Personal Accounts

2022 Burning Man in Hindsight

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I was recently reminded that I used to write out a whole trip report about what I saw at the burn and about this community that I am so passionate about. To that end, this was the strangest burn I ever had because I did things I never did before. This post is not about me, but as seen through my eyes for 2022 that is disconnected from my usual experience because this is my first year NOT camping in either of the Queerborhoods. I spent most of my time visiting friends at Comfort & Joy. And when I needed shelter and down time, I also went to C&J. But in the end I ended up leaving on Friday before burn night on my seventh day in Black Rock City.

Burning Man 2022: a trip report

As noted above, I left the event days earlier than planned because I was not really prepared for the 2022 burn. Consider that I started in 2008 and have been to Black Rock City quite a few times, but each time I was part of, or running, a theme camp. This time I was basically on my own. I should have done better, but it seems I was not the only one who forgot how to burn.

My take on the city was that it was as beautiful as ever. This year we had 2 Queerborhoods that were intentionally set and dubbed East Village and West Village. The road to making those villages happen was interesting to watch from the sidelines. And operating in the shadow of the Cultural Direction Setting project by burning man in 2020 and 2021, it made that evolution even more interesting to watch from a certain point of view. My POV was that there was a lot of bigger, better, and more.

  • Any of those things mentioned in the above confusing? If not, skip to the next paragraph. In 2019 I was recruited into a group called the Cultural Direction Setting Team started by Burning Man with a mission to better define expectations of camps and our community. A big part of that was dealing with the troublesome big money camps that had no connection to the Burning Man ethos. But, another part of that was asking current camp leaders to get current and new camp leadership to up their game.
  • East Village was a Queerborhood space at 4:30 and D +/- with BAAAHS as the anchor camp.
  • West Village was the Queerborhood at 7:30 and D +/- with Comfort & Joy as the anchor camp.

The City

2022 was my first year as a Ranger. It was my first year not being a camp lead. I got out to the city more than usual. And, in the course of rangering I got to directly engage tons of people and exploring on a level I never have before. The city was alive, thriving, and though I know a lot of people had a hard time it seems there were a lot of successes. But, a lot of people left about the same time I did. Sadly, I missed the burn on Saturday and Sunday that I wanted really bad to be a part of.

I made a map of the city before I left and shared it with a lot of people. I am about to start the new one for 2023. And it seemed a lot of people really liked it, so I am going to make it bigger and better for the future. Queerburners has some exciting plans for a new queer guide in 2023 and everyone will see it in living color.

The Community

This is a topic that is of the highest importance to me, personally. It is one of the 10 Principles that is the reason I am a part of this idea of Burning Man. The importance of coming together is a human need. Watching some of these amazing and successful things people have created with the support of the community fills my soul. Specifically, and most recently, The Afterlife art that was on the playa in 2022 and elements of it will be at the BAAAHS campout this coming weekend.

Recommended Reading: “Dancing in the Streets” by Barbara Ehrenreich

from Michael Cooper

That speaks with a focus on out LGBTQIA participants, which is important to me because there is a marked lack of safety for queer people. We have the Queerborhood for a lot of reasons that have been hashed out in this blog over and over. Collaborations are the pinnacle of success in my opinion. One of my favorite was the party that Mudskippers did featuring Whitney Houston* that grew in popularity over the years.

Another space usually close to the Queerborhood is Golden Guy Alley. This concept is the future of Burning Man, crating small vignettes you can only get to on foot based on the Japanese Golden Gui Alley, but more fun. Last year Tom’s Bar made its debut featuring the art and style of Tom Of Finland. When I walked in I was gagged (not that way) to see the bartenders were all burners I knew from all the corners of the Burnerverse COLLABAPORATION and COMMUNTIY!!!!

Being a Ranger

So, 2022 saw a lot of new rangers on playa and I was one of them. It was obsoletely one of the best choices I made. I would encourage more queer people to submit on the Burning Man Volunteer page as a ranger and go through the training. It will improve you life. I am not kidding. I get your toaster pin … for obvious reasons! Ha ha ha ha ha.

On a more serious note…

One of my initial goals with joining this community was to better my relationships with women. Over time I found a lot of women in this community as strong, brilliant, bright lights that were supportive and made really good friends. My learning curve was a very wide arch and I am still learning. Yes I made mistakes but the only way to improve is by actively listening and doing better through my actions and my words.

This evolving I mentioned gave me stronger ties to people who are trans, non-binary, and many still figuring things out. I have fully embraced people in a more loving way, though again, I am still growing.

