abuse, assault, or other violence during the event and want support from organizers, please let us know. And if you have specific accessibility needs, please notify us ahead of time and we will do our best to provide resources to meet those needs.
PHOTOGRAPHY
No unauthorized photography or recording is permitted during the gathering sessions. Photography in other spaces should only take place with the explicit consent of those being photographed. Please alert a member of the de-escalation crew if you see violations of this norm.
Thank you so much to the work of these anarchists and abolitionists who have done the work of thinking through safety and community agreements, to which we owe a lot of the language of this section.
- 2024 ACAB Statement of Intent – https://acabookfair.noblogs.org/acab2024/statement-of-intent/
- 2018 ACAB Statement of Intent – https://acab2018.noblogs.org/post/2018/08/10/revised-statement-of-intent/
- Bay Area Statement of Mutual Responsibility – https://bayareaanarchistbookfair.com/baabf-statement-of-mutual-responsibility/
- New York City Safe Space Policy – https://anarchistbookfair.net/safe-space-2/
- Montreal Policies (incl Safer Spaces, Accessibility, Exclusions, Cultural Appropriation) – https://www.anarchistbookfair.ca/policies/