Experts On Pride Week

Pride 2012 in Victoria is July 1 to 8, with the annual parade and festival on July 8. The following contacts are available for comment:

Andrea Routely (UVic Writing) is an undergraduate student at UVic currently working on the first issue of Plenitude Magazine, a new online queer literary journal set to launch Aug. 1. Routely was previously the editor for Walk Myself Home: An Anthology to End Violence Against Women (Caitlin Press, 2010) and says she wants “to read hundreds of stories and poems by other people, to discover how they express their lives and interpret this world." While Plenitude is her own initiative, it is supported by the department under the mentorship of Associate Dean of Fine Arts Dr. Lynne Van Luven and features both Prof. Bradley and Malahat Review editor John Barton on its advisory board. (By email: editor@plenitudemagazine.ca or andrea_june@hotmail.com)

Maureen Bradley (UVic Writing) is an independent Canadian filmmaker specializing in queer and lesbian films and video art as well as experimental film and documentaries. She has directed more than 40 short films and videos, four film installations and two web art projects and her award-winning productions have been screened at galleries and festivals around the globe including the Museum of Modern Art in New York.
(By phone: 250-891-6072)

Robert Birch (UVic Theatre) is an assistant professor in UVic’s Applied Theatre program. He also works with AIDS Vancouver Island as the coordinator of their Men’s Wellness Program, is one of the founders of the Southern Gulf Island AIDS Society and is also a long-time member of the activist community of Radical Faeries and Reclaiming Witches in San Francisco and along the west coast. Birch uses his applied theatre practice to research lives and well-being of men who love or lust for other men.
(By phone: 250-857-2977 or email farmboy@uvic.ca)

Positive Space Network (PSN) was launched at UVic in February 2010 and is a visible network of students, faculty, staff and alumni working to make UVic a safer and more inclusive space for people of all genders and sexualities. It supports and connects people working toward inclusion, promotes best practices, links researchers and provides support and resources for individuals. PSN offers informative workshops on issues of gender and sexuality, including specific events such as Spirit Day/Day of Purple to honour the lives of queer/trans youth who turned to suicide; bi-weekly lunches are held during the school year in Village Greens at UVic. More info: http://web.uvic.ca/psn/. The alliance is an independent entity but receives some operational support from UVic's Office of Equity and Human Rights. (Cindy Player, UVic's Director of Equity and Human Rights, is a member of the Positive Space Executive and can be contacted by phone: 250-721-7007 or email cplayer@uvic.ca)

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