What is your intention? Go to the burn with an intention and a promise to honor the ten principles. Throw yourselves into a project, a camp, or some kind of service outside yourself. Yes, there is an amazing party going on, but making it better for someone else will raise your own social credit and happiness is catchy.

<< My 2022 with TacoBurger and Ra

Queerburners in 2023

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Scott Kay, Chair

We are in the heat of the season for festivals and preparation for Burning Man. Next week is EDC is Vegas, the BAAAHS Campout is coming up. So much happening all at once and it is so exciting, especially after 3 years of being trapped in our caves. Our organization became a non-profit during that same down time in 2020 and we have been working behind the curtain to develop what we could with the welfare of our community one-hundred percent in the focus of that goal.

When we wrote the vision statement for our organization, it was Nexus who helped us create that where we said essentially: our mission is complete when the community no longer needs what we are working for. Some might say, well, what have you been working on? Our primary mission is creating safe and accountable spaces and providing access for people from all walks of life. We almost always us NOTAFLOF (No One Turned Away For Lack Of Funds) when we talk about pricing and always make every effort to make sure all of our community is represented.

Last year we were able to produce an amazing series called the Rainbow Leadership Series in 4 parts that was held on Zoom. We gave away Grants for the first time to some great projects. When we wanted to do a camping event, it seemed that people were not ready for that so we decided to wait a year.

This year (2023) we tried to repeat that progress. Either our voices (meaning me and the board) are not reaching people through our Facebook Channel, Twitter, Insta, and Mailchimp, or people have moved on and don’t need what we are doing anymore. At the end of May 2023 we had two events planned that no one responded to. I ran into one of the biggest voices of this community this week amd when we spoke they did not know anything about it, so where did we go wrong?

The only way Queerburners works it through it’s participants. Everyone has a voice here and those of us on the board are very good about keeping things balanced. Why? Because all of us see the world from different places and do not always agree, but we have a common goal and work together well. If a person is disruptive to that, they made their own exit. But, we work well together with a collective process of sharing and having the safety of expressing an opinion or feeling.

As the current chair and founder of Queerburners, I have not always been an ideal leader, but I hope people can always feel safe talking to me and carrying the banner that was initially raised in 2008 and accomplished so much! If you want to contribute and help us develop programming for the community that supports all across the rainbow, please send us an email to info [at] queerburners [dot] org

Queer Caucus

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I am so excited to see that leaders in this community have taken up a torch for the benefit of the 7:30 sector for the Queerborhood (formerly the Gayborhood). Over the years Placement (a burning man office that oversees the way the city is populated by placing camps) has threatened to break up and separate the Gayborhood time and time again. It was originally something that came together because camps made it happen organically and out of a need (see link: refer to 1997 date).  In 2015 (link to details) we had our first Rainbow Road where queer camps were generally placed along “D” road between 7:00 and 8:30 under the influence of a staunch community ally in Placement named Hepkitten.

Former head of Placement Answergirl called us all in around May 2016 under the assumption that LGBTQ camps were the reason the sector received an unusually high amount of applications. Was this queer camps setting the scales off? I think in the end the real truth was that queer camps were bringing something very special to the sector and that ally camps and camps with some LGBTQ wanted to be part of that vibe.

The thing is, I have visited other sectors of Black Rock City, and each has it’s own special feel. Breaking the Gayborhood into 2 pieces will not solve the high number of applications for the 7:30 sector. 4:00 has it’s own energy. 2:00 and 10:00 as well as 9:00 have a flavor, culture and consciousness of its own.

New head of Placement is Trippi Longstalking who has seem to shown she is an advocate for the culture and creative energy we as LGBTQ people bring to the table. Us, along with ally camps, work hard to build something special out there. But even as late as Burning Man: iRobot 2018 we were still peppered through the sector in clumps and just like the map from 2016 showed (along with the notes Dare: Glamcocks made on a photo graphic of the official map). In the beginning of the 2018 season this year the Placement newsletter gave foreboding information about a sector shakeup that sent a wave of nervousness through the community given our extremely uncertain place in it.

We seem to be fighting for several things that some people have lost sight of: the right to radically represent LGBTQ culture in the most positive way possible. We are fighting to make sure that people represented in those letters are not further marginalized and taken advantage of  by assault, rape, gay bashing and trans-phobia. They happen out there today. They happen at Burning Man, Regional Events and IRL. Safety was the primary concern for people who were surveyed: Results 2016 P1 and Results 2016 P2 [Pending review]

Yet there are those dismissing voices who call for the Queerborhood to be dismantled and dismiss it with prejudice as the Gay Ghetto. They also claim that the Gayborhood keeps people locked in the bubble and others out. See the results of the on-playa Placement meeting with camps from 2016 where voices determined to squash queer camps showed up and hijacked the meeting for their own agenda.

Why do requests of LGBTQ camps to be placed closer together go unheeded even with all the information given to them? Not everyone is going to want to be in the cluster, but those asking for it should. Some would say they were already doing that, but smaller clusters. And why should they do that and not for anyone else? Well, they do for Kidsville but that was a whole other bag of bees. And do they think by spreading us out more this will resolve anything more for them or us?

It seems like Placement is evolving and we have yet to see how we are fitting into the discussion. The conversation in 2016 with Answergirl left more confusion that results especially for me when she said: “Imagine the Gayborhood [changes or goes away or something like that]…” and used the eraser to remove it from the whiteboard and then back peddle wildly to clarify.

It is time for Placement to acknowledge the Queerborhood as it has been present at Burning Man in one form or another for 15+ years. Answergirl told myself and Cyndi NoPants with a wave of her hand at the 2017 GLC that the Gayborhood does not exist so there is no reason to talk about it going away or not. Trippi Longstalking was in the room preparing to take over Placement quietly observing and I looked at her. I looked at Trippi who had the most interesting expression on her face because it said something to me I have yet to understand. Was it the hope that a new sheriff was in town or was she considering how she might have handled that discussion. I have yet to know. And this whole post is my own interpretation of the events.

I know we have allies in the BMorg. I know that BM fundamentals that have built the city do not want to group camps by specialty. No more red light district? Kidville is in tact. This year a lot of food driven camps were clustered closely. Musician camps like Rootpile camp have started consolidating. When Placement talks about the future what exactly are they getting to? And when will they acknowledge our progress?

See the following links for more information on this subject:

Action Events Taking Place:

Update Banner for All Of Us Event 2017

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An updated version of the All Of Us event banner for 2017. This has become so exciting I can hardly believe it. With good people involved the whole things is evolving into a major thing. We have great artists, performers and makers of music all making magic.

I write this in awe of what people can do together as a team and when it is the RIGHT people. As many projects I have done in the burnerverse this one hits home the hardest because it has born the most fruit. Why? Because this mission I have always put out there for Queer Burners is community and networking in the community. Because LGBTQ people (that is ALL the letters in the acronym and beyond) are not willing to be marginalized and simply sewn into the background. We flourish and demand to be seen.

There is so much we can learn from each other. I joined Burning Man and stayed in the community to better my relationship with women. That was actually something that I set as a goal for myself about a decade ago. It was a woman friend of mine who turned me on to this whole community.

Since then, having moved to San Francisco, I have grown a lot. I have fucked up a lot. But I have developed very special relationships with people who in the “real” world I might never have got to know, tried to know, or seen. I have a lot of gender queer, non-confirming and trans people in my life that are … (I just cannot say how much those people have touched my soul).

There are no words or actions I can make to prove how much I am blessed because of you. I write it here… but I hope I can show it better in my actions every day. If I fuck up give me a chance to make it right.

To those amazing supportive makers who have helped along the way… thank you with all my heart. To those who have been there and are still there but have taken a back seat, thank you too.

Thank you… now let’s all make some more magic!

What’s a Sparkle Pony?

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The following was an email received and answered: (The name of the inquisitor was changed)

Can you please tell me what a sparkle pony is? It sounds fabulous!
PersonX
—————
Well, hi there, PersonX!
You ask a very serious question. One that requires a history lesson and a warning for your safety. A Sparkle Pony is an evil, clueless race of heartless parasitic people who live off the sweat and hard work of others. They come from a far off land that they destroyed by neglect and carelessness while they focused on looking more beautiful. Without a home, they now invade all other lands trying to take as much air out of a room as possible.

12_sparklepony_withcopySparkle Ponies run around trying to look cute (but usually look desperate), trying to get attention from their costumes and their looks, while doing nothing to contribute to community or build a better world. In our history, we had a nasty infestation of Sparkle Ponies that we have successfully shunned and we must remain diligent to prevent them from trying to take over our little paradise in the desert – because they try every year.

But to be fair, I feel a little sorry for Sparkle Ponies. They’re just immature, clueless and have no idea how to enjoy the emotional benefits and personal growth that come from building community, serving others, acting in others’ best interests or nurturing their fellow human beings. But they do have a choice. A very important choice that can change their experience and their reputation… The changes in biochemistry that comes from truly bonding, wanting to get along with others, creating together and accomplishing great feats as a group, while glistening with sweat are what turns people into….Sparkle Stallions!

Now, you didn’t ask, but I feel it’s really important to explain what a Sparkle Stallion is. They are revered, beautiful creatures who know how to get shit done and look fierce while they are doing it. They work hard and play hard. They are professional partiers who create the party, make the party fun and clean up after it we use the best decorations as a teal table runner to create the perfect environment for any event. Our camp is full of Sparkle Stallions! They are known for their hard work ethic, their ability to smile and have fun while glittering it done. They are a beacon of hope for humanity. So, if you can, choose to be like Sparkle Stallions. They are much more popular with sincere, kind, generous, heart-centered people anyway. And they have better sex lives, I hear 🙂

I hope this is helpful, PersonX! I know you’ll choose the positive path and stay away from those Sparkle Ponies.
Love,
Uncle Coop (aka Michael Coop Cooper part of Comfort & Joy)

_______

Burning Man Zodiac
zodiac

Mediation and Neighborly Behavior

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This has been a topic that has come up quite often in the community lately in many forms. During a meeting last year at the Red Lightening camp hosted by the Burning Man Theme Camp Organizers admins and Placement where it was a seriously addressed issue by the head of Placement/DMV “Retro” making it clear that sound in the city limits was being taken seriously.

If you know Red Lightening they are a venue with performances and education series usually positioned on the Esplanade and are a relatively quiet, if not busy, camp with a lot of foot traffic. As we held our meetup at 11pm on a Wednesday night the camp next door started playing death metal and we could barely hear each other talking. In the not so far distance we could hear the Mayan Warrior on it’s way out of the city with the trademark drums beating announcing it’s arrival.

The look on Retro’s face was awestruck but he understood campers point of view, as he and a placer who was with him at the time, explained they were working on creating new policies to address those issues.

Within our Queer Burner community there were some issues as well. The new sound policy felt like it was getting it’s legs in 2015 but already in 2016 we can feel the full force of these new policies. In 2015 BAAAHS was placed at 7 & D kitty corner from Camp Conception which both played amplified music. And across from both was Sun Guardians that holds yoga and meditation classes during the day. As mayor of SG I found both BAAAHS and Camp Conception amiable in helping me limit the amplified sound when I went to talk to them about it for our day-time classes.

Yet other neighbors complained for various reasons, but asking two sound entities placed in the city was like asking a cheetah not to run.

In another case that came up, Disco Château was not placed this year because of a sound battle they had with their neighbors AEZ (Alternative Energy Zone) and possibly others in 2015. Not being good neighbors, especially to a long established camp, earned them a serious black mark from Placement.

We can do better and are working to do better. BAAAHS did everything they could to be compliant and tried to meet the needs of officials who gave them feedback. Disco Château on the other hand had some renegades who really ended up digging a deep hole that pulled a few people down with them; forcing a change in leadership for 2016.

stole this from the Facebook post

Solution

It is not up to us to confront people over issues that cannot be resolved with a polite neighborly discussion. I found our neighbors helpful from my point of view when I explained we needed the volume down between certain hours in the middle of the day which was pretty reasonable.

If you are not getting a response then seek out a Ranger for conflict mediation. Black Rock City Rangers are trained for that very purpose. When these occurrences happen they are being recorded in a blotter that is reported back to Placement and will / could affect your placement in the coming year.

The old fashion term “you catch more flies with honey than with vinegar” is still the standard. The “Fuck yer Burn” mentality of the past is slowly fading out with troll attitudes and crotchety veteran burners giving way to the flood of festival candy ravers who are flooding into the event.

If Rangers in the field cannot help, then go to the closest Ranger station and make a case for some escalated help calmly and probably with a bottle of booze. There is a strong desire to enforce sound policies this year and going forward that will support you. And if you are the one not complying, then you are inviting unwanted attention.

Conclusion

There was a post in the Burning Man Group that inspired today’s posting (link here) that inspored today’s post. The issues discussed with the named camps above were also issues I was mostly directly/indirectly involved with on some level. We need to have an open dialog with camps in violation of policies so they are not surprised with a denial of Placement the following year. While it may be assumed there should be no surprise, camps need feedback! While we have the benefit of the MOOP map for our cleanliness, we really need a report from Placement / Earth Guardians  or others if there are things we need to improve on.

There is a blacklist that exists that camps and participants do not have access to, nor the feedback necessary to make improvements with, that is a one-sided conversation and is hallmark of a very needed transparency with a department that makes huge decisions. Camps are putting out 10 – 20 – 30 thousand dollars a year to help build the city not to mention the price of a ticket only to be blackballed anonymously by a system rigged against its self.

It is an awful thing to consider. But we have learned to take these things in stride so far and move forward with what we can in spite of the odds. Volunteers make up most of the Burning Man troops and we appreciate their amazing work every year for something so many of us really believe is as close to Utopian ideals as we can imagine.

We all can do better with some effort. Be better humans. Be better neighbors. Be better participants. Be more accessible.

10 Principles Lost: Dissolution of our Foundation

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Burning Man co-founder Larry Harvey wrote the Ten Principles in 2004 as guidelines for the newly-formed Regional Network. They were crafted not as a dictate of how people should be and act, but as a reflection of the community’s ethos and culture as it had organically developed since the event’s inception.

The 10 Principles were drilled into me when I first came into the community and I adopted them whole-heartedly. As a camp and community leader it is vital I embody these, but is the meaning of these being diluted with the ever growing commercial access of TTITD?

Radical Inclusion
Anyone may be a part of Burning Man. We welcome and respect the stranger. No prerequisites exist for participation in our community.

  • QB: exclusion is something we as a community know well as being excluded and a large part of the LGBTQAI population consider themselves MARGINALIZED in society. This is one of the Principles that holds an extremely important characteristic we  value and are attracted to.

Gifting
Burning Man is devoted to acts of gift giving. The value of a gift is unconditional. Gifting does not contemplate a return or an exchange for something of equal value.

  • QB: Gifting is not Bartering. Accepting a gift with kindness and appreciation without expectation of exchange is also a key part of this Principle.

Decommodification
In order to preserve the spirit of gifting, our community seeks to create social environments that are unmediated by commercial sponsorships, transactions, or advertising. We stand ready to protect our culture from such exploitation. We resist the substitution of consumption for participatory experience.

  • QB: This is about taking the commercial and mass marketed part of products out of the experience.

Radical Self-reliance
Burning Man encourages the individual to discover, exercise and rely on his or her inner resources.

  • QB: Do not be a “Sparkle Pony” – come to the burn prepared to survive long enough to not die.
Join the conversation in the 10 Principles blog series.
Join the conversation in the 10 Principles blog series.

Radical Self-expression
Radical self-expression arises from the unique gifts of the individual. No one other than the individual or a collaborating group can determine its content. It is offered as a gift to others. In this spirit, the giver should respect the rights and liberties of the recipient.

  • QB: “Don’t dream it, be it…” – Dr Frankenfurter

Communal Effort
Our community values creative cooperation and collaboration. We strive to produce, promote and protect social networks, public spaces, works of art, and methods of communication that support such interaction.

  • QB: Some camps have this down like a fine art, some camps seem to be struggling with getting people rallied to make a camp happen. It seems that the larger the event gets, the more accessible by the bucket list crowd, the more attendees are looking at theme camps as hotels for the weekend where everything is set up for their pleasure. Getting some people engaged is a struggle while some get very motivated participants.

Civic Responsibility
We value civil society. Community members who organize events should assume responsibility for public welfare and endeavor to communicate civic responsibilities to participants. They must also assume responsibility for conducting events in accordance with local, state and federal laws.

  • QB: Part of this is the responsibility of the camp to provide an attraction for the city residents. It includes making sure that our spaces and streets are safe and clean. In fact there is a lot that falls under this umbrella. I think some camps are not evolving and working on making their presentations fresh for the years as they progress.

Leaving No Trace
Our community respects the environment. We are committed to leaving no physical trace of our activities wherever we gather. We clean up after ourselves and endeavor, whenever possible, to leave such places in a better state than when we found them.

  • QB: Pack it in and Pack it out… if you bring it with you take it with you when you leave. LNT is vital for camps and individuals and is perhaps one of the most abused and bruised Principles on the list. e.g.:
    • ever see the trash left along the side of the road on your way out of burning man?
    • campers who dump their excess on follow campers and leave without taking any trash with them?

Participation
Our community is committed to a radically participatory ethic. We believe that transformative change, whether in the individual or in society, can occur only through the medium of deeply personal participation. We achieve being through doing. Everyone is invited to work. Everyone is invited to play. We make the world real through actions that open the heart.

  • QB: We have layers of community and it is important that each one supports the other with near seamless lines. From our group of friends, our camps, our queer neighborhood and the city at large.

Immediacy
Immediate experience is, in many ways, the most important touchstone of value in our culture. We seek to overcome barriers that stand between us and a recognition of our inner selves, the reality of those around us, participation in society, and contact with a natural world exceeding human powers. No idea can substitute for this experience.

  • QB: That means now. Your team needs to get a goal accomplished that means that people are needed to spring into action.

EVERYTHING IN RED IS  a copy / paste from http://burningman.org/culture/philosophical-center/10-principles/

EVERYTHING in Gray is written by the author/presenter: Toaster

Depending on where you are in this community of Burning Man participants you might see the 10 Principles and how they can be applied. As camp leaders, community leaders or individual participants perspective is perhaps very different.

I think we are in trouble of loosing some very important ties to the 10 Principles in the wake of a tourist/festival mentality that is filtering into a culture that many of us have really opted into. As a camp builder and community leader, I personally see a lot of holes that participants are not filling in while leaders scramble to make up the difference.

Some leaders are really good at reaching into the assets of the community and asking for, selecting people, that are perfect for filling those spaces where someone is needed. On one hand it might seem like a lack of immediacy and civic responsibility when that volunteer is asked for, but on the other hand I hear participants say “I’ve done my share.”

Another area I think we are loosing ground is in the area of LNT. Leave No Trace is a case for the environment and the ability of our community to show we are reducing our impact on the very precious land we gather upon. This is something that has a point of view as well.

As a camp leader and community leader we often see participants unconsciously leaving their footprint on people in those roles. While it is not seen as a direct assault on the idea of LNT the importance of a camp leader is to get that green and hopefully the entire camp can feel proud about getting that green on the MOOP map.

Campers departing from the event often abandon furniture, food or other items with the assumption that someone else will take care of it. This is the biggest complain heard by camp leaders year after year. It takes the community minded collective to see the project from built to breakdown and leaving the space clean upon departure.

The real answer is Acculturation Training. While it will come from a variety of perspectives having a clear understanding of the 10 Principles and how they apply to the burn experience on and off the playa is the key to success in the culture.

Safety

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In the wake of Orlando, many of us are just stunned. It is probably more surprising that something as bad as that did not happen before. Every week it seems we are hearing about some horrible tragedy with guns in the world, but Orlando hit close to home for all of us. Queers have been targets for years by zealots.

In recent weeks we have been talking to BMorg about safety on the playa and in the Queer parts of the city and how it is important. That reason exploded this week. Believe it or not: many BMorg leaders and community participants have this misshapen view that Burning Man is all hippies and hugs which is not true.

Safety everywhere is a real issue. Listen to our older members of the community; to those who grew up in rural, scary places, to those who could not come out of the closet. Gay marriage was not the golden rainbow bridge that made us all equal. The things we did to survive in a hostile world in a country where all people were never really equal.

When the BMorg asked us if the flood of 7:30 Sector requests was queer camps we figure out the answer was no. Camps want the 7:30 sector because of alleged reasons such as better weather, streets in good condition, energy and more entertainment. While queer camps coalesced for safety, we hear BMorg uttering the dull roar of breaking it up again. We can’t have that. Now more than ever we need to safety and security of a united community.

Does that exclude non-queer community members? Not at all. We are a radically inclusive community but we have not always felt that inclusivity. Many see themselves and have experienced clear and defined marginalism. Our strength is in our perseverance and our chosen family and our community pride.

NOTE: BMorg Placement has not said they are breaking up the area typically known as the Gayborhood. But they are talking about making two distinct spaces in future events. This year it looks like we are going to see a Rainbow Road scenario and many of us are excited for that. But as Placement is taking on new leadership this year we need to be vigilant that the dialog of integrating queer camps through the city simply does not happen to dissolute the magic we bring as an attraction year after year.

Burning Man GLC: Toaster Trip Report

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This was my fourth or fifth GLC. The Global Leadership Conference focuses on Regional Contacts and Community Leaders out there in the world making Burning Man style events happen, This includes Burners Without Borders, Black Rock Solar, and Black Rock Arts among many entities.

A lot of people ask me how they can go, too. This was the first year they let me bring someone I nominated. One usually has to be nominated by a Regional Contact, but then of course San Francisco (where I live) does not have an R.C.. The facility where this was held was packed with people and there were people I knew who said were there on Facebook whom I never got a chance to see the whole weekend.

“The 10th annual Burning Man Global Leadership Conference (GLC) is an annual conference of Burning Man community leadership that happens each spring in San Francisco. From humble beginnings in 2007, where 70 Regional Contacts joined us at Burning Man HQ, the GLC has since grown to include over 400 participants from around the world.

These highly-energized folks are Burning Man’s global representatives and community leaders, ambassadors of Burning Man culture in their regions who throw any of 65 Regional events in 20 countries. They participate in the GLC to share ideas, best practices and inspiration, and to make the invaluable face-to-face connections that may just lead to the next big thing.

The conference is for organizers and community leaders in the Burning Man Regional Network, and space is limited, so attendance isn’t open to the public, BUT … we’re going to be covering key sessions that are of interest to the larger Burning Man community on the Burning Man Journal, as well as on Twitter.”

– Burning Man [dot] Org (linked)

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On @queer_burners on Twitter right from this conversation we tweeted a quote right from Larry Harvey in this Q&A where he talked about funding the arts. He said “Lots of hungry puppies only so many tits.” In fact the word “Money” was bandied about a lot for a corporation always faced with someone eager for a taste of the pie; e.g. the new Nevada tax that added $50+ to our ticket prices this year.

The Burning Man Global Leadership Conference

It happen April 1st to the 3rd at the Marines Memorial Theater / Hotel at 609 Sutter Ave here in San Francisco. Myself and Foxy (of Beaverton fame) went representing the Queer Burner community and a voice that was only about LGBTQ++ burning man participants. There are a lot of Queer leaders in the community whose missions are more specific to the geographic community than a “lifestyle” or “sexual orientation”. Regional Contacts are the primary focus, as well as future leaders, who also do projects in the long cast shadow of what Burning Man is.

Burning Man often looks and complains about a lack of diversity in their culture; specifically in skin color in the United States. There have been efforts to improve the variety of racial demographics. However, with the launching of Burning Man culture into different parts of the world the racial concerns seem to have wained as burns in Africa, Asia, South America, Central America and Europe have brought in a hungry and exciting rush of fresh blood making the 10 Principles their own.

Finally, the misogyny of the culture took more dents with the on-going delivery of messages about consent and personal responsibility. Over recent years these have been strongly related messages to leaders with tools to bring back to their communities. A champion in this area has been North Caroline burners.

The BMOrg is a corporation run by women (and Charlie and the odd board member) which has also sent a whole new set of messages to the community. A lot of Queer people work for the org as well but there is still this lingering blind disregard for a system to help queers, in many cases, and women who are venerable in a sexually charged and space where people have often lowered their defenses. This is still changing.

Some of our biggest concerns about Queer burners also came out of the South with a NC burner talking about degrading behavior toward Trans and queer people at South eastern events; but there are voices that are strong enough to let their peers know that such behavior was unacceptable. It was also refreshing to hear that a Radical Faery group USED TO go to the NC event but sadly they faded away. There was a subtle wake up call that LGBTQ burners are STILL not safe at all Burner events.

So we ask about what kind of diversity is Burning Man really looking for?It starts at the root level and has to grow. Almost anything meaningful has started with members of the community taking action which is why Queer Burners is here without any – ANY official support or injection from the BMOrg. If anything else, it has been clear that events are being driven toward family friendly and diverse audiences by Stephen Ra$pa and his team with less on adult activities. Yet, believe it or not anything with an LGBT label on it is still lumped into the ‘adults only’ category.

Why this summary?

There were leaders all over the world at the Conference (GLC) and for those interested in taking official status with the BMOrg the message was pretty clear what those steps needed were. Queer Burners is and will remain a grass roots project with it’s mission centered on Queer Burning Man participants and community builders.

I listened to everything there and talked to people at the best GLC I had ever been to. I do not know if it was the venue, the improved range of speakers or the delivery. Queer Burners (the project since 2008) has felt like the black sheep of the family year after year. But this year felt more like we were a part of the conversation and we had something to add for a variety of reasons.

If only I could figure out why there is a strong sense of opposition of our presence from a couple key people in the Borg. That is a conversation for another day, though.

Content

The GLC was mostly all business. The workshops followed key tracks:

  • Civic Activation
  • Community Events
  • Leadership Skills
  • Organizational Development
  • Foundation Skills

This year my focus was mostly on Financial and Event related tracks because of the many things Queer Burners is doing with events and planning. This included risk management and working on a better system of transparency. Queer Burners is launching events and making money; all of which will go right back into the community.

Foxy wrote a report on her experience here if you would like to see it. Being a Green Dot Ranger and in Ranger leadership she had a special spin on her experience. As Ranger Torchwood she wants to see more Queers who are a good fit into the Ranger culture. She will be presenting at the Queer Burner Retreat with 4 other Rangers.

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A famous Science Fiction writer was the key note speaker. His Playa name is/was Mez and had the theme camp the Church of Mez. Ramez Naam (Twitter: @ramez) wrote the award winning book APEX (part of a trilogy) and talked a lot about the future through the past. He talked about the possibility of Science Fiction versus reality. And interesting enough he talked about Stonewall and the gay rights movement a lot which I was taken by.

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Marian Goodell (the CEO of Burning Man) welcomed everyone. While she was genuinely excited to have people there she seemed unprepared for her presentation. She complained about her position as ‘having drawn the short straw’ for a role she is perfectly suited for. She took over from Larry though he remains the face of Burning Man. Marian used to run the Regional Network (of Regional Contacts) when I first joined the community less than a decade ago and I got to know her when she interviewed me as a potential R.C. way back then. But what did I do, I did what burners are supposed to do I went out and developed community without the approving nod of the BMOrg.

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There were a lot of people there presenting a lot of impressive projects. Above are two Chicago leaders reporting their event called the Chididerod. It’s decorated shopping carts racing through the city but raise a serious-butt-load of food for food banks in the area there; like – literally tons of food. While these folks had a ton to be proud of the self congratulating with so thickly layered on it was stifling. The ego landed on stage and waved a big flag all the way form Chicago. But they were not the only ones which I will cover soon.

The projects were impressive and part of the content was how to do stuff like this and not get sued, arrested or hurt. It was also about building communication with the local authorities and officials as needed to get the right people on board with your projects so you can find success. Nothing ends a great project faster than one that is misunderstood. How many times have you mentioned Burning Man to someone only to be judged as a hippie, druggie, pervert before the next word came out of your mouth?

We learned a lot about protecting the reputation as much as the people making and benefiting from whatever project a leader is putting out there.

There were so many people patting themselves on the backs or waving their arms around to say how they were doing it better. On the other hand, there were a lot of broken people who were crushed under failed projects like Apogea in Colorado. Pride and Envy are ugly demons and we all hope not to be run over by them.

I learned a lot and hope others learned too because some of the problems people were having seemed to have such obvious solutions, yet so many seemed to be resolvable by setting expectations for oneself and for their communities.

The picture gallery below will depict a lot of the content as it was presented, but maybe one day more leaders will be able to go to the GLC.

Queer Burners Presentation

On a lark, I decided to submit a suggestion for the UNconference. The unconference was a user generated pool of breakout sessions where we could put subject on the table and see if there was interest. We would get 45 minutes to bring the subject to the table and see what happened.

“LGBT issues in the Burner Community”: Foxy called me when I was waiting to get my hair cut on Saturday night after I left and told me I was presenting. I was shocked and excited and when her and I talked I realized I had no idea what I was going to really say.

– who was the audience?
– what if this goes in a completely wrong direction?

We asked ourselves a ton of questions and naturally I asked Foxy to co-facilitate it with me and help me with it no matter what direction it went.

We were originally scheduled to share a HUGE room with the Chididerod people but they asked us to leave because they needed the whole theater. We found space in a public area and managed with the half dozen people that joined us. We learned a lot about LGBT issues in other regions, too. Some feedback  is already contained in the content of this page.

It really felt good to contribute and bring this subject to the table.

What were the issues you ask? In the above section where we talked about the North Carolina regional event, that came from this discussion. Essentially for a lot of queers in various regions there is no “problem” but the emphasis was that out, queer people just want to feel welcome and safe. Perception of safety, even a glimpse, means a lot.

We only had 45 minutes and it went fast, but the topics were amazing. Talking about the regions that were present might make some people feel on the spot, but the NC information was really important and that prejudice still exists in the community; even at Black Rock City.

Personal Note

I got hit by a seriously bad cold on Saturday and I was a soppy wet mess. While this report is not about Toaster the point is that I missed out on some of the best networking time because of it. I missed all the evening events which was a disappointment but thank goodness Foxy was there.

In Conclusion

When these things come up and are offered by BMOrg people in the community should jump in. Whether it is GLC, Placement meeting, or event the amazing stuff offered in the various regions. These resources are a tremendous value. The GLC is really good for the communities when leaders are bringing back what are learned.

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